DON'T use Oil Painting Medium, Until You've Watched This!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 มิ.ย. 2024
- In this oil painting tutorial, realist painter Alex Tzavaras shows you when, why and how to use to use oil painting mediums and techniques.
For Alex's courses on the fundamental principles of oil painting visit:
/ simplifydrawingandpain...
00:00 Intro
00:28 Oil Painting Mediums for Glazing Techniques
01:45 What is an Oil Painting Medium?
02:00 Solvents and Thinners
02:42 Linseed Oil
03:18 Polymerisation
03:50 The Fat Over Lean Painting Technique
04:40 How to avoid Sinking in
05:37 Different Ingredients and Recipes for Oil Painting Mediums
06:40 Liquin and Other Modern Alkyd Oil Painting Mediums
07:28 Using Mediums with Alla Prima Oil Painting Techniques
08:42 Using Oil Painting Mediums on Less Absorbent Surfaces
09:30 Linseed Standing Oil
10:35 How to Mix an Oil Painting Medium with Linseed Stand Oil
11:15 When to use Oil Painting mediums
11:50 How much Oil Painting Medium to use
12:10 What is Oiling Out?
13:42 Retouching Varnish
14:50 How to Varnish an Oil Painting
We have this idea that oil painting mediums are some sort of magic ingredients that hold the secret to succesful oil painting. But do we really need to use them?
We have inherited the idea that oil painting mediums and techniques are necessary from rennaisance times, when artists used an oil painting technique called glazing. Artists would use oil painting mediums for glazing techniques, in order to make their colours transparent. Their oil painting medium recipes where often closely garden secrets.
If you are not using glazing techniques, but are instead using a direct or Alla prima oil painting technique, then oil painting mediums do not play such an important role. In fact, you can most definitely paint without using any oil painting medium at all. However, there are some circumstances in Alla Prima oil painting, when you may choose to use oil painting mediums and techniques. So, in this video Alex explains when these situations might occur and he shows you how to use oil painting mediums.
Alex Tzavaras is a contemporary realist artist offering portrait painting and alla prima oil painting tutorials. Alex teaches the traditional painting techniques artists used to draw and paint from life up until the start of the 20th century.
Here are some of Alex's other videos on the fundamental principles of oil painting.
Drawing:
• How to Draw Using Comp...
Light and Dark Tonal Values:
• The Most important Thi...
Colour temperature:
• Oil Painting Tutorial ...
Colour Intensity & saturation:
• Oil Painting Tutorial ...
Connect with Alex:
/ alex_tzavaras
/ simplifydrawingandpain...
/ alextzavaras
alextzavaras.com
Great info… The more I hear about 6 month dry times, the more I’m like… Wow, acrylics actually rock. 😂 Stresses me out just to think about a painting not being completely dry & durable after that long.
Maaan, what I would give for a tutorial on how to open the W&N Linseed bottle! 😩😩😩
I hate those press down bottles!
right 😂😂
😂😂 Same! I absolutely hate them!!
Simple! Get a flat screw driver and insert it betweeen the white cap and the inner screw cap. Lever it until it’s loose. Carry on around the cap. You may need to use scissors to cut it but the white push down cap can be loosened, cut and discarded. You’ll be left with the screw cap which is easy to open and close! It works 😻
Drill a hole in the top and stick a screw in it to keep it sealed. eventually they become unusable
As a diehard Liquin Original user for over 20 years, painting outdoors en plein air, I love it because you can add a small bit to your white paint and then anytime you add white to a color, like the sky, it automatically has a bit of Liquin dryer in it. In the old plein air days, I would paint a painting on Monday using Liquin, and the next day or two the painting was dry "to the touch", then I would frame it on Friday and sell it on Saturday, Yes the paint under the dried skin is still soft but will dry in the collectors home. Some thing to think about. As an alternative I have experimented with Gamblin Solvent free gel. I like it painting outdoors, BUT it dries very quickly and becomes tacky in less than an hour. Probably the sun and wind help the fast drying. Some folks like that feature if they are adding subsequent layers the same day! Just some thoughts...
As for fat over lean, blooming is sometimes the result of painting over not yet dried paint. Also, the subject matter does play into the relative consistency of one's paint. Sometimes the subject matter dictates not only the kind of surface finish, but the texture of the paint overall. I love the fact that all manners of application can apply to a single painting.
Wow so needed to hear this as i have been blagging oil techniques without realising with paintings in the past …. Thanks for another great vid 👍🖖👩🏼🎨🙏
I was having trouble figuring out how to make my brush strokes in the darker areas level-out without using so much medium... this video gives me some insight on how to make that happen!
This is the best presentation I've yet seen on this topic. Thank you.
Thank you very much John! Glad you think so.
Love the visual examples Alex, thankyou for making it easy to see the effects of oil drying
Thanks Liz!
You do a great job, and have no concerns sharing your tips with my students. Kudos!
Thank you Todd!
I've learned so much from your channel, the information is researched, experienced and easy to understand.
Thank you very much Roger. Glad you've found it useful.
Thanks for a good tutorial. Learned alot from your information. Very helpful.
Wow! I am learning so much about oil painting from you, thank you. Will check out your courses
Thank you very much Kate! I'm glad you think so.
Yep, when it comes to mediums, there's a lot of "peer - pressure".
When I was younger I never bothered with it, only using turps to get the underpainting done quickly. I started to notice other painters with all sorts of dippers for this and that and it made me feel maybe I wasn't doing it right.🙄
That's how I paint. I never use linseed oil or any other medium. I thin out with mineral spirits for the underpainting and to clean my brush. That's all.
Thanks for sharing.. I luv to watch your videos, everytime to be able to remember all those tips.
Thank you Ruben! I'm glad you like them.
I've been using liquin in the early stages to speed up dry time and it works like linseed oil.
Thank you - we love your videos - real simple and clear
Thank you very much! Glad you like them.
Thank you so much! This is very informative video. I just started learning painting and your channel is the best resource in the whole internet.
Thank you Andrey!
What a great discussion on a complicated subject. Thank you!
Thank you Rob! Glad it was helpful.
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting very helpful. I’ll look through more of your lesson videos today. Enjoy the adventures of the day!
this dude rules. love him.
All good info! Thanks Alex 👍🏻
Thank Gray. Glad it was helpful
Wish I could find a little container set like you have ~11:54, so handy!
I do not why I loose notification every time you publish something. But, I say in a thousand of subs, I look only for your new videos, so full of great information and experience. You are making this beautiful art chaotic world, just easy and "simple". I think you are getting exaclty what you want. Thank you!
Thank very much for following me Tommaso! Very glad you find my explanations easy to understand and that they make sense.
Great vid, as always, thanks!
Thank you, thank you, thank you for a great explanation!!!!
Just saw 1min of your video but learned so much, thanks! Subscribed !
Thank you!
Fantastic video, really helpful information, thank you!
Thanks Jon!
Brilliant. Thanks so much for this, it's exactly what I needed. I hope you do one on varnishing. Thanks again, you star!!! :)
Thanks Melanie. Will do.
thank you, very clear explanation.
Great info, thanks so much!
Easily the best and most useful painting channel on youtube .
Thank you very much Nicholas!
I use just Liquin (Original to speed up drying and Gel to speed up drying and keep a bit of texture) and Drying Linseed Oil (not as much as Liquin). Also, I cover canvases and boards with non-absorbent primer (Michael Harding). I use retouch varnish to seal and secure finished painting. Thank you for great video!
This video was very helpful, thank you!
Thanks Frances!
This is a helpful video. Heating up the stand oil/turpentine mixture is a brilliant tip. I'm so surprised that no one taught me that before.
Thanks! Glad it was helpful.
Detailed & useful
This was a very good video..you get right to the point..and explain things very well. Thanks! I subscribed.
Thank you Dave!
Thank you for this video it gave me a much better understanding and what I have done wrong.
You're welcome, glad it was helpful.
This is a good explanation for lots of beginners to watch and understand. Things are always more complicated depending on if you're trying to create certain "effects" where then the artist breaks the rules of fat over lean and later on you can see evidence that the rule was broken for the sake of effect. If you ever go into a museum and see that some paintings have cracked differently due to thickness, glazing, scumbles etc. Some paintings will appear to be in much better shape with minimal cracking because of all of these variables.
Also certain pigments are either more stable or less stable than others, when you read Ralph Mayer's book this becomes evident. It's also a reason why some pigments have fallen out of favor. When you begin with a color and Add any color as you are mixing will either stabilize that initial color more or destabilize depending on what you add. For example if you start with a brittle color like certain black pigments and add a more stable color to it, essentially you are improving that color's stability- in addition to changing it's stability you are also changing it's properties of transparency or opacity and coverage etc. Hopefully that makes sense.
hi Alex, oiled-out areas will be prone to yellowing (if not painted over), true, but they will not necessarly sunk in again (unless the underneath layers are reeeeeally 'thirsty'), as the oil is being absorbed and fill the underneath layers as well as the current one.
Also, retouch varnish is a suicidal idea in the event of wanting to paint again over it (acceptable as a momentary varnish waiting for the final one).
Retouch varnish is removable, so it means you're going to build the next part of your house on an instable foundation.
An alkyd resin is better suited as an ingredient for a retouch varnish, as the paintfilm is flexible, yellows minimally and most of all it's not removable by common solvents. 1 part liquin into 5 parts OMS is a good ready made retouch varnish far superior to the damar one. Best regards
Thanks,. You sound much more knowledgeable on the subject than I am. I rarely use either method. I sometimes add a drop or two of medium to my colours if I when I paint over darker areas after they have dried. I've found this helps avoid sinking in in the first place. I thought I'd show people what oiling out was and how it was done properly, just so people knew what the term meant. As for retouch varnish, I'd heard it could be problematic. Though interestingly, I once to a lecture by one of the conservators who worked on the Sargent exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in the UK back in 2015. She said that Sargent apparently used loads of retouch varnish and that his paintings have proved to be remarkably stable.
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting I've heard that too about Sargent but I had the strong feeling that he painted 'into' his retouch varnish (a varnish-out, so to speak), by doing that he would be basically mixing an oleoresin medium on the go, reducing the introduction of new oil to a minimum level. Van Dyck did something kind of similar but for different reasons, introducing diluted pine resin and let it become tacky to paint fine details into that. Bodied oils also should have a higher molecular weight, making them less prone to sink in (your medium is perfect for that!).
Impressive assortment of mediums on your backdrop shelf. thank you for mentioning more than once that en plein air oil painting does not really require medium. As a newbie oil en plein air wanna be this was 👍
Thanks Paul. Glad it was helpful.
Thank you very much 👏🏻👍🏼
Hi Alex, fantástic videos. Your información accurate. And reliable. A must see for all. 👍👍👍
Thank you Roberto! Glad you like d it.
I learned a lot. Thank you .
Thank you! Glad it was helpful.
i have bought harold speed oil painting techniques and matrials good to now about mediums thanks alex
Thank you Kaj. Well done on Harold Speed, take your time with it.
Your video is going to make painting much more enjoyable from now on because I finally understood two big mistakes I was making:
Mistake #1. Because I had learned to mix less thinner in subsequent coats or none at all, as you mention yourself while describing the early stages, I thought this rule also applied to oil so I ended up trying to use less and less oil in later stages of the painting. I was effectively making the mistake of applying lean over fat instead of the other way around.
Mistake #2. While I was trying to apply lean over fat, the wrong thing to do, I found myself more and more frustrated with the paint's thickness and added oil to make it more fluid while what I should have done is to use a lot of paint. I had been using a minimal amount of paint indeed.
Hi Alex,
I've tried 5 parts turp + 1 part stand oil + 1 part damar varnish.
It's like Ralph Mayers recipe without the driers. It's a formula used by Richard Schmidt and other Alla Prima painters. I like it, it allows you layering better wet on wet and makes the paint flow.
Using resin in mediums is not archival.
Where did you get this information?
As far as I know, Schmidt didn't use anything.
Copay concentrate I found to be an excellent ingredient because it kept the colors lively and fresh.
Thank YOU MUCH appreciated xx
Thank you!
Very interesting video!!
Thank you!
Very, very useful, thanks Alex, nice t-shirt.. :)
Thank you Jakov. For the video, and the T-shirt. It's actually one of my favourites. It's from the movie "The Wicker Man".
Great informative video! I have always used a mix of boiled linseed and Turpentine. I just started experimenting with Liquin to speed drying. It seems to leave an undesirable gloss. So I cut it with a little mineral spirits and seems to be working better. One thing that I have discovered is that different paint pigments react very different to mediums. Darker earth tones and black flow really fast with a tiny bit of medium. A high grade cadmium with a lot of pigment seems to work very with mixing mediums and can arrive at desired colors in less mixing time. The same for high quality cobalts and viridian. I started preferring the cheaper less pigmented paynes gray and raw umber for my toned out areas where a lot of paint and less pigment is needed.
Interesting. Do you think the way particular pigments to mediums has anything to do with their transparency/opacity?
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting Yes, it is in the way they absorb or reflect light. Of coarse we know that the gold and silver in the cads greatly reflect light and the dark earth tones absorb. The reason I started using more Purssion blue mixed with Cerulean instead of Ultramerine in my Skies is because the Purssion seems to give greater transparency. For along time I was using way too much Crome Oxide green and now Sap green is my more go to base for quick mixing shades of green. I save Crome Oxide for when I need more transparent and lean towards it to calm my violets while keeping them semi transparent. But Titanium white seems to break rules opacity but leans towards transparency
Bravo on another great teaching video, Alex! Thanks so much! I was taught a number of years ago to use Walnut Oil and found it to be easy and odorless. I have since tried a number of different mediums but find that I keep going back to plain ol’ walnut oil as it makes a good medium, I can clean my brushes with it, and it tastes great on a salad 😋 ... really!
Thank you! Glad you liked it. I know other artists who use walnut oil. I've never tried it. Do you use continually through painting, to increase the flow. Or just in the later stages?
Thank you very much
Fave medium...gamblin cold wax + griffin alkyds...you get a satin finish and the alkyd toughens up the wax...smooth transitions...
dries quick.
Dries quick, not too glossy, hmm
i much prefer to use a mix of stand oil and gamsol - diff ratios for various layers as it leaves no brushmarks behind. i also add a touch of linseed oil to gamsol for my underpainting.
Very informative video! Ralph Mayer's book was my main art bible, although I now find bits of his info outdated.
When needed, for a medium I use the non toxic Oleogel from Rublev Natural Pigments, which can also be used for oiling out and glazing. Even though with the abundance of transparent pigments that are so useful for glazing, a little medium is necessary for opaque and simi opaque pigments when glazing.
I know several artists who swear by Oleogel. I don't use them, but modern alkyd mediums might be the way forward for glazing? So that you don't have to worry about fat over lean? One of my favourite British painters Kenny McKendry creates amazing colour effects with Liquin glazes.
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting Thanks for the reply! I get it Alex, I have long done away with Liquin and all alkyd versions. Although there are less potent formations of alkyd mediums, for me they are unnecessary and the odor is so unpleasant. As my underpainting is kept thin (no medium) and so few layers of finish paint, fat over lean is not a worry.
Again I find completely transparent colors work great for glazing and if needed a touch of the terrific odorless Oleogel.
Cool, I'm a bit familiar with Kenny's work, mostly his landscapes.
I like the information from you
Damn. Why did it took so long to find this. Thank you thank you thank you
Glad you found this and it was helpful!
Videos are outstanding
Thank you very much Isaac!
Thanks for this, Mediums are quite confusing. Been using linseed oil, mixing 2 or 3 drops into each colour with a palette knife, paying attention to use less in the beginning and more towards the end but I must say I am worried that it will yellow or look dull. I'll try dipping into the medium with the brush next time and will also try stand oil with turps. Alex is an art angel
Thank you Jack!
(i will mix more paint and try oil primed linen too. thanks
Thanks for your insights. Very usefull. Would you please make a video regarding palette knife usage techniques?
That's a great Idea, I shall definitely do that at some point. In the meantime, I did a plain air demo for my video on oil paint and and in that I used my palette knife to achieve some of the textures. It's only a brief mention but you may find it helpful?
th-cam.com/video/J09PLnBtUMo/w-d-xo.html
Virgil Elliot has pointed out that the umbers in an underpainting, can suck the oil from the overlayers and create sinking in.
Umbers are fairly lean in their oil content and thus thirsty for oil.
Recommended is Mars brown, a synthetic earth that lacks manganese.
If you wanted a grisaille that dries quick , add Prussian blue to anything brown to get a quick drying black...add lead white and presto you have an underpainting that won't suck the life out of upper layers. Also ACRYLIC gesso will drain oil as well....use gamblin fast matte alkyds for underpaintings and imprimaturas, which also has tooth and you will have less problems.
Personally I chuck down an Alkyd primer and use W&N griffin alkyds as driers added to their standard artists' colours of the same colour. Speeds up the process and you have less problems...but ventilate your studio properly.
I’m having a hard time finding gamblin fast dry white at my local Blick so switched to M. Graham Titanium White Fast Drying Formula which I love even better. In fact, their whole product line of oils is really good. But I’ll never give up my Galkyd Gel, which is superior to liquid Galkyd or Liquin for my purposes.
Thanks
I coat my canvases with five layers of gesso to give them the surface I like, with plenty of sanding. There have been times that I’ve sanded paintings part way through, showing my roots in the printmaking departments of London’s illustrious art schools. Other than that, liberal amounts of odorless paint thinner, almost impossible to find in California now, is what I use, and Galkyd Gel, to thin my oil paint. A couple of months ago, I started using Linseed Oil to soften up some stiffer oil paint I had because I was too cheap to throw it away. I mean, COBALT BLUE? So expensive! But, as you say, it’s yellowing. Galkyd Gel ❤is also very glossy and I don’t always want such a shiny look to everything, especially if one is going for a less traditional portrait look.
….. Sometimes matte is preferable, so then what medium would one use, just turps? That’s what Peter Doig uses, and it seems to work for him. Off to buy some Stand Oil and rectified turpentine! Thanks much for a great video.
This was well done brother, lotta good info in there for early painters! I like liquin, liquin fine detail/impasto, and linseed mixed with galkyd, also stand oil with 50% turps. Just depends on what mood I'm in or the subject lol. Solvent free gel from gamblin is decent too. havent tried Rublev Oleogel. Dont know if I will, I'm pretty content with my collection so far. And I use Gamvar retouch varnish after 3-4 weeks. Or Windsor spray gloss varnish if it's a big painting. Cheers mate
Thank you very much Derrick. You've had a lot more experience with mediums than I have. Do you work Alla Prima, and if so do you use different mediums for the start of a painting and the later stages? Do you work with glazes etc? I suppose, if you use alkyd resins like Liquin and galkyd because they are fast drying, they eliminate the fat over lean rule to some extent?
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting only Alla when I can, which is not too often cuz I work fulltime as a welder-fabricator and have a home weldshop as well, where I do metal art and repairs and what not. Also a Dad so, lol having a few hours of free time in one sitting is unusual for me. However I will use alla prima methods alot with landscapes, using medium(clear gel, fluid, thin lins oil, or galkyd lins mix) base coat in the sky, blending, and then drawing the foreground in. And then come back in the next day a d block in my middle/foreground with either clear gel or liquin, next day put in more modeling with liquin or impasto medium when necessary, then day or 2 later finish with liquin fine detail or the stand oil/turp mix. Lol works for my schedule. Hey, thanks bud!
I just try not to layer different mediums on top of each other, kno what I mean. Not excessively.
thanks for a good respond its for study i will try whit gesso like you says why i wonders i did see a video with max ginsburg and he used mazonite and in your video you have wood panels you are a good friend too have
I am a beginner who feel.inlove with Bob Ross during lock down. I never understood why my paintings were cracking. This vid has explained it so simply and probably saved me a lot of money.
Thank you Dominique! Glad it was helpful
Thanks for another great vid! If you do make one about varnish - one thing that I find interesting is Gamvar varnish and how soon it can be applied to your painting, as there seems to be a lot of differing opinions on this. Some say gamvar can be applied as soon as your painting surface is touch dry, others say it works like any other varnish and shouldn't be applied until 4-6 months of drying time.
Thank Jan. I don't know anything about Gamvar. I shall look into it.
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting this is a pretty good explanation of gamvar from Gamblin, who make the product: th-cam.com/video/Z7aBhe6k2ts/w-d-xo.html. I've used it quite a lot and have been pleased with the results, and needless to say the benefit from being able to apply an easily removable varnish much sooner than the traditional way.
Gamvar is a retouch varnish. It is considered breathable which allows application to the surface once the thickest application of paint is dry to the touch.
You are so helpful! I recently started oils, and made the mistake of using too much linseed oil. I now stick to turpentine. Loved your videos! Do share some basic tips for beginners. 💕
Thanks Minka! You should try not to use too much turpentine either, because it breaks down the oil in the paint. You can only use a little in the very early stages of the painting. But after that try to use the paint on its own as it comes straight out of the tube. If you need it to flow more, try to mix more paint.
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting Oh I see! That's the mistake I made. Because I usually work with water colours and started trying my hand in oils, I struggled with thr consistency. My one painting with linseed o took weeks to dry. I have a question, how long do u have to wait between layers to paint? Mine takes time to dry, if I use just paint without medium it moves about
I love flowers can you do a video for beginners how to capture the shadows and highlights . That's where I mess up 😁
@Centurian oh yes you're right. I will try that . Thank you so much!
I love your video because it is objective
Thank you Troy! I'm glad you think so.
I started using oil paints to paint my small military figurines. I use a touch of Galkid to help it dry faster so I can keep going. It almost acts like enamel paint.
it will be fun to read and i will take my time with it
This video is so clear and understandable! 🤩 Especially the 'Fat Over Lean' explanation! 🥰 Thank you so much and I will check out your Patreon. 😉👍🏽🖌🎨🖼
Thank you Peggy. Glad you found it helpful.
Thanks so much for your info ! Did have he problem of dark areas going flat looking . Thanks so much for help and Video also is there a faster way to dry a painting to get it to the Gallery ,Thanks again
To speed up drying, you can use a medium that contains a few drops of siccative, or you can use liquin. There are other mediums that aid drying too, I'm sure Gamblin do one.
Actually . Lavender oil for layer one and walnut resin oil for other layers dries very quick. I use nontoxic odorless turpenoid for brush cleaning and. A tiny bit to thin paint if needed . Plus no toxic fumes
I would from the tube squirt paint on a paper plate. The paper plate will absorb oil.
I like using a glass palette for oil painting. The easiest way to make one is to use a cheap ready made picture frame.
hello Alex , ican no find ur video about built a canvas . and how can we find good wood for canvases ?
th-cam.com/video/2bgKUTmnvG4/w-d-xo.html
th-cam.com/video/RVU7GKa33a4/w-d-xo.html
Hey Alex, I was wondering what your view is on acrylic gesso primed wooden panels for practising (ie with no canvas attached on top of the wood).
I’ve been thinking of using these because they’re smooth and not very absorbing, but is there much I’m missing out on by not using a canvas/linen material on top?
A couple of coats of gesso on wooden panels works fine. It's quick and it's cheap. A lot of professional artists here in the uk use this surface all the time, Pete Brown for instance, one of our best plain air painters. I sometimes still use it for studies, but it's not my favourite surface, I still find it a little too absorbent, but that's just my own personal preference. Have you seen any of my earlier videos on preparing supports?
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting yeah I’ve seen them. I used to use those £2 cotton canvases and thought the surface didn’t matter and this series has really opened my eyes as to the ways my materials can affect my work.
I had no idea just how absorbent those surfaces were just because I hadn’t tried anything else!
I am probably going to buy an MDF panel from B&Q later and use some gesso and see how it goes.
Interestingly, with £5 I can buy more MDF panel than I can horrific absorbent cheap cotton canvas, so hopefully these will be a cheap and effective alternative to use
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting have you any advice for PVA glue as a base for gesso? I have developed my own mix, and as of right now, I don't know if anyone uses this method at all... its really only good for a panel, as it is too rigid for canvas surfaces alone.
I am looking for your earlier videos on preparing supports now...
@@chrisgriffith1573 There is such a thing as PVA size. However it works out as quite expensive which is why I use rabbit skin glue as a size instead. I've never used it but as far as I am aware you could use normal PVA as a ground but remember unless its acid free it isn't archival, so it should only be used for studies.
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting Well, I have been doing my own research into the PVA, and what nobody seems to be able to tell me is how the high PH of gybsom and talc, pumice, and ALL the ingredients that go into gesso seem to be "fine" but the glue's PH seems to be the critical purchase as far as PH! Nearly everything that is mixed into gesso come out into the 8-9 PH range, and the wet glue balances at around 3.75 PH... The average is neutral! But even this is misleading when you consider that the inert PH of the PVA glue is the important part, which nobody has any data for!
Hi Alex, I've learned so much from your channel thanks to you. Can you tell me what's the pro and con on the use of *Sun-flower-oil?
Thank you Eva! Glad you've found my videos helpful. Do you mean Sunflower oil that's normally used for cooking. I don't know anyone who actually paints with it. I think it has a really slow dry time? I personally wouldn't recommend it for painting, but you can use it for cleaning your brushes.
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting thank you Alex for your reply, it's Not the cooking oil, rather purified for professional artist oil painting use only, about couple decades ago, no longer produced, I was given by a fine-art artist without instruction (along with stand oil, Suffern oil, linseed oil...). very fine quality I thought it might be for painting/glazing use?
@@TeamVEDEL I still think it slows drying time quite a lot. Unless that is something you specifically want to do, I wouldn't use it.
I personally find that a mixture of Oil of Cloves and Gum Turpentine works really well in Alla Prima painting. By the way, Alex you have the same last name with a friend of mine back in primary school.
Whereabouts are you? I've only ever met one other person that I was not related to in Greece, but there appear to be quite a few people with the same surname in the USA and Australia?
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting Athens, Greece. It's great you mentioned Ralph Mayer, I think his book on Materials and Techniques is a must for every artist out there. I really enjoy your videos and your work is wonderful.
Thank you.
I’ve just started oil painting again after a number of years.. I’ve only got raw linseed oil ( from d.I.y store) as my medium and white spirit.. does the job though not sure if good enough for using for selling ? Maybe I should purchase refined linseed oil? Thank you for your tutorials very good for my brain to handle….
White spirit and linseed oil or turpentine from the DIY store are definitely NOT good enough for any paintings you wish to sell or last for a long time. They are not refined in the same way as artist grade materials and are full of impurities.
yep
As a general rule could you use thinner for the first layer, and then for the the final layer use a medium where needed for detail and extension, which is a mixture of one part mineral spirits, two parts refined linseed oil?
Yes you definitely use that medium in the final layers of a painting.. Two parts linseed and one part solvent is quite fat.
Hi, As a total ignorant regarding painting, you add less oil on the bottom part of the paint and more oil on the last top layers correct?
Yes, that pretty much sums up the fat over lean rule. Or better still, don't use any oil at all.
ok, so I know my mistake now. For the underpainting, I have been using linseed oil to thin down the paint. Thought there is not difference between thinning medium and linseed oil, both lead to a glazing effect. But I had this problem with matte surfaces. So one really needs to stick to medium for lower layers and oil for the top layer to make the paint usable.
You should only use solvent in the very early layers. Really just for if you tone your canvas as the start and then mayble only a few drops when you block in the larger shapes. After that you should just use paint out of the tube. If you need the paint to flow more, it means you aren''t using enough. So, intead of adding medium you need to mix more.
What if you don't want to use solvents of any kind? Is there an alternative for toning the canvas?
There is a non toxic product called "Zest-it" www.jacksonsart.com/zest-it-solvent-zest-it
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting thank you, I really appreciate your channel and content
Hi, i have a problem with my painting. When i try to glaze a new layer, the surface wont accept the medium and it ending up with multiple spots of oil on the surface.
I just use liquin and daler rowney glazing medium and varnish with wn varnish 6 mnths later seems ok so far
I wonder how you first grant us most of the knowledge we'll ever know about mediums, and then go on to say that you aren't an expert at this . . . You are actually very knowledgeable.
Thank you Nidhi. This video really just covers the essential things you need to know about mediums in order to use them. The reason I say I'm not an expert, is because I don't use mediums very much in my work. Another artist who uses them a lot in their work, would probably have more experience with different recipes and stuff like that?
I've been scrubbing in the initial tonal layer on canvas using paint straight from the tube. (which makes it too thick) And subsequent layers on top, Im adding a little linseed oil as I need it. I'd like to paint in layers though over days or weeks, rather than only being able to do a painting in a day.. Ive been having bad health reactions to turps and mineral spirits and driers. Thats why i need to find another way. I cant use them. I'd really appreciate your advice
have you tried Zest-it, or Michael Hardings new miracle medium range? Both are solvent free:
www.michaelharding.co.uk/the-miracle-medium-range/
thanks. i tried zest it at the start and really couldnt use it because of reactions. I just heard about MH miracle medium,,, so I think I will def give that a go... though its made from oil extracted from a vegetable... so a little worried about the fat level content in it. but will defo look into to it. thanks
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting
I've never seen mudding on your works. But my layers are mixing too often.. Problem is "fat on fat"?
The one thing that kept me away from oil painting is toxicity concerns surrounding solvents. I have hypochondria, so it's hard for me to justify the potential risks.
BTW When painting detail ie; small tree branches..is there a secret to getting better flow? Brush quality? Medium? Surface?
For small small details you want small softer brushes. A little medium may help the colour flow more and rest on top of the paint underneath, but isn't necessary.
How do I paint lens flares?
how do u thin down oil paint that has come straight out of the tube, without using turps or mineral spirit for the initially wash or toning of the panel? Im really struggling with this basic thing, as i do not want to use toxins. I find that when i take the paint from the tube it' is far too thick and stiff to spread it onto the panel for that initial tint. And if i use a bit of oil to thin it down... it does thin it, but then it wrecks the fat over lean rule. can u help please. id be so grateful. honestly dont know how to resolve this. I have to do all my paintings wet into wet, alla prima because of it
There are some non toxic alternatives to solvents available these days?
www.jacksonsart.com/michael-harding-miracle-medium-1000ml
Or you could you acrylic paint and water to tone your canvas. It's perfectly ok to paint oil over acrylic, tho you may find it more absorbent to work on?
Thanks. I tried this (accidentally lol) 3 days ago, and it worked out great. I did an acrylic painting of the sea and mountains that I didnt like, so the next day I went back to same location and did an oil painting over the top of it. Also your tip of ''just add more paint'', really works. Yesterday i went up mountain to paint young wild ponies, using just paint from the tube, no medium. I added a lot more paint to my palette and found that did work out well! ,,, so cheers for that,,, and i found it especially good for painting thickly and quickly. I also used a small stubby brush , which i think helped too in the application of the paint without a medium .. and the surface i used was a loose peice of oil primed linen. (im assuming thats wat known as a slick surface... havent got a clue as im new to painting. thanks for the info@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting
alex i try to paint on masonite what should i have on the surface gesso a grey spraypaint what do think
A few coats of gesso on masonite will work well. It will be quite absorbent. You probably could paint on spray paint. I'm guessing it will be a lot less absorbent and quite slippy to paint on, though I don't know. If it was matt it might be absorbent? Also, its archival quality probably isn't great, so I wouldn't use spray paint for something you intend to sell, only for studies. Have you see my other videos on painting surfaces:
th-cam.com/video/RVU7GKa33a4/w-d-xo.html
th-cam.com/video/2bgKUTmnvG4/w-d-xo.html
So many people seem to just exclude water mixable oil paints. I don't know if it's because they feel it's not traditional enough or whatever but who literally cares.
They're oil paints except they can be broken down with water. Their great from blocking in because you dont need harsh chimecals or mediums. Just good'oll water.
Plus they work like traditional oils, in that the fat over lean rule applies. They dry slow, and they can mix with mediums if you want.
Water mixable oil paints can be mixed with regular oil paint to. However, the moment you do this, you can no longer add water to thin the paint, you'll need a medium. Because you've just created a more normal oil paint once you mix the two together.
Nonetheless its completely possible to just use water mixables without mediums and the clean up is just soap and water. Truly a genius invention.
My issue with water mixable oils is that they don't contain the same amount of pigment as professional quality paint. Most water mixable oils are the equivalent of student grade paint. I've heard the best brand is Cobra by Royal Talens, though I'm not sure if it's the same quality as Rembrandt there better quality oils?
I’ve had this question for a while and I hope I don’t sound dumb or weird but is it possible to use olive oil or vegetable oil to paint with? :0
No you can't use olive oil because unlike linseed, safflower, walnut or any of the other oils they use for oil painting, it is non drying. Which means it will go rancid. You can however use vegetable oils for cleaning your brushes. It's safer and will keep the brushes in better condition than cleaning them with solvents. Baby oil works really well for this too. I made a video on cleaning brushes, where I mention it:
th-cam.com/video/TvnHa4lGAFc/w-d-xo.html
@@SIMPLIFYDrawingandPainting oh dang! I’m glad I asked instead of experimenting. Thanks for the reply and for making these amazing videos so easily accessible! :D
But you can use olive oil to keep your brushes soft and clean between sessions, just be sure to wipe thoroughly with turps/Gamsol etc.
Is liquin used in early 'thin' layers ? Then followed by 'fat' layers using linseed oil? I understand the principle of fat over lean but I'm not sure if liquin is a thin layer thing...
Liquin is a fast drying medium, so once the paint is dry, I guess it should be ok to paint over it with fatter layers containing linseed? I don't really know as I've never used it. In case your interested, here is an amazing UK artists who I know does lots of coloured glazes using a liquid medium:
instagram.com/kennymckendry/