VISUAL ARTS

Oil Painting
By: Mr. Hues
 VISUAL ARTS

The arts created primarily for visual perception and

typically exists in permanent form – such as drawing,
graphic, painting, sculpture and decorative art.
 OIL PAINTING

Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are

bound with a medium of drying oil. Commonly used drying
oils include linseed oil, poppy seed oil, walnut oil,
and safflower oil. Different oils confer various properties to
the oil paint, such as less yellowing or different drying times.
Certain differences are also visible in the sheen of the paints
depending on the oil. An artist might use several different
oils in the same painting depending on specific pigments and
effects desired. The paints themselves also develop a
particular consistency depending on the medium.
Although oil paint was first used for the Buddhist
Paintings by Indian and Chinese painters in
western Afghanistan sometime between the fifth and
tenth centuries, it did not gain popularity until the
15th century. Its practice may have migrated
westward during the Middle Ages. Oil paint eventually
became the principal medium used for creating
artworks as its advantages became widely known. The
transition began with Early Netherlandish painting in
Northern Europe and by the height of
the Renaissance oil painting techniques had almost
completely replaced tempera paints in the majority of
Europe.
 TRIVIA

WHO DISCOVERED OIL PAINT?

Jan van Eyck, a famous Belgian
painter developed oil painting by
mixing linseed oil and oil from
nuts with diverse colors.
 THE MEDIUM:
OIL COLOR

Many artists today consider oil painting to be the fundamental art

medium; something that a student should learn to appreciate, because
of its properties and use in previous, very popular artwork. Typical
qualities of oil paint include a long "open time," which means that the
paint does not dry quickly. Oil paints take several weeks to dry, this
allows the artist to work on a painting for many sessions. Oil paint also
has a propensity to blend into surrounding paint allowing a very subtle
blending of colors. This medium also produced vivid color with a natural
sheen and distinct contrast. Oil paints have a surface translucency
similar to human skin, making it an ideal medium for portraits.
The color of oil paint derives from the small particles mixed with the
carrier. Common pigment types include mineral salts such as white
oxides: lead, now most often replaced by less toxic zinc and titanium,
and the red to yellow cadmium pigments. Another class consists of earth
types, e.g. sienna or umber. Synthetic pigments are also now available.
Natural pigments have the advantage of being well understood through
centuries of use but synthetics have greatly increased the spectrum
available, and many are tested well for their lightfastness.
 OIL PAINT CATEGORIES

A brief overview of Artists’ vs Student quality paint

There are usually two grades of color available, artist quality and
student quality.
When first starting painting lessons it is often overwhelming to try
and decide which brush to buy, what canvas to paint on and the
biggest choice of all -- WHICH PAINTS TO BUY.
Your paints can help greatly in your progress as a painter, what
usually happens is a hesitancy on investing in the ‘good quality’
paints until you yourself become a better painter.

This is a mistake.
One of the key things to understand is the labeling and differences
between artist and student quality paint and how better quality
paint, can make your life as a painter much easier…
Artist quality
• Highest pigment levels
• Varied price range
• Widest choice of color
• Limited color shift
Student Quality
• Less paint coverage
• More affordable price range
• Greater color shift
• Good for large scale painting and under-painting
Price
Paint pigments can be expensive and vary in cost. Manufacturers group
colors into various price brands depending on the amount of the raw
material and what the raw material is.
The binder is relatively inexpensive in comparison. That is why artist
quality paints are split into series.(e.g. Series A, Series B) and others
numbers (e.g. Series 1, Series 2). The higher the letter or number, the
more expensive the paint.
It is important to note that in Student quality paints you can only get
series 1 and 2.
When you see “hue” written on a paint tube it means imitation, not a
pure Cad red pigment but a combination of cheaper available reds to
make a color very close. So you can imagine it’s never going to have the
color saturation that an artist grade paint will have.
Coverage
This is how easily a paint color covers another paint color, for
example, a black paint will cover a yellow easier than the yellow will
cover the black.
 Opacity
• Pigments vary in their transparency by nature, different paints have
difference levels of opacity depending on the paint pigments chemical
make up.
• So a paint made from earth, such as an ochre will be made from crushed
up rock. So will make a paint that has good coverage.
If you were using a paint that the pigments comes from a dye, or is man
made, such as a quinacridone, (called synthetic organics) the thinner
and more translucent a paint will be.
• Pro tip: It is very handy to understand the differences so if you want to
make a super translucent glaze, the quinacridones are perfect for glazing
(thin layer of paint)
• A rule of thumb is if you can’t pronounce the name it is usually a
transparent paint. If it sounds more ‘earthy’ it will be more opaque.
• Transparent colors are used for glazing and tinting.
• Opaque colors cover other paints easily, and are great for making solid,
flat areas of color and covering up any mistakes you’ve made.
Color range
Artist grade paints have a larger choice of colors available.
 Tinting strength
• This refers to how much or how little paint is needed to alter the color of
white paint.
• So if you used phthalo blue (high tinting strength) you would only need a
very little amount of paint to drastically change the white. In comparison
to say Terre verte which has a very low tinting strength.
• So for bright, colorful abstracts Terre verte would be the wrong choice,
but for toning down a bright pink in your portrait painting palette, Terre
verte would be perfect.
 OIL PAINTING MEDIUMS & SOLVENTS

Oil painting is a wonderful medium all on its own, but there are
modifiers that you can add to the oil paint that can change its
behavior. Mediums are mixed with oil paint both to modify the way
the paint handles straight from the tube (for example, make it
thinner or lengthen the drying time) and to alter the character of the
paint from what you get straight from a paint tube (for example,
make it transparent or opaque, gloss or matt). The most important
thing to understand about painting mediums, are the characteristics,
that each component of a medium possesses, so that the artist can
create a desired paint film.

Ideal mediums are colorless, permanent, flexible, and do not

influence the color of a pigment.
• Mediums are intended to alter the
drying time and consistency of oil
colors. These include various oils,
impasto paste or gels, and dryers like
the Winsor & Newton Liquin.
• Solvents
are manufactured to help thin
paints. Oils can thin oil colors, but
solvents could further thin oil
paint.
Sometimes also referred to as
thinners, solvents are most
effective in cleaning paint loaded
brushes after painting sessions.
Solvents include turpentine,
mineral spirits and paint thinners.
 OTHER AUXILIARIES…
EASEL
- a portable stand or frame
commonly of wood serving
required to hold a canvas
upright for the painter’s
convenience or for the sake
of displaying something.
CANVAS
Extremely heavy-duty plain-
woven fabric used for
making sails,
tents, backpacks, and other
functions where sturdiness is
required. It is also popularly
used as a painting surface,
typically stretched.
Early canvas was made of linen, sturdy brownish fabric of considerable
strength. Linen is particularly suitable for the use of oil paint. In the early
20th century, cotton canvas, often referred to as "cotton duck", came
into use. Linen is composed of higher quality material, and remains
popular with many professional artists, especially those who work with
oil paint. Cotton duck, which stretches more fully and has an even,
mechanical weave, offers a more economical alternative.
Palette Knife
A blunt tool used for mixing or applying paint, with a flexible steel blade.
It is primarily used for mixing paint paste, etc., or for marbling,
decorative endpapers, etc. The "palette" in the name is a reference to an
artist's palette which is used for mixing oil paints. Certain artistic
techniques call for painting with a palette knife.
A palette or mixing palette, in the original sense of the word, is a rigid,
flat surface on which a painter arranges and mixes paints. A palette is
usually made of wood, plastic, ceramic, or other hard, inert, nonporous
material, and can vary greatly in size and shape. The most commonly
known type of painter's palette is made of a thin wood board designed
to be held in the artist's hand and rest on the artist's arm.
• Palette cups or dipping cups are for holding turpentine, linseed oil, or
other mediums. The bottom of these cups has a clip which slides over
the edge of a flat oil color palette.
 ARTIST PAINT BRUSH
Paintbrush is a tool in applying
paint on the canvas. As you
paint you become familiar with
the way the each kind of brush
handle the paint and
accomplish your work.
THE ANATOMY OF A BRUSH
A paintbrush is made of 4 main parts:
bristles - also known as hairs. can be
natural, synthetic, or combination of both
ferrule - the silvery bit that connects the
bristles with the handle
crimp - the part of the ferrule that secures
it to the handle
handle - usually made of wood or acrylic
• ROUND
• good for: sketching, outlining, detailed work, controlled washes, filling in
small areas. creates thin to thick lines - thin at the tip, becoming wider
the more its pressed down.. use with thinned paint rather than thick
paint.
POINTED ROUND
narrower than the round paintbrush. has sharply pointed tip.
good for: fine details and lines, delicate areas, spotting and retouching.
FLAT
square end, with medium to long
hairs.
good for: bold strokes, washes,
filling wide spaces, impasto. can
use edge for fine lines, straight
edges and stripes. long haired flat
brushes are ideal for varnishing.
BRIGHT
square end, with medium to long
hairs.
good for: bold strokes, washes,
filling wide spaces, impasto. can
use edge for fine lines, straight
edges and stripes. long haired
flat brushes are ideal
for varnishing.
FILBERT
flat and oval-shaped end with medium to long hairs.
good for: blending, soft rounded edges like flower petals. this brush is
sort of a combination of the rounds (because they can be used for
detail) and flat (because they can cover more space than round).
ANGULAR FLAT
flat and oval-shaped end with medium to long hairs.
good for: blending, soft rounded edges like flower petals. this brush is
sort of a combination of the rounds (because they can be used for
detail) and flat (because they can cover more space than round).
FAN
flat, spread hairs.
good for: natural hairs are good
for smoothing, blending, and
feathering. synthetic hairs are
better for textural effects, clouds,
and leaves on trees. for acrylics,
use strong and sturdy one,
otherwise the hairs will clump
when paint is added.
RIGGER BRUSH
round, hairs longer in length. shorter handle.
good for: details and thin strokes. holds more color than you might
think!
DAGGER BRUSH
The dagger is a unique brush with a fine tip and gradually curving,
angled edge. It's name is derived from a sword-like appearance and it is
a very popular brush for pin-striping and free hand lettering.
POCHADE
Otherwise known as paintbox or en plein air box.
 PAINTING TECHNIQUES

The best way to learn painting is by doing!

 PRELIMINARY OR
STUDY SKETCH

A hastily executed drawing or painting, a preliminary one, giving the

essential features without the details
 BRUSH TECHNIQUES

• Wet in wet
• Wet on dry
• Painterly
• Feathering
• Stabbing (or stippling)
• Drybrushing
• Scumbling
• Glazing
• sfumato
 UNDERLAYS

UNDERPAINTING
Underpainting is the fundamental step in which first layer of paint is
applied as a base color on the surface on an artwork. Usually
monochromatic, it helps reduce the diluting effect of the white
canvas and allows the work to radiate its true color.

The Styles
Verdaccio - based on neutral gray tones
Grisaille - cooler gray-green tones
UNDERDRAWING
It is common for artists to draw
their design, sometimes in
considerable detail, directly onto
the primed canvas or panel.
Comparison of underdrawings with
the finished image can provide
insights into the artist’s ideas. It
can show how some elements
were adjusted until the artist was
satisfied with the composition.
UNDERCOLORING
(blocking-in, modeling,
detailing)

The preliminary application of

local colors to the objects on a
painting, usually very
transparent. It is similar to
underpainting only colors are
applied instead of
monochromatic underpainting.
GLAZING
Glazing is a technique employed by painters since the
invention of oil painting. Although in theory it is very
simple, in practice glazing can be a very complex
undertaking. In the simplest terms, glazing consists of
applying a transparent layer of paint over another
thoroughly dried layer of opaque paint, usually with a
wide, soft-bristled brush. The underpainting, as the
dried layer below is called, is generally done is a single
color but it may also contain some color. The upper
and lower layers of paint are not physically but
optically mixed. Glazing is similar to placing a sheet of
colored acetate over a monochrome photograph. The
paint used to glaze must be modified by an oil
medium to achieve the correct fluidity for brushing.
Glazing creates a unique "shine through," stained-
glass effect that is not obtainable by direct mixture of
paint.
UNDERPAINTING UNDERDRAWING UNDERCOLORING

UNDERCOLORING UNDER COLORING GLAZING

UNDERPAINTING
UNDERDRAWING
UNDERCOLORING (BLOCKING-IN)
UNDERCOLORING (MODELING)
UNDERCOLORING (DETAILING)
GLAZING
Title: “Back Scene”
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 4 x 3 Feet
Year: 2021
 Thank You…
HAPPY PAINTING!