Objects as portraits: Still life oil painting summer school

Event information

• Type: Courses: Art making
• Date: 20 July - 22 July 2026
• Tickets: From £486
• Location: The National Gallery
• Address: Trafalgar Square, London, WC2N 5DN, UK
• Official page: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/events/objects-as-portraits-still-life-oil-painting-summer-school-july-2026

Details

About

Still life painting has long been a way for artists to think deeply about and capture the world around them through objects. From devotional images of simple vessels to abundant displays of fruit and flowers and expressive abstract compositions, still-life paintings can act as portraits: of people, beliefs, politics, wealth and ways of seeing.

In this three-day summer school, you’ll explore how still life painting has evolved over time, and how objects can carry meaning. Working in dialogue with the National Gallery’s exhibition on Francisco de Zurbarán, we’ll study 17th-century Spanish and Dutch still-life paintings alongside later developments in modern painting, including the work of Paul Cezanne.

Across three studio days, you’ll work from carefully constructed still-life arrangements, developing oil paintings that move from close observation to more personal interpretation. Through guided looking in the Gallery and sustained studio practice, the course invites you to consider how still lives can function not just as depictions of objects, but as portraits shaped by time, touch and personality.

This summer school is suitable for artists of all levels. All materials are provided, and your works are yours to take home. Handouts with extra resources will be provided in advance of the sessions.

Suitable for participants aged 18 or over.