Monday, March 21, 2016

Create Amazing Works With Various Oil Painting Techniques

By Susan Bell


Of all the various mediums artists use to paint, such as acrylics, tempura, and watercolor, oils are typically considered to be the among the most versatile to work with. The pigments go on the canvas with a rich, buttery consistency, and stay vibrant and true as the age. With a range of oil painting techniques, the creative possibilities are virtually endless.

There are several reasons why this medium is favored by many artists around the world. This type of paint has the broadest color spectrum and tonal range of all available options. The slower drying time is a huge advantage for most as it allows the painter to blend strokes more smoothly and to make more precise corrections.

The fact that this paint type is fitting for almost any style, and all genres, is a greatly desired benefit. Whether the artists likes to do their work quickly, or take a longer time to add in a lot of controlled detailing, this options works for them. It allows the user to achieve intricate nuances that the others seems to miss.

No matter one's chosen genre or style, the tools of the medium are basically the same. The necessary items include an easel or tabletop work space, canvas, paints, gesso, color palette and flat knife, a variety of brushes and towels or rags to clean with. Using these products and using one or more different applications, an artist can produce wonderful art.

Building a proper base is the key to creating a wonderful piece of artwork. Color blocking, a method by which the artist uses highly diluted pigment and small, or broad brush strokes to build a guideline for the various aspects of the work to be laid over. This generates an instant background which can be built up with thicker layers and more deliberate details.

Giving dimension to one's work can be done with a variety of applications, often being used in conjunction with each other to get some interesting results. Among these are the thickness of paint, layering, brush stroke size, contrasting colors, as well as methods such as pointillism and crosshatching. Each of these, alone or in combination, create depth and lend the feelings of movement and space.

This particular type of paint can be very successful in creating a look of transparency that appears like crystal, still waters or glass. The main aspects of accomplishing this are the purity of the pigment and its creamy smooth consistency as it flows across the canvas, along with using contrasting colors and shading. Through long, unbroken brushstrokes, they are blended so smoothly that they appear seamless and it becomes near impossible to tell where the tones actually switch, similar to a reflective surface.

There are any number of ways that an artist can use the methods, such as a range of brush strokes in different directions and sizes, keeping pigment pure, blending irregularly and varied levels of dilution to get the look they want. Using thick layers, deliberate strokes, and stippling are other avenues which bring convincing depth perception to the piece. Knowing how to implement the power of pure whites and deep blacks are also incredibly effective tools.




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