Oil Painting Lesson - Introduction To
Oil Painting Fundamentals
To accurately convey your feelings about the subject you are
painting,
landscape painting, you should learn and understand the fundamentals of
oil painting like
drawing, color theory, value and composition. I hope to give you a better understanding of these fundamentals in this
article. This
article is meant to be an introduction. You should study these topics further on your own when you have time.
DRAWING
Learning to draw, as a foundation for
oil painting, is one of the most valuable skills a beginner
oil painter can have. Many new
artists usually frown upon the idea of drawing first. They would rather jump right into
painting, as most beginners do. Nothing is more rewarding for a
painter, than working with color, but if you want to gain experience working with values, form, and space, then
drawing is something you should consider learning. This is not to say that you should master
drawing, as it is an
art form all in itself, but do spend time
drawing and sketching your subjects before you work with color. Did you know that
in art schools, many years ago, students were not permitted to work with
paint until they successfully spent at least a few years
drawing first? They must have been very restless, but imagine how skilled they became before they ever lifted a brush. You should at the very least have a basic understanding of
drawing techniques before you begin. Check out Amazon for some great beginner
drawing books that will give you a well rounded introduction to
drawing and techniques. A book that is highly recommended by
artists is: "The New
Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, by Betty Edwards".
COLOR AND VALUE
Color is probably the single most exciting p
art of oil painting. It is truly amazing how an
artist can take a two dimensional surface and create the illusion of depth and distance using color. To accurately depict a three dimensional scene using color requires much practice and an understanding of color theory and how to mix colors. The basics of color are value, hue, saturation and temperature. The value of a color is how light or dark it is. The hue refers to the color itself as it appears on the spectrum of colors. The saturation is the strength or purity of the color. The temperature of a color is how cool or warm a color is. For instance a cool color is blue and a warm is red.
Artists can use temperature to give the illusion of distance. Cooler colors tend to recede into the distance, as in a distant mountain range, and warmer colors tend to advance closer toward the front of a picture. Color theory is a very broad topic, one that deserves more thorough attention. A great book on color theory and mixing is "Color Mixing the Van Wyk Way: A Manual for
Oil Painters".
COMPOSITION
Have you ever visited an
art museum and a p
articular
painting just grabbed your attention and drew you in? Something in that
painting kept you there looking and studying it. One element the
artist successfully used in that
painting was composition.
The artist laid out the shapes and divided the space in the
painting in such away that appealed to your senses. Here are some points to consider when developing your composition:
1) Avoid putting the main focus of interest in the center of your
painting.
2) The areas of your canvas should be divided into p
arts of different sizes. For instance, if you are creating a
landscape painting, do not put the horizon right in the center of your
painting.
3) Do not place all the interesting p
arts of your composition on the left side of your
painting. People read from left to right so they will have no reason to continue viewing the rest of your
painting.
4) Avoid placing an interesting or important element of the
painting too close to the edge of the canvas.
There are other elements that contribute to good design in
an oil painting. Here is another good book to study if you would like to learn more about this fascinating aspect of
painting: “The Simple Secret to Better
Painting: How to Immediately Improve Your Work with the One Rule of Composition by Greg Albert”
I know all this information seems overwhelming at first.
Oil painting can be very challenging in the beginning, but don't let that intimidate you. The most important thing to remember is to never give up and keep
painting. You will learn from your mistakes and grow as a
painter. Everything will come together in time. Happy
Painting!
Oil Painting Lesson - Introduction To Oil Painting
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