What's the best approach to learning traditional painting?

Trial and error.

>>2968481
Unironically this
Just keep practicing. Watercolor, for example, takes a lot of knowledge of mixing pigments and brush control that you can only learn from experiencing and trying it out for yourself. There's a physical aspect to painting that you just gotta acclimate yourself to, it took me a year to figure out how to do a decent large wash. Read tutorials, try new techniques, and find something that works for you.

Why do you keep using the same image?

>>2968490
Why not?

>>2968481
exactly.
you try something and if it doesn't work, you try another thing. sometimes the thing you tried might not be what you want but you remember it for later or explore it in the moment
remember anon, you're not trying to complete a painting, you're trying to learn as much as you can in a small span of time. fuck the painting.