Oil paintings were first created by the Buddhist artists in Afghanistan. It dates back to 7th century Ad. Oil painting is a technique of using drying oil as the binder. The most commonly used drying oils are walnut oil, poppy seed oil, safflower oil etc. selection of oil is very important as it can impact your painting. An artist can combine different oils in the same painting depending on the pigment.
There are many Oil painting classes in Kolkata which will train you about the usage of oil and its impact on your painting.
Supports required for oil paintings
The earliest paintings were mostly panel paintings crafted on wood. The panel was crafted in an expensive and complicated manner and also had a tendency to wrap. Panels were popular in the 17th century and was even used by the Rubens. The Italian artists started shifting towards canvas in the beginning of the 16th century. wood panels and copper panels were mostly used in small paintings in the 19th century. portrait miniatures used materials like ivory, hard paper card.
The traditional canvas is made from linen but few use less expensive cotton fabric as well. At first, the artist prepares a wooden frame known as stretcher or strainer. The basic difference between these two is that stretchers are slightly adjustable while strainers are non-adjustable and rigid. After this the canvas is pulled across the wooden frame and stapled to the back edge. Following this, the artist applies a “size” to separate the canvas from the acidic properties of the paint.
The acrylic “gesso” is prepared from the titanium dioxide with an acrylic binder.
Tip
Learn about the basics of painting from a reliable painting school and get yourself equipped with the knowledge of painting.