You will read countless articles on how to do oil painting right and gain the right kind of insight in doing it in a rightfully artistic way. Here’s where this article will stand out for you as we will not give you insight on how you should do an oil painting, rather what are the mistakes you should not commit when you are doing an oil painting.
The points are basic but equally important when we are painting on a canvas and so often tend to ignore them. It is especially important for beginners, who are still learning the many mediums of doing it as per their desire. This article will reflect on the artistic observations that professional artists make when they are doing an oil painting on canvas.
Table of contents
1. Doing Repeated Strokes On A Particular Area
If you are overdoing on the canvas, it might seem like a natural thing to you but it is advisable not to do so. We all have the tendency of scribbling on blank canvas thinking that the entire area needs to be covered up but that is a wrong way to go about doing it.
The number of layers you use for an oil painting is important because it directly affects the kind of impression it gives to the viewers. When you overdo an area it makes the area look muddy and extremely layered. You would want to settle the mud later on by rubbing it a number of times but it could ruin the entire painting. This could wash out the area and make it look like a colourless or shallow spot, that will become eye catchy.
Sometimes it is okay to lay down the paint until the entire painting is completed, even if you think that a certain area needs more strokes and brighter colours. You have to wait till you complete the piece entirely rather than scooping paint here and there and making it muddier.
The temperature, effect and style of your painting can be unsettling when you are doing it but don’t get impatient and hang on to it. Once the entire painting is done you can smoothly do the touch ups as you wish.
Make sure you are sure about the amount of solvents you use along with the oil paints to avoid further mess. As per last month report, Custom Hand-Painted Oil Painting from Photo are very popular these days.
2. Not Using Enough Paint On The Brush
Unlike the previous problem, here is another mistake that most artists make of not using enough paint on the brush and being stingy about it since they feel they need to complete the paint with the tubes they already have and not get to buy more for the purpose. You need to scoop out the required amount of paint for the paint brush and not be stingy about it. Of course that also does not mean you load it up more than enough but consider the right quantity of it to avoid the painting from looking shallow.
Oil painting requires good amount of solvent in it to either thicken the paint or make it thinner. So learn how to maintain that well so that you balance out the vibrancy of the paint throughout the canvas.
When you scoop paint on the brush, make sure that you take a good pile of paint on the brush and it should be visible on the brush. This will help to you to make thick strokes on the canvas and you do not have to overdo the paint with repeated strokes. Not using enough paint can actually contribute to mistake 1. If you are looking for painting services, please check this company: Ayala Painting
3. Making Flat Paints With One Or Two Colours Because You Have Imagined The Painting With Those Colours
To say that a tree is green, or a cloud is white or the sky is blue is an obvious thing but that is exactly the issue. All of these things do not have only one colour to it, they are shaded or there are gradients to their colour. You won’t find a cloud completely white, there will be grey shades to it or even a bit of a dull yellow to it.
When you have preconceived notion about a particular colour for a painting, it will never look realistic or close to it rather something being done by an amatuer and you would not want to give that kind of an impression to your viewers. Your painting should give away a statement that is pleasing to the eyes and not make the viewers observe the problems and mistakes in it deeply. No object is made of only one colour, rather a host of colours.
4. Flat Elements In The Painting Is A Strict No
If you want to add realistic touch to your painting you cannot afford to do poor elements that take away the artistic charm from your painting. For example, if it is a tree, it will have to have twigs and extended branches on it, some of which might not even have leaves on it. The idea is to make the leaves come alive on canvas or else it will look like a green something made by a second grade someone.
There should be focal points in the tree which means some part of the tree will be more focussed while some will be a part of vanish points. Another important element to consider here is whether you want to give a wintry effect to the tree, or summery feel, or a spring or autumn feel. This will help create an impression upon the tree, when the viewers will observe the painting.
These mistakes are often overlooked which is why your painting loses the realistic touch to it. You need not sketch out every element in the painting accurately or make sure it is geometrically correct. All of that can be ignored if you know how to accentuate the elements in it.
Your perception of the painting is extremely important or else it could produce poor results. We hope these observations will help to make your next oil painting richer and more interesting than you have ever done. If you have any comments on the article, drop in a line below. Happy Painting!