Painting Transformation

Yesterday, I blogged about my outdoor oil painting experience.

Another stellar day found me back on the deck, painting.

I began with the storm painting of yesterday.......


and transformed it into a fall scene........


This may change again, who knows?

Afterwards, I looked at my palette and noticed there was still plenty of paint. Not wanting to waste it, I pulled out the other canvas from yesterday which I dubbed the ocean.


Quickly it transformed into a pond of lilies.....


I am on a roll. Started another oil painting.

They predict rain tomorrow :(

Stay tuned.....

History of Oil Paints

It is believed that oil painting has been used since the Middle Ages or earlier for crafts, decorative painting and furniture finishes. The first easel paintings were probably various vegetable drying oils and pigment painted over tempera.

Jan Van Eyck (before 1395-1441) and his brother Hubert have been credited with mastering oil paints. Modern historians have come to believe, however, that oil painting predates the Van Eycks by at least two or three centuries. The two brothers, along with other Late Gothic Flemish artists, are still credited as being the first to exploit the medium of oil painting to its full potential.

Oil painting first became popular in northern Europe and later spread to Venice, Italy, in the fifteenth century. By the early part of the sixteenth century, oil painting had surpassed tempera as the dominant, acceptable painting medium throughout Europe.

The current view of oil painting's development is that of a gradual evolution of techniques and materials rather than the sudden discovery and overnight employment of the new medium.

The advent of water-soluble linseed and other vegetable drying oils can be counted as nothing short of a revolution in the continual development of oil paint.

In the late twentieth century, artists-and society in general-became more aware of the dangers inherent in many long-used art materials. The idea of using solvents to paint with has become less popular. By the late 1980's most secondary schools and universities in the United States had banned the use of solvents in art departments and thus eliminated the use of oils in the academic setting.

Major manufacturers of fine art paints have begun to develop alternatives to solvent thinnable oil colors. Water-soluble oil colors is the "next generation."

Water-Soluble Oils

How can oil color be water-soluble? Can it truly be oil color? I thought oil and water do not mix. Is this a misnomer?

Water-soluble oils are the best of both worlds, combining the flexibility of oil painting with the easy cleanup and safety of acrylics. This option for artists has revolutionized the way people are thinking about painting.

All oil paints are made by finely grinding pigment into vegetable drying oils. Oil paint has been popular for centuries for a number of reasons:

* Oil in the paint allows the paint to spread easily.
* Oil can dry to a thin durable film for detailed work.
* Oil provides excellent adhesion for the pigment.
* Oil adds transparency to many pigments.
* Oil provides body to retain brush or knife strokes.
* Oil adds depth to the pigment not possible in its dry state.

The new oils are no exception to these benefits. The difference is that the oil vehicle has been modified to make it soluble in water, eliminating the need for harsh or dangerous solvents used to thin the paint and clean brushes and palettes.

There are four major manufacturers currently marketing the new oils in the United States. Each of them has developed their own formulas and methods of making the paint, which is mixable with water. Grumbacher: Max Artists' Oil Colors; HK Holbein: Duo Aqua Oil; Winsor & Newton: Artisan Water Mixable Oil Color; Royal Talens: Van Gogh H2Oil. Each brand of paint has its own consistency and the mediums offered by one company are completely compatible with paints from another.

I have recently been painting with Winsor & Newton's brand. Having fun!