Oil painting boasts a rich history, with roots tracing back to the Mediterranean civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome. Egyptians also employed sophisticated painting methods, utilizing beeswax, mineral pigments (copper, iron, manganese oxides), and tempera. While evidence suggests these ancient cultures were familiar with oils derived from flax, walnut, and poppy seeds, definitive proof of their use in oil painting during that era remains elusive.
Early oil painters frequently used tempera, an organic medium mixed with water and volatile oil additives. During the Renaissance, Italian artists commonly incorporated organic binding agents such as protein-rich materials sourced from eggs, animal glue, or milk.
From the decline of the Roman Empire through the 15th-century Renaissance, both oil painting and tempera painting flourished. In Greece and Italy, olive oil was often the preferred base for pigment preparation, despite its slow drying time and the challenges it posed for models. In the 12th century, Theophilus, a German monk and painter, abandoned olive oil altogether. Meanwhile, in Japan, perilla oil served as an oil painting substitute, applied after a lead base coat as early as the 8th century. During the 14th century, the Italian artist Cennino Cennini created oil paintings blending tempera with light oil layers.
Much later, Leonardo da Vinci, who lived until 1519, developed his own distinctive oil paint mixture, incorporating up to 10 percent beeswax into his oils and boiling the combination.
To emulate these masters and embark on your oil painting journey, consider these essential preparations and techniques:
First, dress appropriately, including gloves. Gather your tools: two containers (one with paint thinner, one with a 2:1 thinner-to-walnut oil mix), paintbrushes, a palette and palette knife, paint tubes, and paint rags.
Begin with a limited palette of 2-3 colors. Cadmium red, cadmium yellow, and ultramarine blue are excellent choices for a starting palette.
Use your palette knife to mix colors. Oil paints have a limited blending time, so if a color adjustment isn’t successful, quickly wipe the canvas clean and begin again.
One key advantage of oil paints is their slow drying time, offering ample opportunity for corrections. However, excessive paint layers can significantly prolong the drying process.
Thoroughly clean your brushes between color changes. First, remove excess paint with a rag, then immerse the brush in paint thinner. Swish, and dry with a clean rag.
Allow each layer of paint to dry for 24 hours before applying the next to prevent smearing.