“I love to look at art, I love to look at paintings, and I almost feel like the experience isn’t complete until I’ve made something of my own.” – Cecily Brown
Do you know what’s the world’s most expensive painting ever to have been sold?
It is none other than the oil painting and artistic masterpiece, Salvator Mundi (Saviour of the World) by the world-famous painter, Leonardo da Vinci.
The painting, which is a representation of Jesus Christ as the saviour of the world, was sold for more than 400 million dollars (that’s equivalent to RM1,755,200,000) by the Abu Dhabi's Department of Culture and Tourism for the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
Yes we know, that’s a lot of zeroes.
Source: The New York Times
Obviously, not everyone is a Leonardo da Vinci wannabe. While art education is made compulsory from kindergarten level up to secondary school, not everyone chooses to make a living out of painting. There’s also the misconception that you must be naturally gifted in order to paint well.
That’s so far from the truth. There are many people who pick up painting as a relaxing hobby and either embark on a self-learning journey or enrol in a private painting course.
We at Superprof humbly suggest that you explore various forms of painting lessons. While it is totally fine to enrol in a proper art school, why not try a specialised painting course through an art gallery or association?
Exploring Art Galleries In Malaysia
If you love looking at various paintings and art all day, you should certainly check out these four amazing art galleries.
Wei Ling Galleries, Kuala Lumpur
Founded in 2002, Wei Ling Galleries is a place where Malaysian contemporary art and passionate painting lovers collide.
The gallery actively organises art exhibitions and art fairs to present talented artists in Malaysia to the international audience. Furthermore, the gallery also supports upcoming and new local talents in the contemporary art industry and launched the WLG Incubator in 2020. Under this programme, aspiring artists will be able to develop their talent and portfolio under the guidance of a mentor.
Among the artists that are represented under Wei Ling Galleries are:
- Amin Gulgee
- Anurendra Jegadeva
- Anida Yoeu Ali
- Chen Wei Meng
- Cheng Yen Pheng
- Cheong Kiet Cheng
- Chin Kong Yee
- Choy Chun Wei
- Dadang Christanto
- Hamidi Hadi
- H. Lim
- Ivan Lam
- Rajinder Singh
- Roger Ballen
- Sean Lean
- Wong Chee Meng
- Yau Bee Ling
Ilham Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
Next is on our list is Ilham Gallery. It is a public art gallery that showcases a wide range of exhibitions such as landscapes, portraits, popular culture, batik paintings and many more.
Apart from that, the gallery is also a frequent organiser of art forums, discussions, and photography projects to cater to art lovers in Malaysia.
Some examples of activities that were held previously include:
- ILHAM Art Show
- ILHAM Contemporary Forum Malaysia
- Batik Workshop
- Curatorial Tour
- Photography competitions and many more
To learn more about the contemporary art scene, you can head to the ILHAM Gallery homepage and visit the Resource Centre to search for more books, publications and journals on the topic.
Important note: The gallery is closed on Mondays and public holidays.
Senso Art Gallery Café, Johor Bahru
Staying down south in Malaysia? Don’t worry, we got you covered.
A chic and lovely haven for art lovers who fancy a cup of tea, Senso Art Gallery Café was founded in 2017.
Apart from showcasing local artists' work, the gallery also provides an array of services such as colouring workshops, press flower workshops, cyanotype workshops, painting workshops, art painting customisation as well as long-term painting courses.
For painting workshops, some of the painting types that are covered include acrylic, oil painting, watercolour and mixed media.
Daichi Art Gallery, Penang
Now, let’s travel up North, shall we?
Do you know that Daichi Art Gallery is the largest private art gallery in North Malaysia?
It widely promotes drawings, paintings, ceramics, calligraphy and other work of art that possess historical significance.
You can expect to see a huge amount of painting types at the gallery such as:
- Acrylic paintings on boards, canvas and papers
- Batik
- Etching
- Mixed media on paper
- Oil painting on canvas
- Pen on canvas
- Tempera
- Watercolour and others
Why Should You Join A Painting Learning Community Near You?
You should know by now that painting is quite an intense and costly hobby/recreational activity.
To master various painting styles such as oil painting, watercolour painting, ink painting and acrylic painting and to consistently demonstrate good painting techniques, you need to first build a strong foundation.
In other words, you can’t master painting in one day.
Also, let’s not forget that taking up painting means having the need to allocate a budget for painting materials, such as poster paint, pigments, paintbrushes, charcoal, canvases, an easel, sketchbooks, paint palettes, etc...
That’s why we highly recommend you start painting through a community painting association. It possesses many advantages, the most obvious being that prices for the lessons are much lower than those offered by a school offering specialised and flexible classes and allow you to learn with a more limited budget.
In the meantime, don’t forget to explore these online painting classes.
Affordability of the lessons (COST)
The cost of lessons is perhaps the first factor to consider and is usually what makes people initially turn towards painting associations or galleries for painting and art lessons.
That’s because the hourly class fee is usually a lot more affordable than most private art academies.
With so many painting societies and associations out there, you will definitely be able to find one that suits you!
Learning Environment
More often than not, painting associations are known for providing courses that are more informal than those offered in art schools and professional art academies.
The friendliness, good-humoured atmosphere and sense of exchange are all part of the experience and embody the values of community associations and societies.
This is a great appeal to many individuals who are learning painting for the first time because it is often very easy to approach and connect with the painting instructor and even make friends with the other students.
Not only that, painting associations often also organise informal activities outside of class time to foster the exchange of ideas and fellowship.
Instead of feeling lonely during your painting lessons, you get to learn from one another and receive continuous support to persevere when you find that your motivation is draining.
Photo by Jeswin Thomas on Unsplash
Flexible Learning Pace and Experience
Many painting associations give students the opportunity to bring their own personal art projects with them to class and ask the teacher for advice on how to improve.
Instead of following a pre-planned painting syllabus, many beginner-level students who are looking to eventually take part in an art-related apprenticeship and want to be led by their own creativity right from the beginning of their artistic journey will benefit greatly from this practice.
Whether you are looking to learn to draw or paint landscapes or explore oil painting in terms of portraits or acrylic painting, painting associations give students a chance “think outside of the box” while collaborating on a project and paint their hearts out without major restrictions.
Having said that, painting associations and galleries are also an excellent way of perfecting your painting craft or diversifying a portfolio for students who are advanced painters. Instead of fixating on a particular style of painting, these groups of students get to come out of their comfort zone by learning new painting techniques or even implementing new insights from their previous paintings.
In other words, everyone gets to learn and improve at their own pace.
Furthermore, you also get to receive individual support from your art instructor regularly during the lessons. That’s because many painting classes at painting associations tend to be smaller in groups.
Are Painting Lessons in Art Academies Better Than Painting Associations and Galleries?
When we think of painting classes offered by galleries, and associations, what normally comes to our mind is that the lessons are less comprehensive and detailed.
We are here to assure you that just because lessons at painting associations and galleries appear to be “less formal”, it does not mean that they are equally effective or in some cases, more effective than regular painting lessons in art academies.
In terms of art academies, the lesson syllabus, the number of students, the duration of lessons and the final evaluation system are standardized and apply to every learner in the class.
If you are looking for personalisation and more freedom in terms of creative expression, we highly recommend you consider painting lessons in painting associations.
Do you know that instructors in painting associations and painting workshops are not just any old art teachers, but specialists in their field?
The instructors are selected for their industrial experience, specified artistic talent and availability as a painter. That’s why you’ll notice that many famous local painters are often invited as guest instructors to conduct a specific workshop according to various demands.
Even if the instructors are new to formal teaching, their teaching materials, method and style will probably still be objectively evaluated before and after they begin their lessons.
That being said, most painting instructors and art teachers that are invited by the associations or galleries are remunerated. Even if the organisation has charitable status, that does not mean that the workshops and lessons are free of charge.
When a gallery or painting association is set up, founding members will normally allocate a portion of the budget for education and research purposes to provide the necessary reimbursements to the instructors r in order to provide quality painting lessons.
You should debunk your previous preconceptions about art galleries and painting associations by now! The best way to be proven wrong is to try out a painting class and make your own call.
Continue reading to know the best platform to take painting classes anywhere in Malaysia.
Prefer To Take Individual Painting Lessons? Hire A Superprof Tutor.
Let’s be honest. Private tutoring especially online lessons are taking over the world now.
Anyone can learn anything from anywhere with a stable Internet connection and good mobile devices. You can also learn from anyone without any geographical limitations.
If you are looking for a personalised, flexible and reliable painting tutor, we highly recommend you to hire one via Superprof.
Superprof is a student-friendly platform that connects learners and educators from all parts of the world.
All you need to do is just head to the Superprof Malaysia homepage and input “Painting” as your desired subject as well as your current location. Superprof Malaysia allows you to take home tutoring painting lessons or 100% online painting lessons according to your preferences.
After doing that, you will then be directed to a pool of tutors that offer painting lessons based on your filtering adjustments in terms of your maximum budget, location, teaching mode, teaching methodology, past reviews and so on.
From there, you can then proceed to connect with a few painting tutors to inquire more about their lessons via the Student Subscription Pass at only RM25!
Once your discussion with the tutor is finalised, you can then sit back and wait for your first lesson where you will receive one-to-one undivided attention and guidance.
With Superprof, learning has never been so easy.
Why You Should Join A Painting Competition?
If you have learnt painting for a while now, you may be encouraged by your painting community or direct tutor to participate in a painting competition.
One of the most famous local painting competitions that were held this year was the UOB Painting of the Year competition.
Participants can submit various forms of painting media which include Batik painting, Chinese brush, mixed media, oil painting, collage, acrylic painting and so on.
Winners were selected for the Established Artist and Emerging Artist categories to ensure fairness and diversity.
Having said that, here are three reasons why you should try out a painting competition regardless of your learning level.
Reason 1: Boost your confidence through direct experience
When you are preparing for a painting competition, you will be more intentional and proactive to improve your skills through continuous practice. Furthermore, you also get to look at your skills objectively and receive direct feedback to be a better painter.
Reason 2: You can gain networking opportunities (meet a new mentor, and like-minded friends)
During the competition, you will meet painters from all walks of life, specialisation and learning levels. Take this opportunity to talk to the other participants or even introduce yourself to the organizers. You’ll never know where it will take you in life.
Photo by Raychan on Unsplash
Reason 3: Build your painting portfolio
Last but not the least, if you intend to turn pro one day or turn your painting passion into a side hustle, you can seize this chance to build your portfolio.
Trust us, potential clients often look at portfolios as a point of reference and they love to work with painters with many previous works in competitions too.
We hope this article has broadened your horizon on the relevance of painting associations as well as alternative learning options when it comes to polishing your painting skills regardless of your level. You got this!
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