Painting Studio 1 focuses on the study of painting, emphasizing both the painterly approaches of the 20th century as well as the present. Painting is a complicated medium, and easel painting bears an especially heavy historical burden. On the one hand, it presents the viewer with a form seemingly more accessible than less conventional media; on the other, it is difficult to enter this traditional field hoping that one will possibly push the genre forward. This is why painting contains in itself both a trap and a liberation. Studying painting, however, primarily means the quest for and establishment of longstanding values in art. In this curriculum, the student first establishes the skills that painting demands, and further builds her own artistic character on this foundation. It is vital to be aware of the possibilities of painting, but at the same time to stay open to a broader scope of thinking about art. That is why the intellectual environment of the Painting Studio 1 offers more than just teaching painting skills. It must also be a place for discussions and the confrontation of different attitudes.