Lifestyle, food and drink, and our family life and travel adventures.
From the masters of the Renaissance to the custom paintings and reproductions available at 1st-art-gallery.com, oil painting has developed strongly over the course of human history and inspired countless people. If you’re inspired by oil paintings, you may want to try your hand at making an oil painting personally. If so, you might be intimidated by the intensive techniques that have developed over time and where to start. These tips are some of the basics that you need to learn.
One of the most basic things to learn is how to properly hold a paintbrush to have the proper control over the brush. The biggest mistake that new painters often make is trying to choke up on the brush and hold it like a pencil but this isn’t the best form.
While different artists have different preferences, most artists opt to hold the brush as far back on it as they are comfortable doing so. This might feel pretty uncomfortable and awkward at first, but practice makes perfect and it offers plenty of benefits in the long run.
This position allows the artist to use their whole arm to paint rather than just the wrist, as a writing position does. This increases both sensitivity and fluidity, giving the artist more room to work.
Along with how an artist holds their brush, the amount of pressure that they apply to that paintbrush is game-changing as well.
For instance, applying heavy pressure will offer a wider stroke and rougher edges that are easier to blend. On the opposite end of the spectrum, a light touch will help create fine lines with a more perfect edge.
It’s a good idea to take some time to practice this application of pressure before starting to work on a full composition. Taking a spare piece of paper and trying a few different brushstrokes out helps any new artist get the hang of this technique.
On the topic of paintbrushes, it’s worth noting that a paintbrush isn’t the only option for decorating a canvas. Take a palette brush as an example. While this tool is typically reserved for mixing paint, it’s also a great way to apply pigment to canvas. This is especially true if the artist wants to experiment with different textures and different trowel types offer in varying degrees.
Since palette knives have hard edges, this is a particularly good technique if the artist is aiming for angular imagery. This is particularly helpful in more abstract painting styles even though it doesn’t always fit with a hyperrealistic style such as oil paintings of the Baroque Movement.
One advantage of oil paint is that as long as the previous layer is dry, the artist can add another layer of paint to build on the painting. There are a few tips to this technique other than waiting for the paint to dry that every oil painter should know.
Namely, there’s an order to it. It’s best to start with thinner layers of paint and to begin to build up from there. After that, the artist can effectively build up from thin, light-colored layers to dark, thicker, more dramatic layers.
Chiaroscuro is an absolutely crucial technique to learn if you want to oil paintings a more dimensional appearance. Not to mention, it’s one the oldest techniques in the medium. Simply defined, chiaroscuro refers to the use of light and shadow to give it a three-dimensional rather than flat appearance.
The best way to get the hang of this technique is to start with simple shapes. For instance, draw a circle and practice adding light and shadow to that shape until it look like a sphere. To expand the skillset, try practicing the same template with different light sources.
Most artist recommend using pure black for the bulk of the shadow as well as a neutral background color.
When starting on a white paper or canvas, it’s easy to make the mistake of overlooking the use of white paint. After all, why paint something the color it already is? Don’t banish the white paint to simple blending, though! White paint is actually rather useful when adding volume with the chiaroscuro technique or when trying to define white tones.
To define white tones, use a thick layer of white paint over the dry area that needs defining. Use this carefully and selectively – it doesn’t do any good to cover the subject of painting with white paint entirely.
Oil painting can seem intimidating at first glance but it doesn’t have to be! In learning these techniques, you’ll have the basics down in no time and the ability to put your ideas on canvas.
This is a collaborative post.
Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
Contact: [email protected]
