Learn Oil Painting – Basic Beginner Steps
Bryon Zirker asked:
Oil paint dries very slowly, Unlike acrylic paints which dry very quickly. Acrylic paint was initially created as an underpainting medium for oil painting.
It is perfectly stable to put a base of acrylic and then place oil paint over it. Linseed oil added to oil paint will extend color, increase flow and increase workability. Oil paint with added medium is called long, oil paint used directly from the tube is called short or stiff.
You place you oil paints on a wooden board called a palette the very best palettes are made of pear wood.
It is very important to understand your paints and know which colors are:
Transparent (see through) Semi Opaque (slightly see through) and opaque (not see through) getting started put as much oil paint on your brush for two strokes three maximum always end your brush stroke on the canvas.
Make sure that you use linseed oil only when you are painting with the wet on wet method or process.
Do not confuse yourself with all of the many other mediums. Wait to discover those when you are more experienced. If you can actually afford the professional paints, definitely go ahead and buy them. You will notice immediately that they are completely different from the student paints.
Always buy the best brushes that you can afford. The Da Vinci brand brushes are the best professional brushes. Buy long handle bushes. The technique is to hold near the end of the handle. When developing talent one point to consider is the ability to take risks. Just play around with your paint however first understand it, only paint at an easel and make sure to stand back from your painting all the time. Never put your expensive brushes in turps when you are working in a session. Go ahead and wipe them clean with paper towels or cloth wash out your brushes in turps or a similar solvent at the end of a session and then be sure to clean immediately with soapy water.
Preparing the canvas the foundation of you piece
It is quite essential that you put on the first underpainting or wash on your canvas. This takes away the glare of the white (which will reflect back at you, quite annoying) and the more layers of paint you get onto your canvas the better and the more professional looking your painting, the more luminous the paint ant the more the painting will sing out with color and texture.
Traditionally an earth color of a burnt umber or raw umber, raw sienna or an ochre was painted on as a good first underpainting. Sometimes it can be pretty exciting to paint on a bright red or dark blue as your first underpainting especially when you are in the habit of putting on three or four layers and seeing the underpainting come through your painting. Use a big wash brush to apply the first underpainting it you use acrylic as your underpaint it will dry quickly and get you started quicker.
How to apply oil paint in two methods
1. Wet on wet or All Prima (in one step)
2. Stage Painting or Glazing Fat over lean
Wet on wet is applied by using the paint stiff, which is directly from the tube Or thinned to the consistency of salad dressing with linseed oil the essential part of painting wet on wet is making your brushes and painting knives do the work for you.
You definitely want to have full control of your brushes and experiment with different brushes to see the marks and texture streaks that they make.
Never work with turps unless you are working with the glazing method.
Never ever stand your brushes in any turps working in your painting session.
Turps will burn the bristles and inevitably there will be some left in the brush when you start to use color.
This will make it difficult to keep control of the flow or thickness of paint. The glazing technique is a process of building up your painting in a series of layers of the thinned paint.
I found this specific method for the glazing technique with oil paint it is called fat over lean
A Lean 1st layer thinned with solvent
A Lean 2nd layer thinned with less solvent
A Lean 3rd layer thinned with less solvent
A Fat 4th layer straight from tube
A Fat 5th layer thinned with little linseed oil
A Fat 6th layer thinned with more linseed oil
It is very essential that you this process exactly follow or the layers of paint will dry at different levels and possibly ***** the paint. Granted, it is a slow method and you absolutely need some patience however the results are spectacular tonal values which are essential in painting. This glazing method gives you full control of creating tones in acrylic paint. Here there is no mystery about paint.
Remember that paint is just pigment with a binder. In the case of oil paint, it is just a pigment with a drying oil usually linseed oil is used for this. The very best professional oil paints you will find are Michael Harding and Old Holland. Windsor and Newton and some other makes are good as well just make sure they are called professional paints and not the lesser quality student paints.
One last thing, Oil Paint dries very slowly, have patience and enjoy the journey. Paint on.
Oil paint dries very slowly, Unlike acrylic paints which dry very quickly. Acrylic paint was initially created as an underpainting medium for oil painting.
It is perfectly stable to put a base of acrylic and then place oil paint over it. Linseed oil added to oil paint will extend color, increase flow and increase workability. Oil paint with added medium is called long, oil paint used directly from the tube is called short or stiff.
You place you oil paints on a wooden board called a palette the very best palettes are made of pear wood.
It is very important to understand your paints and know which colors are:
Transparent (see through) Semi Opaque (slightly see through) and opaque (not see through) getting started put as much oil paint on your brush for two strokes three maximum always end your brush stroke on the canvas.
Make sure that you use linseed oil only when you are painting with the wet on wet method or process.
Do not confuse yourself with all of the many other mediums. Wait to discover those when you are more experienced. If you can actually afford the professional paints, definitely go ahead and buy them. You will notice immediately that they are completely different from the student paints.
Always buy the best brushes that you can afford. The Da Vinci brand brushes are the best professional brushes. Buy long handle bushes. The technique is to hold near the end of the handle. When developing talent one point to consider is the ability to take risks. Just play around with your paint however first understand it, only paint at an easel and make sure to stand back from your painting all the time. Never put your expensive brushes in turps when you are working in a session. Go ahead and wipe them clean with paper towels or cloth wash out your brushes in turps or a similar solvent at the end of a session and then be sure to clean immediately with soapy water.
Preparing the canvas the foundation of you piece
It is quite essential that you put on the first underpainting or wash on your canvas. This takes away the glare of the white (which will reflect back at you, quite annoying) and the more layers of paint you get onto your canvas the better and the more professional looking your painting, the more luminous the paint ant the more the painting will sing out with color and texture.
Traditionally an earth color of a burnt umber or raw umber, raw sienna or an ochre was painted on as a good first underpainting. Sometimes it can be pretty exciting to paint on a bright red or dark blue as your first underpainting especially when you are in the habit of putting on three or four layers and seeing the underpainting come through your painting. Use a big wash brush to apply the first underpainting it you use acrylic as your underpaint it will dry quickly and get you started quicker.
How to apply oil paint in two methods
1. Wet on wet or All Prima (in one step)
2. Stage Painting or Glazing Fat over lean
Wet on wet is applied by using the paint stiff, which is directly from the tube Or thinned to the consistency of salad dressing with linseed oil the essential part of painting wet on wet is making your brushes and painting knives do the work for you.
You definitely want to have full control of your brushes and experiment with different brushes to see the marks and texture streaks that they make.
Never work with turps unless you are working with the glazing method.
Never ever stand your brushes in any turps working in your painting session.
Turps will burn the bristles and inevitably there will be some left in the brush when you start to use color.
This will make it difficult to keep control of the flow or thickness of paint. The glazing technique is a process of building up your painting in a series of layers of the thinned paint.
I found this specific method for the glazing technique with oil paint it is called fat over lean
A Lean 1st layer thinned with solvent
A Lean 2nd layer thinned with less solvent
A Lean 3rd layer thinned with less solvent
A Fat 4th layer straight from tube
A Fat 5th layer thinned with little linseed oil
A Fat 6th layer thinned with more linseed oil
It is very essential that you this process exactly follow or the layers of paint will dry at different levels and possibly ***** the paint. Granted, it is a slow method and you absolutely need some patience however the results are spectacular tonal values which are essential in painting. This glazing method gives you full control of creating tones in acrylic paint. Here there is no mystery about paint.
Remember that paint is just pigment with a binder. In the case of oil paint, it is just a pigment with a drying oil usually linseed oil is used for this. The very best professional oil paints you will find are Michael Harding and Old Holland. Windsor and Newton and some other makes are good as well just make sure they are called professional paints and not the lesser quality student paints.
One last thing, Oil Paint dries very slowly, have patience and enjoy the journey. Paint on.
Oil Painting Tips – All About Oil Painting Brushes
Ralph Serpe asked:
Oil painting brushes come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes and this can sometimes overwhelm a beginner. This article will provide you with an overview of the various oil painting brushes available and help you decide what kind of brushes you should invest in.
BRUSH TEXTURES
Oil painting brushes come in two different textures basically, and they are classified as hard and soft. Hard brushes are generally referred to as “bristle brushes” and they are quite resilient. Hard brushes are made from hog’s hair and they are strong and stiff. They will hold a good amount of paint and can handle the oil painting medium quite well. I personally prefer working with bristle brushes exclusively as I tend to paint rather rough and direct.
Soft oil painting brushes are made from softer hairs that come from animals like sable, squirrel, or mongoose. Softer brushes will generally give your painting a softer smoother appearance and are more often used for finishing or detailed work. Sable brushes are the most expensive usually but there are synthetic brushes made of nylon that are very good substitutes for sable. They are more resilient and cheaper than sable.
BRUSH SHAPES
There are five shapes to brushes that are generally used and each is meant to have its own function. I prefer to paint with flats, brights and fliberts of various sizes, and only occasionally make use of the other shapes. This is my preference and you will certainly develop your own the longer you paint with oils.
Flats
Flat oil painting brushes have a wide square end with medium to long hairs. Flat brushes generally have a lot of spring to them and can hold a lot of paint. You can use these brushes for broad sweeping strokes or you can turn the brush on its edge to create fine lines. Flat brushes are great for earlier stages of a painting when you are blocking in large areas.
Brights
Bright oil painting brushes are similar in shape to flat brushes but the hairs are shorter. They are best used for making shorter controlled strokes. They do not hold nearly as much paint as a flat brush.
Filberts
The filbert is also similar to the flat brush only the edge of the brush comes to a rounded shape. The hairs of the filbert are medium to long in length. This rounded shape will give you more control then a bright. The filbert is great for blending and figurative work.
Rounds
A round oil painting brush has a round or pointed tip. They hold a nice amount of paint and are great for making thin or thick lines. Use this brush for dabbing on dots or blotches of color. Round brushes are also good for washes, fills and detailed work. They are not suited for creating hard straight edges.
Fans
The fan oil painting brush is a flat fan shaped brush. The fan brush is a specialized brush. It is either used very often by the artist or not at all. It really depends on your style of painting. This brush is not suited for holding paint. It is used more often for blending colors and you should keep this brush clean and dry if you plan to do a lot of blending during a session. The brush will begin to lose its effectiveness when it becomes filled with paint. You may want to keep a few extras on hand.
BRUSH SIZE
Oil painting brushes come in a variety of sizes indicated by numbers as in 1,2,4,6,8,10; size 1 being the smallest and 10 the largest in this example.
BRUSH MANUFACTURERS
Oil painting brushes are made by a number of different manufacturers. A few of the more popular brands are Winsor & Newton, Silver Brush and Robert Simmons. Some artists prefer one brand over another. Other artists like to have an assortment of different brands available. The only way you will know what you like best is by working with the brushes yourself.
CARING FOR YOUR BRUSHES
No matter what brush you buy, whether they are top of the line expensive brushes, or cheaper ones, you will definitely get more life out of them if you care for them properly. There seems to be a difference of opinion when it comes to brush care, especially when it comes to drying your brushes. I personally have two products on hand for cleaning and conditioning my brushes: Masters Brush Cleaner and Preserver and Mona Lisa Pink Brush Soap. I have found that the Masters Brush Cleaner works great on brushes that are deeply stained and hardened with paint, that I would have otherwise thrown out. I use the Mona Lisa Pink Brush Soap to clean my brushes right after a painting session. These cleaners will also help condition your brushes.
After washing my brushes with either of these cleaners, I then attach a clothes pin to the handle of the brush and rest the clothes pin on the edge of a counter or table so that the brush is hanging with the bristles pointing toward the floor. Gravity then pulls the moisture from the brush so that it does not collect in the ferrule, which can damage a brush over time.
I hope this article has helped. Best of luck and happy painting!
Oil painting brushes come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes and this can sometimes overwhelm a beginner. This article will provide you with an overview of the various oil painting brushes available and help you decide what kind of brushes you should invest in.
BRUSH TEXTURES
Oil painting brushes come in two different textures basically, and they are classified as hard and soft. Hard brushes are generally referred to as “bristle brushes” and they are quite resilient. Hard brushes are made from hog’s hair and they are strong and stiff. They will hold a good amount of paint and can handle the oil painting medium quite well. I personally prefer working with bristle brushes exclusively as I tend to paint rather rough and direct.
Soft oil painting brushes are made from softer hairs that come from animals like sable, squirrel, or mongoose. Softer brushes will generally give your painting a softer smoother appearance and are more often used for finishing or detailed work. Sable brushes are the most expensive usually but there are synthetic brushes made of nylon that are very good substitutes for sable. They are more resilient and cheaper than sable.
BRUSH SHAPES
There are five shapes to brushes that are generally used and each is meant to have its own function. I prefer to paint with flats, brights and fliberts of various sizes, and only occasionally make use of the other shapes. This is my preference and you will certainly develop your own the longer you paint with oils.
Flats
Flat oil painting brushes have a wide square end with medium to long hairs. Flat brushes generally have a lot of spring to them and can hold a lot of paint. You can use these brushes for broad sweeping strokes or you can turn the brush on its edge to create fine lines. Flat brushes are great for earlier stages of a painting when you are blocking in large areas.
Brights
Bright oil painting brushes are similar in shape to flat brushes but the hairs are shorter. They are best used for making shorter controlled strokes. They do not hold nearly as much paint as a flat brush.
Filberts
The filbert is also similar to the flat brush only the edge of the brush comes to a rounded shape. The hairs of the filbert are medium to long in length. This rounded shape will give you more control then a bright. The filbert is great for blending and figurative work.
Rounds
A round oil painting brush has a round or pointed tip. They hold a nice amount of paint and are great for making thin or thick lines. Use this brush for dabbing on dots or blotches of color. Round brushes are also good for washes, fills and detailed work. They are not suited for creating hard straight edges.
Fans
The fan oil painting brush is a flat fan shaped brush. The fan brush is a specialized brush. It is either used very often by the artist or not at all. It really depends on your style of painting. This brush is not suited for holding paint. It is used more often for blending colors and you should keep this brush clean and dry if you plan to do a lot of blending during a session. The brush will begin to lose its effectiveness when it becomes filled with paint. You may want to keep a few extras on hand.
BRUSH SIZE
Oil painting brushes come in a variety of sizes indicated by numbers as in 1,2,4,6,8,10; size 1 being the smallest and 10 the largest in this example.
BRUSH MANUFACTURERS
Oil painting brushes are made by a number of different manufacturers. A few of the more popular brands are Winsor & Newton, Silver Brush and Robert Simmons. Some artists prefer one brand over another. Other artists like to have an assortment of different brands available. The only way you will know what you like best is by working with the brushes yourself.
CARING FOR YOUR BRUSHES
No matter what brush you buy, whether they are top of the line expensive brushes, or cheaper ones, you will definitely get more life out of them if you care for them properly. There seems to be a difference of opinion when it comes to brush care, especially when it comes to drying your brushes. I personally have two products on hand for cleaning and conditioning my brushes: Masters Brush Cleaner and Preserver and Mona Lisa Pink Brush Soap. I have found that the Masters Brush Cleaner works great on brushes that are deeply stained and hardened with paint, that I would have otherwise thrown out. I use the Mona Lisa Pink Brush Soap to clean my brushes right after a painting session. These cleaners will also help condition your brushes.
After washing my brushes with either of these cleaners, I then attach a clothes pin to the handle of the brush and rest the clothes pin on the edge of a counter or table so that the brush is hanging with the bristles pointing toward the floor. Gravity then pulls the moisture from the brush so that it does not collect in the ferrule, which can damage a brush over time.
I hope this article has helped. Best of luck and happy painting!
