Milano Painting Academy organises and hosts the painting workshop Road to Caravaggio, taught by artists Alex Folla and Elena Trailina, whose work is inspired by the art of the Renaissance and the Old Masters’ paintings.
During this intensive workshop, participants will realise a copy of a masterpiece by Caravaggio, guided by the artists. Folla and Trailina will show them how to obtain the dramatic tones and the chiaroscuro effects that characterise the work of the great Italian Baroque artist. The workshop encompasses the preparation of canvases following traditional methods, with particular attention to the colour used for the background of the work, to finally selecting a specific range of colours to use and achieve the effects of different materials with paint.
Participants will realise one/two draft canvas/es to familiarise themselves with the “pittura al risparmio” technique – paint saving technique. During this first exercise, Folla and Trailina will explain how to look at the subject to draw, taking into account the different materials and their way of reflecting light. The teachers will illustrate how to paint the human skin resembling Caravaggio’s outcomes. After having practiced and understood the different light effects and how to paint a human body, participants will devote themselves to painting one of Caravaggio’s artworks on a reduced-scale canvas. With the aid of Trailina and Folla, participants will also study how to realise different materials and textures in their paintings.