STEP 1: Choose your composition.
Materials:
You can use traditional media, such as paper and pencils, or go digital, e.g. by using Procreate app on iPad.
Resources:
- Don't forget to download photo reference materials from the project section on Skillshare.
- There are media materials (sketches, final result) for two versions of the painting. Version 1 will be demonstrated in the video lessons. Version 2 will only be covered in the written tutorial below.
Colour study:
In addition, you can start to plan your colour palette. I encourage you to try make a few colour studies in oils.
STEP 2: Create Imprimatura.
Materials:
- Raw Umber (alternatives are Burnt Umber, Burnt Sienna, any earthy fast drying colour).
- Medium to Big Stiff Brush
- Painting Surface (Arches paper, board, etc.); I use A4 size Arches Oil Paper
- Palette & Palette Knife
- Lint- and dust-free rug
Time: 10-20 mins including cleaning after a session.
FAQ:
Question: Should/Can I add oil or any other 'fat' medium to my paint when painting Imprimatura?
Answer: No. You can add a little bit of solvent if you want to make your Imprimatura lighter but never oil.
Another way to make your Imprimatura lighter without any solvents is to use a smooth surface for painting. You can use already pre-gessoed wood panel from an Art store or add additional layers of Gesso yourself. My advice is to use acrylic Golden Gesso, they have different solutions for flexible (paper, canvas) and rigid surfaces. Be aware that there are different types of Gesso so make sure you use the right one.
In the example below, Imprimatura and Underpainting were done on Ampersand: The Artist Panel (Primed Smooth) without any additional oil or solvents.
Q: Can I use cooking oil for oil painting?
A: Cleaning Brushes. You can use cooking Vegetable Oil when you clean brushes after a session. Make sure that you washed it away from your brushes with soap and water.
Never use it during a session as it is not as pure as specially prepared refined oils from an art store. You don't want cooking oil in your paint or a painting.
STEP 3: Transfer drawing.
Materials:
- Any automatic pencil
- Wax Free Transfer Paper
- Paper Tape
Other examples:
If your transfer smears too much, take a small round synthetic brush and outline lines with an oil colour (Raw Umber). Let it dry before starting to paint.
I painted Version 2 on Arches paper primed with Black Golden Acrylic Gesso and used pastel to transfer my drawing. I skipped Imprimatura as an experiment to test out Black Gesso.
How to transfer a drawing using charcoal or pastel:
STEP 4: Underpainting of The Unicorn.
Materials.
Brushes:
- DaVinci NOVA (Synthetic soft brush), size 3/0
- DaVinci NOVA (Synthetic soft brush), size 0
- Van Beek Filament Pro, size 2
Paint:
- Raw Umber (I used one from Old Holland)
- Titanium White (Old Holland)
Other:
- Palette & Palette Knife
- Lint- and dust-free rug
- Mahl Stick
Time: 40-120 mins depending on your skill level. Remember that you can take breaks and continue painting on the next day at any time.
Other Examples:
FAQ:
Question: Should/Can I add oil or any other 'fat' medium to my paint when painting an underpainting?
Answer: A simple answer is no, you should not. Keep in mind 'fat over lean' rule when building up your layers. It is possible to add solvents in your paint during the underpainting stage if you like to use it. In this case you will have to use the same amount of solvent or more when painting your imprimatura.
STEP 5: Background Underpainting.
Materials.
Brushes:
- DaVinci NOVA (Synthetic soft brush), size 3/0
- DaVinci NOVA (Synthetic soft brush), size 0
- Old Synthetic Angular Shader, around 3 mm
Paint & Medium:
- Raw Umber (Old Holland)
- Titanium White (Old Holland)
- Age Refined Linseed Oil (I used one from Natural Pigments)
Other:
- Palette & Palette Knife
- Lint- and dust-free rug
- Mahl Stick
Time: 1 or 2 hours depending on your skill level. Remember that you can take breaks and continue painting on the next day at any time.
Other Examples:
In Version 2 I used this technique to paint The Unicorn itself, i.e. mixing values on a palette.
And to map the background I used Rich Gold Oil Paint from Gamblin.
STEP 6: Background colour passage.
Materials.
Brushes:
- DaVinci NOVA round sythetic brush, size 0
- DaVinci NOVA round sythetic brush, size 3/0
- DaVinci TOP-ACRYL round synthetic brush, size 1
- Synthetic Angular Shaders, Grene Art size 1 and 2
- Small Old Synthetic Angular Shader, around 3 mm
Paint & Mediums:
- Gold Ochre from Gamblin
- Carribean Blue from Old Holland
- Madder Lake Extra Light from Old Holland
- Titanium White
- Raw Umber
- Refined Linseed oil or Oleogel from Natural Pigments
Other:
- Lint- and dust-free rug
- Palette & Palette Knife
- Mahl Stick
Tips:
You can desaturate colours by mixing in white, black or grey of the required value to it; another option is to add a complimentary colour to it.
When you mix paint, consider hue and value simultaneously.
For example, when you want to make your mix cooler, think to yourself: I need to add blue.
True, but you need to add blue of the same value as your initial mix, or it will influence your original colour value.
STEP 7: Add colour to your Unicorn.
Materials.
Brushes:
- DaVinci TOP-ACRYL round synthetic brush, size 1
- Synthetic Angular Shaders, Grene Art, size 1
- Rosemary & Co. Long Eclipse Filbert, size 2
- Rosemary & Co. Long Eclipse Rigger, size 2
- Make-up Sponge
Paint & Mediums:
- Gold Ochre from Gamblin
- Carribean Blue from Old Holland
- Madder Lake Extra Light from Old Holland
- Titanium White
- Raw Umber
- Refined Linseed oil or Oleogel from Natural Pigments
Other:
- Lint- and dust-free rug
- Palette & Palette Knife
- Mahl Stick
Examples of this technique in Portraiture:
FAQ:
Question: Do I always need to oil out?
Answer: No. Only if you have a sunken-in part in a painting or you have to paint while keeping wet-in-wet feeling.
You need to add just a few microns of oil when oiling out.
STEP 8: Finishing Touches.
Materials.
Brushes:
- DaVinci TOP-ACRYL round synthetic brush, size 1
- Soft Round Sythetic brush Van Beek Kolinex, size 1
- DaVinci NOVA size 0 and 3/0
- I used a Soft Synthetic Make-up brush to Glaze, you can replace it with any soft flat brush
- Make-up sponge
Paint & Mediums:
- Gold Ochre from Gamblin
- Carribean Blue from Old Holland
- Madder Lake Extra Light from Old Holland
- Titanium White
- Raw Umber
- Refined Linseed oil or Oleogel from Natural Pigments
Other:
- Lint- and dust-free rug
- Palette & Palette Knife
- Mahl Stick
Examples of this technique in Portraiture:
Bonus Exercises.
Exercise 1: Mix your version of a Colour Wheel using the paint you own.
Exercise 2: Mix a Black Colour using the paint you own.
Exercise 3: Mix a Neutral Grey Colour.
Exercise 4: Try to mix 5 - 10 values for a Greyscale: Black, White and shades of Grey in between.
Exercise 5: Create Colour Charts using the paint you own. For the simplest chart do the following:
- Create 1 row for each paint. Each row is divided into 8 columns.
- Place the initial colour in the middle column #4.
- Mix 4 tints to the right by gradually adding white paint.
- Mix 3 shades to the left by gradualy adding black paint (or Ultramarine Blue)
Studio & Materials
Ventilation:
Read labels on your materials carefully to make sure you have proper ventilation.
Light:
If you need additional light, use a 5000K-6500K light bulb that emulates daylight.
Easel:
Working on an easel is much easier than on a flat table. I use a table easel like this one: A2 Table Easel Zieler
Mahl Stick:
You can buy a Mahl Stick or make it yourself. There are tons of DYI examples on the Internet. I use this one: Mahl Stick.
Brushes:
I advise you to prepeare the following brushes at the very least:
- Round Synthetic brushes size 3/0, 0 and 1.
- A few angular shaders from 3 mm to 2 cm in width.
- One foam brush 5 cm
- One stiff flat brush about 3 cm in width
Recommended suppliers:
Great brushes on a budget (great choice for the first layers):
- Grene Art - Nylon Angular Brushes
- DaVinci Nylon Brushes (Top-Acryl)
- Transon
These brands have nice brushes in addition to regular synthetic ones which aim to replace natural hair brushes:
Palette & Palette knife:
I recommend you to use a glass palette. You can make it yourself or buy one. If you want to buy, I would suggest Grey Glass Palette from NewWave.
I find it comfortable to work with a knife between 4 and 8 cm long.
Oil Colours
I used in the demonstration:
- Carribean Blue from Old Holland
- Madder Lake Extra Light from Old Holland
- Gold Ochre from Gamblin
- Titanium White
- Raw Umber
Alternatives:
If you already own oil paints, you can replace Gold Ochre with any transparent bright yellow paint, e.g. Indian Yellow.
Instead of Caribean Blue, you can use Pthalo Blue or Pthalo Turquoise or other transparent Blue paint.
Instead of Madder Lake, you can use Alizarine Permanent or Quinacridone Magenta or other red paint.
How to read an oil paint tube:
Painting Support:
I use A4 Arches Oil Paper in the demonstration.
Alternatives:
If you are not on a budget, try Ampersand Gessoboard or The Artist Panel in smooth finish.
Painting Medium:
- Aged Refined Linseed Oil from Rublev Colours (Natural Pigments)
- Oleogel from Rublev Colours (Natural Pigments)
Alternatives:
You can use any drying oil, such as Walnut oil instead of Linseed Oil. See examples.
Rugs:
If you don't have a lint- and dust-free Rug, you can buy this one: Scott Shop Towels Original (75147), Blue in Roll.
Books & Applications.
Books.
These books are not about oil painting, but I find them very helpful to take your visual art skills to the next level.
- Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards
- Imaginative Realism: How to Paint What Doesn't Exist (Volume 1) by James Gurney
- Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter (Volume 2) by James Gurney
- Charles Bargue: Drawing Course
- Figure Drawing for Artists: Making Every Mark Count by Steve Huston
- Andrew Loomis books :)
Applications.
- Procreate app on iPad
- Autodesk Sketchbook app on iPad
Fat Over Lean.
Varnish.
If you experience any problems while Varnishing, check out this article from Gamblin.
If you want to try retouch varnish, you can buy Retouching Varnish from Winsor&Newton.