How to paint a dinosaur

Step 1: Using Modelling Paste

 -    Apply modelling paste over the canvas using a concrete float or large palette knife

-    Use a large offset palette knife to smooth the paste out

-    Allow the surface to dry before moving to the next step

Step 2: Canvas tint

 -    Tint the canvas with a base coat of Lemon Yellow acrylic paint

-    Acrylic paint provides a stable base for oil paints

-    Plus, the yellow will enhance the depth of the colours you paint over it

Step 3: Dinosaur outline drawing

 -    Print the outline on our website and draw a grid over it for accurate dimensions

-    Use charcoal to draw a faint grid with upscaled dimensions on the canvas

-    Sketch the dinosaur using graphite over the grid

-    Redraw the outlines with a black acrylic paint pen for clearer lines

Step 4: Background painting

 -    Print out the colour guide for reference

-    Lay in Hooker’s Green acrylic paint for the large tree and the cycads

-    Squeeze out Olive Green, Permanent Green, Sap Green, Lemon Yellow, Phthalo Blue, Light Green, Titanium White, and Brilliant Red

-    Lay in the yellow to green mid-area of the canvas with thin, blended layers

-    Apply Sap Green and Permanent Green for the foliage near the bottom of the canvas

-    Blend them gently with yellow for a blue-green tone

-    Add Phthalo Blue and white for the sky in the top right corner, blending it with yellow and white as you move downwards

-    Paint the trees and foliage in varying tones, adding darker tones for trees in the background and lighter washes for distance effects

-    Use white in the centre of the canvas to suggest sunlight peeking through

-    Finish by dry brushing orange in areas where the light hits the tree

Step 5: Grisaille painting technique

 -    Paint the dinosaurs in a monochromatic tone using Titanium White and Ivory Black (this is called a grisaille!)

-    Start by applying a thin coat of Titanium White over the dinosaur

-    Then use a dry brush charged with black for shadows

-    Gradually build up the tones and blend the ultra-dark areas into the greys for smooth transitions

-    Allow the grisaille layer to dry (it should take 3-5 days to be touch-dry)

Step 6: Oil glazing technique

 -    Once the grisaille is dry, use a water-based felt tip pen to mark where the dinosaur’s stripes and spots will go

-    Squeeze out Orange, Yellow Deep, Lemon Yellow, Burnt Umber, and Phthalo Blue onto your palette

-    Mix each oil paint colour with linseed oil for glazing

-    Start at the snout with Orange and blend into Yellow Deep, then Lemon Yellow as you move down the body, ensuring smooth transitions

-    Follow the same glazing technique for the hatchlings, but instead of stripes, create a series of spots with the same colours

Step 7: Mont Marte Sand Texture Medium

 -    While the glazing dries, mix sand texture medium into Acrylic Titanium White paint, tinted with Yellow Ochre and Burnt Umber

-    Apply this mix with a taklon brush to the dirt mound for added texture

Step 9: Final touches

 -    Add any finishing touches and refine areas as needed

-    Add shadows under the dinosaur to incorporate her into the scene naturally

-    Paint the cycad leaves with green tones for a lush, finished look

If you completed those steps, you’ve not got a high-quality, dynamic dinosaur painting on your hands! We hope you had as much fun creating this piece as we did. Stay creative and get ready for more exciting projects coming soon.