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Oil Painting

Early History

The history of oil painting goes back to prehistoric times when man endeavoured to capture his world and experiences in paint. It was deep in the caves of Southern Europe when man mixed animal fats with earth and soot to form what can be considered the first oil paints. The paint was then transferred onto the walls of the cave, with the primitive images of the hunters and the animals hunted becoming the earliest artistic creations of humankind.

The medium evolved when in the 15th century, Jan van Eyck the famous Belgian artist found that linseed oil and oil from nuts could be mixed with pigments to create brilliant oil colours. Though there is evidence that some English artists from the 13th Century used oils, van Eyck remains the inventor and first exponent of oil painting technique, as we know it today.

In modern times, oil colour is one of the most popular choices of expression by artists worldwide, because it offers great variety & technique, strong depth of colour vibrancy and permanence that enable paintings to last thousands of years.

It is also one of the most forgiving mediums – the paint can be easily manipulated on the canvas and if you make a mistake you can always wipe the colour off the canvas (with a cloth dipped in turpentine), due to the length of drying time.

The extraordinary flexibility of oil colour lends itself perfectly to the traditional painting techniques of blending and glazing, impasto and scumbling on a multitude of surfaces, giving the artist excellent results.

Equipment Needed

To begin painting in oil colour, you need three simple things:

• Some good beginners’ materials

• A subject to paint

• A basic technique

A beginner’s palette of oil colours could consist of the following colours:

• Cadmium Lemon Hue
• Cadmium Yellow Hue
• Cadmium Red Hue
• Permanent Rose
• Permanent Alizarin Crimson
• French Ultramarine
• Phthalo Blue
• Viridian Hue
• Raw Umber
• Yellow Ochre
• Burnt Sienna
• Titanium White

• Brushes

• Surface to paint on – paper / canvas

• Palette

• Palette knife - to mix paint and for application of oils straight onto canvas. Can also be used for moving the paint around the surface.

• Charcoal – for drawing an outline of the subject before you begin to paint.

• Easel

• Solvents such as English distilled turps and white spirit can be used for thinning oil colour for painting. It can also be used for cleaning brushes & equipment.

• Old jam jar - for holding your solvents and washing out brushes.

• Dippers – artists often clip dippers onto the side of the palette to hold solvent and painting medium.

• Overall

• Cloth

Choosing a palette of colours

The main practice is to maintain a broad palette of about twelve colours and add to it for specific requirements. Once you have this initial palette, the next stage is to find suitable brushes and surfaces.

Which Brushes?

Fine Hog brushes have corrosion resistant ferrules and the natural curve of the bristle is utilised to retain the shape and point for fine detailed work. Most beginners need four brushes to start painting in oils.

Brush Type: A large or medium sized FLAT brush Nos. 6 (medium),10 or 12 (large)
Brush Use: For large areas of colour. The tip can also be used for thin narrow lines.
Also useful for blending and manipulating the colour around the canvas.

Brush Type: A medium sized ROUND brush No. 6 (medium)
Brush Use: For broad areas of colour.
Also good for scumbling and dabbing on small patches of colour.

Brush Type: small sized ROUND brush No.2
Brush Use: For fine detail and highlighting.

Which Surface?

Paper
Oil Colour Paper has a traditional canvas textured surface which is specifically designed for use with oils and acrylics. With a specially formulated primer applied during the sizing process it has the right degree of absorbency for oil application.

Canvas
Stretched canvas has been the most common support for oils since the 17th century. The weave of the cloth combined with the spring of the stretched material are the features that maintain its popularity.

Canvas Board
Canvas boards have traditionally been used for sketching outdoors. Boards take up less room and are less easily damaged than stretched canvases.

Other surfaces
Often artists like to use alternative surfaces rather than canvases and papers. Oil can be applied to MDF, wooden furniture & panels, glass, hardboard, walls and plaster. When painting on an unconventional surface it is important to ensure the surface is prepared properly with a suitable primer.

What to paint

Finding a subject

Many artists find it difficult to be inspired by the ordinary everyday things. However, you can turn the very ordinary object into something special by simply looking at it creatively. You do not have to travel to find the perfect view or the ideal image – simply look around and decide what you want to paint and PAINT it.

Painting an oil colour landscape

Landscapes are arguably the easiest for beginners and the following basic technique can be applied. The general principles that apply when painting a landscape are your view and the aerial perspective. Colours become less vivid the further away they are and as objects recede their tones become paler and less contrasted.

How to compose a painting

Paint the first layer of colour thinly for each part of the painting i.e. the sky, the mountains, the trees etc. Allow it to become tacky or touch dry.

Put a second coat of colour on top of the first coat but add the light and shade – making the picture become three-dimensional. The second paint layer should add more depth to the subjects in your picture.

Using a small round brush, paint in the detail of the subject i.e. the fine branches on trees or the jagged edges on rocks. Or if you have a building in the painting then the chimney pots, window frames etc.

Finish the painting off with highlights on the edges of subjects. For example, a fine touch of Titanium White on top of a mountain where snow has landed or on the edge of rooftops where the sunlight catches.

Which technique to use for creating effects

The basic techniques featured here can be used to create different effects in traditional and contemporary art, for any subject at anytime.

Whilst developing your own painting style, you could try all of these techniques in a single painting or simply choose one depending on the effect you are trying to achieve. Alternatively you can just paint without using any of them - the choice is yours.

Fat over Lean (or flexible over less flexible)
The method of oil painting in which each layer of paint is more flexible than the ones underneath. Adding more medium to the colour in each layer achieves greater flexibility per layer. This technique is particularly useful in landscape painting and for creating a flexible multi-layered painting.

Thick over Thin
The method of oil painting in which thick layers of paint are added on top of a thin background layer to produce a 3-D effect. If you are going to use thick oil colour in layers then you should avoid subsequent thin layers. This technique is particularly useful for still life and portraits.

Wet into Wet
The process of adding fresh colour into existing still wet layers. The technique can be used to bring great immediacy and interest to the image. It can also be used as a technique for blending, and can be accomplished with the colour in virtually any state of viscosity (thickness), from thick and stiff to fluid. This technique is often used in botanical painting.

Glazing

Glazing
A technique that builds up layers of transparent or semi-transparent colours over dry underlayers. The effect is one of great depth and spatial atmosphere. It is a lengthy technique, but the effects in oil are unmatched when compared with other media. This technique is particularly useful for painting seascapes and water.

Impasto

Impasto
This is a painting method where the colour is applied stiff and thick leaving brush and knife marks as a central element in painting. An impasto surface can be dynamic and powerful. For thick impasto, build the texture in several layers, allowing each layer to dry before applying the next. This technique is used in contemporary art to create 3-D effect and texture.

S'graffito

S’graffito
This is a technique of scraping into a wet oil film, usually with the handle end of a brush, or a painting knife. It is an expressive effect, and is also effective for defining outlines. This technique is often used in contemporary art.

Scumbling

Scumbling
With a stiff brush, work a thin film of opaque or semi-opaque colour loosely over your painting, allowing colour from the layer below to show through. The effect is highly atmospheric.

Summary

It is useful to follow some helpful hints as listed below:

• Constantly refer to the subject you are painting and to your work of art.

• Start painting from the top left (or top right if you are left-handed) of the surface – this will save your shirtsleeves from picking up paint and avoid accidental smudging.

• Experiment with different brushes and/or palette knives when applying the paint to the surface.

• Look out for light and shadow and highlight with light colours and dark tones.

• Paint loose; don’t get hung up on accuracy. Remember it is a painting not reality.

• Be patient with drying times. Oil can take between three and six months to dry to finally varnish and frame.

• These are just some of the oil painting techniques used by artists worldwide. There are many styles that can be adopted using oils such as Impressionism and Abstract.

• Give yourself time to develop your own style and try as many techniques as possible to find which one suits your creativity.

• Finally, read any books and magazines on oil colour or watch television programmes which feature oil painting.

The important thing is that you enjoy it and are proud of your work of art.

The information contained within this craft technique sheet is presented in good faith, but no warranty is given, nor results guaranteed. Product quantities and selections may vary at each HobbyCraft Superstore. Products are subject to availability and not all ranges are available in all stores. Before making a special journey please contact the store direct to check that they have your required product in stock. HobbyCraft Group Ltd disclaims all liability from any injury to anyone using this craft technique as a result of improper safety precautions. Since we have no control over physical conditions surrounding the application of the information herein contained, HobbyCraft Group Ltd disclaims any liability for untoward results.



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