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Oil Painting: The Only Time You Should Choose "Fat Over Lean"

Who can forget Bob Ross? The afro-topped gentleman with the soothing voice who could transform a blank canvas into a wilderness scene complete with snow capped mountains and "happy" birch trees for the little raccoons and possums. Most of us can't pull a Bob Ross by the end of a half-hour TV segment, but don't fret. As he says, "Any way you want it to be, that's just right."

Oil painting is far simpler than most other fine art techniques, due to the nature of the paints. Ground pigments are mixed with an oillinseed, poppy seed, walnut or safflowerwhose individual qualities determine usage; the different oils produce certain sheens and effects on the color. This emphasizes the realistic nature of the painting, as the numerous layers create depth, translucency, perspective, etc. Layering is imperative with oil paints, with successively fatty oils over leaner ones. "Fat over lean" eradicates cracking of the finished piece.

European artists from the fifteenth century are credited with the first oil paintings, especially those in Venice, Italy, where water-durable mediums were necessary to endure the humid climate. Throughout the years, certain scientific advances have established variations of the paints, like heat-set oils and experimental surfaces. Many famous surviving paintings, like Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, evidence the lasting nature of oil paints. Artists value these advantageous paints for several reasons, namely their lengthy drying time (should the window of painting opportunity be a commodity) and the subtlety with which paints blend with surrounding colors (a result of chemical ingredients).

As Bob Ross says, painting is individual. True, as all art is. But, there are generic steps all oil painters follow to produce their work.

Firstly, the artist prepares the surface. A multitude of surfaces may be used, but canvas is the most common. Traditionally, canvas is composed of linen, but the much cheaper cotton has become mainstream. The canvas is stretched over one of two wooden frames: a stretcher, which is adjustable, or a strainer, which is rigid. The artist then primes the canvas with a gesso, a concoction of calcium carbonate, acrylic polymer and a pigment, usually white. Prior to amalgamation with the liquid, gesso's texture is its Italian definition: chalk. The gesso is layered, and then sanded to produce more texture that the oil paints can adhere to.

Then, the artist will carefully sketch a tentative outline of the potential subject and mix the paints. Pigments are coalesced with the oils to produce vibrant colors; some even derive from natural resources, like blue from cobalt or yellow from sulfur. The toxicity of some pigments originally forced the artistry of plein air, or outdoor, oil painting.

Next, the brush choice. Various fibers and size of bristles create different effects; hog's bristle for bold strokes, miniver for fine details. Broad splashes of color utilize "bright" brushes best, while detail work uses a pointed brush called a "round". Another technique exclusive to oil painting is the palette knife, a flat, metal blade used for paint application or removal. Fingers, rags, sponges, cotton swabs, even Q-tips might be used for a desired effect.

Finally, after the evaporation of the liquidity in the paints finishes, the artist will varnish the painting. Varnishing is a transparent, hard finish applied for protection of the surface. Due to the unique nature of the paints, an oil painting is not considered completely dry by art conservators until it is at least sixty years old. That's plenty of time to perfect a work of art.

Learn more about this author, Alizah Grace.
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