Jany Belluz — A Year of Painting from Home

02 Jan 2026

A Year of Painting from Home

In 2024, I took six months of painting classes at the Beaux Arts school in Paris. The classes are for adults, and open to everyone. In order to help with attending the classes, I switched to a four-day work week, so that I have one day off each week, which I used to attend afternoon classes.

In 2025, I didn’t sign up for the classes again, however I kept the four-day week (which is amazing by the way), and I tried to dedicate some afternoons to painting at home. I did that using either objects from around my house, in a still-life style, or using photos of landscapes as reference. Contrary to watercolour, I can’t (yet?) take my oil painting outside, my setup is too messy.

I completed each painting in a single day, usually in the afternoon/evening, and posted photos of the work in progress on Mastodon. Here on this blog, I’m gathering photos of all the finished paintings I did in 2025. I’m hoping to continue in 2026, and maybe to sign up for another class to keep learning how to paint people.

I snapped the photos below just today, all lit by the same almost horizontal winter sunlight. The light shows the texture of the paint, but it adds white reflections and black shadows in places where the intended colour of the paint is otherwise. I’ve put links to Mastodon next to each photo, where the shots don’t have this texture.

Oil painting on paper, showing on a table: a black plastic kettle, a sachet of herbal tea, a mug and biscuits on a plate, and the metal thingy to steep the leaves in the mug, taken out and resting on the side. — A cup of herbal tea with biscuits.
On Mastodon

Oil painting on A3 paper of kitchen things: a bottle of balsamic vinegar, one of olive oil, a head of garlic, a box of instant broth, pots of laurel and chili flakes — Various condiments from my kitchen.
On Mastodon

Oil painting of a single white chrysanthemum flower, with dark green leaves. It's in a vase made of white clay, covered in transparent glaze, decorated brush stroke of blue cobalt oxide and ridges around the bottom. — I bought a flower to paint it, and I used a vase that I made when I was doing pottery classes in London.
On Mastodon

Oil painting of a bouquet of red tulips in a water jug, against a black background. The jug has light reflections from the lamps in my flat and and I pretended that it was above a reflective surface as well (as if sitting on shiny dark wood). The tulips are all leaning right. They have yellow fringes on their pink-red petals. — Tulips that I got at the same time as the chrysanthemum.
On Mastodon

Oil painting on A3 paper showing a stack of books next to a wooden drawing figurine. The figurine has an arm raised and the other pointing forward, the pose is a bit random. Next to it there's also a potted plant that has lots of thin, hanging purple stems and small green leaves. — Some books and a wooden drawing mannequin.
On Mastodon

Painting of the tower, a black and white cylinder, in a landscape of sky, sea, shoreline and hiking paths. The sky is bright with very light white clouds, the sea is sunlit. — La Tour de Vinde (aka Noirmont Tower) from the island of Jersey. On Mastodon

Oil painting of a countryside landscape. A small road goes between fields towards the horizon. The fields on the left are surrounded by a forest in the distance. On the right, a group of tall trees blocks the view. The sky has dramatic clouds, the kind that happen in summer before a thunderstorm. — Clouds over the countryside where I grew up. On Mastodon

Still life painting of various fruit and vegetable sitting on a light brown table, in front of a white wall. There's a cucumber, two oignons, two tomatoes, shallots, a bowl of peaches, three potatoes. A strong light coming from the right casts strange shadows from the ognion's dried up leaves. — Fruits and vegetables that I brought back from visiting my parents. On Mastodon

Lanscape painting of the river Seine, buildings of the city Courbevoie, and a cloud above them. The time is close to dusk, it's not dark yet but the setting sun makes the sky yellow and the clouds pink and orange. The street lights are already on, along the walkway and park that runs on the bank of the river; but the flats' windows are still dark. Oil on A3 paper. — A cloud over Courbevoie. On Mastodon

Oil painting as described, on A3 paper, portrait. The background is wood and the items sit on a reflective black surface. The sourdough starter is bubbly and the fruit are arranged in a brown paper bag. — A kitchen scene, with a pumpkin, my sourdough starter and some flour, fruits, and cooking utensils.
On Mastodon