Drawing lessons - illustrated lesson notes for teachers and students

Basic oil paints - demonstraition

You will find the brush a little more difficult to handle as the pigments are much coarser than the

commercial alternative. Still persevere and you might manage to amaze your friends if not your own

household. After the painting dries you might find it becoming a little dull and lifeless. This is easily fixed

with the application of some ordinary furniture polish or wax ... as has been done with oil paintings for

centuries!

The palette

When I started painting my palette was - red (light red), yellow (yellow ochre), blue (cobalt) and white.

Next I needed some bulk earth colors and purchased burnt and raw sienna and similar umbers. Later I

added some cadmium reds and yellows, a crimson, cerulean and ultramarine blue. Finally I purchased

some transparent colors like alizarin, Italian pink and thalo blue. I stupidly have many colors I never use.

Surface preparation

I will usually paint on anything that will hold paint but it must be dry, flat, rigid and have a little tooth

(roughness). Canvas will also do but it must be laid flat or glued on a board later, otherwise cracking will

occur. I like to underpaint the surface with a couple of coats of gesso. I usually use a flat, thick, water

based white paint with whiting or some other compatable filler to add body. If it is too thin I will

sometimes add PVA glue to bind. If I intend to paint with glazes in the smooth finish traditional manner I

will lightly sandpaper the surface. Make sure the surface is completely dry before using oil paints (two or

three days).

Underpainting

Called the 'imprimatura' or base coat. Use the cheaper opaque ground colors, umbers ochres and siennas

are ideal, and apply thinly with turpentine.

Glazing

Glazes allow light to penetrate the layers and enhance color. They also permit the artist to construct the

painting in stages. I use a glaze 'medium' (the liquid to add to the paint) of oil (stand/linseed or the like)

varnish (resin/alkyd) and sometimes a little white spirit (turpentine). Modern alkyd lacquers dry rather

quickly and may be retarded with more oil or speeded up with the white spirit.

Student Activity: Make a list of other common products you think might be oil based and therefore

compatible with oil. Also nominate those common oil based products that are slow drying and those that

dry quickly. The student should also place some small pools of various oily substances on a sheet of glass

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