Artist OIL PAINTING

Florals In Oil

The luminosity and richness of oils are ideal for painting floral works. Oils, in the old master technique, are usually applied in soft, light layers, building colors and undertones as the painting comes to life. Or, when painted in a semi-impressionistic style using wet-into-wet applications, blending and softening is also possible. Remember that, by building layers, regardless of the style, you are creating a smooth, even density of paint.

The two distinct paths of exploration mentioned, old master techniques and impressionistic, offer great painting adventures. If you follow the old master method of paint application, you first establish a meticulous drawing and use it as the basis for all subsequent layers of color; whereas the impressionistic wet-into-wet method allows you a more "fluid" approach by working wet paint into other prepared, wet areas, blending and creating color right on the canvas as you paint.

To make the old master technique a little more updated, the following might offer you the best of everything. This method will yield sharp images, with clear designs. Draw--from life, a set-up of silk blossoms, or a combination--onto paper the precise image you wish to paint. Be sure to create a very detailed drawing the exact size of the painting. Transfer the drawing to canvas by laying graphite paper beneath your drawing and then redrawing the image.

After the transfer is complete, cover the graphite lines with permanent sepia ink. Allow this to dry completely. Pencil, charcoal or the "carbon" from graphite paper will wash away with the first oil wash application, but the ink will stay put. Use this detailed drawing as your foundation and begin building color. Apply shadows around and behind the subject, using perhaps umber, ochre or a deep green to intensify the depth and richness. Paint lightly, using turpentine, medium, or a synthetic medium to thin the paint. Remember to cover the entire canvas with some sort of tone.

You are building up from this foundation an underglow of color and depth. Allow this application to dry. Create another layer of rich undertone with more umber or other deep shadow tone, using less thinner. Allow to dry. Then start with subtle colors, colors that are toned to a warmth and "aged" quality. Keep layering with the subtle colors through two or three steps of color brightness. Not until the fourth or fifth layer should natural colors come into play. By slowly increasing the tone and building the underpainting slowly, you will achieve an inner glow that is unlike any other painting method. NOTE: Avoid colors that are too vivid. Choosing subtle tones and understated glow will serve you well with the finished piece.

Old Dutch masters carried their application to a rather extreme level of importance. Some documentation indicates that they painted in seven layers, allowing each layer to dry completely before continuing. In strict adherence to this process, drying time takes up to seven weeks for each layer. One obscure documentation also employs a very unusual surface treatment after the fourth or fifth layer. Although the exact explanation was not discovered, it is believed that the natural components of an onion "set" or "condition" the surface of the oil paint.

Several references to rubbing an onion over the dry layers of oil paint have been found and each seems to indicate that the paint becomes more receptive to subsequent layers, so the onion must act as an adhesion or astringent agent. Again this is allowed to mellow before continuing. With the fifth layer, the more vivid tones begin to surface. In this style of painting, the most natural colors are those with subtlety and elegance.

NOTE: Today there is an innovative synthetic oil-based paint on the market that dries on demand with the use of a hair dryer--Genesis Heat-Set Artist Oils.

Soft, impressionistic images can be done in fewer finishing layers, but the foundation steps are very similar. Begin by doing a complete drawing, with less detail, but with placement, size and composition well documented. Transfer with graphite paper to the canvas, then set the drawing by copying the graphite with permanent sepia ink. Layer on at least two layers of middle tone darks into the areas of shadow; no need to dry before continuing. On the third layer, start to bring in soft natural tones. Here, too, avoid garish colors. The green tones of foliage can work to draw all elements of the artwork together, and development of their placement and support of the design can begin with the second or third undercoat.

In impressionistic style, the images are less perfect, often melded with the surrounding colors and patterns. When you start with a strong drawing, all that remains is the placement of color and the relationship you create with each of those colors.

If you desire a smooth, texture-free surface, you can prepare your canvas prior to drawing transfer. Begin by first coating a stretched canvas with an additional layer of gesso. Allow it to dry; then sand it with fine-grit sandpaper. Remove dust with a damp cloth. Repeat the process with the direction of gesso application reversed from the first layer. Dry and sand. Repeat a couple more times or until the threads of the canvas are closed and the surface is flat and smooth.

Now that you are armed with two distinct and interesting ways to create a floral in oils, isn't it the perfect time to try one? Grab that paint box and head out to the garden. You'll be glad you did.

How to Stretch Artist Canvas

Stretching your own canvas is fairly easy once you know the procedure and have the proper tools and materials. Note that the canvas referred to below is pre-primed; but you could also use the following procedure with raw canvas and, after it has been stretched, prime it with two coats of acrylic gesso. Please read through all of the instructions first, since certain steps must be prepared for in advance.

First you will need to gather a few tools and materials: canvas pliers, stapler/staples or hammer and tacks, stretcher strips, and canvas. In addition, a T-square is convenient to help you insure that the stretchers are square. Then follow these steps to stretch your canvas:

1. Select the appropriate-sized stretchers for the canvas you want to build. Your art supply store has a variety of pre-cut wooden frame rails (or stretcher bars) that have interlocking mitered edges.
2. Once your stretcher frame is assembled on a flat surface, you should verify that it is square. Do this by taking a tape measure and checking that the diagonal distances from both opposing corners are equidistant. (They almost always will be.) If you encounter an offset, you can correct it by attaching a small metal right-angle brace on the inner frame corner. A small plywood right-angle triangle attached to the rear frame corner will also help correct any shift.
3. For frame rails longer than 36 inches, an interior brace should be inserted between these rails to support them from bowing inward after the canvas has been attached. This will also protect against frame distortion during periods of fluctuating humidity. If this type of support rail did not already come with your pre-cut frame, you should cut a piece of similar wood and attach it with the type of braces detailed in step 2.
4. Take the canvas and lay the primed side down on a clean, flat surface. Place the frame atop the canvas and then cut away any excess material so that there are two inches of excess canvas bordering the frame on all sides. It is important that you leave this border material because this is what you will use to grip, stretch, and attach the canvas to the frame.
5. Fold one side of the canvas over one of the shorter frame rails and then attach a canvas tack at the center of the outside edge of that rail.
6. At the opposite side, use canvas pliers (which are similar to regular pliers except they have a broader gripping area) to grip the canvas at mid-rail. It may be helpful for you to set the frame upright while doing this. With a firm grip, pull the canvas until a straight crease is formed to the tacked end. While keeping tension on the canvas, insert another tack at the center edge of the rail, just like the other side. Note that you may also use a staple gun/staples instead of tacks. (The Arrow JT-21 is easy to use.)
7. Move to the next frame rail (one of the longer ones) and repeat steps 5 and 6. As you do, you will notice a triangular canvas crease as you attach the third side and then a diamond-shaped crease when the fourth tack is attached on the remaining mid-rail.
8. Now, place temporary tacks at all four corners. Starting with the center of one of the long rails, grip the canvas tightly with the pliers and fasten tacks at 2" intervals. Repeat with several tacks in both directions (from center) and then switch to the opposite side and repeat this process. Continue working from the center until both long sides are completely tacked down to all but one inch from each corner, stretching the canvas evenly as you proceed.
9. Once both long sides are finished, remove the temporary tacks that you fastened in step 8. Now repeat the same fastening process for both of the short sides, working out from the centers. For smaller canvases, one entire short side can be fastened first, followed by the opposite side. Larger canvases should be rotated several times to evenly stretch the material over the frame. Note that a primed linen canvas (oil-primed linen, in particular) will normally require that the tacks be placed closer together, due to the limited stretch of this material.
10. Fold and pleat the corners of the canvas and then neatly wrap them around to the rear of the canvas frame. Keeping tension on the material, tack all of the excess cloth to the rear of the frame so that it is neatly secured. Then place tacks on all four outer corners. This excess material is important to have in case you ever need to restretch or remount the canvas.

Any remaining canvas indentations or ripples can be reduced by moistening the affected area with a damp sponge. Be careful not to saturate, and allow the canvas to dry completely in a well-ventilated area.

Keep in mind that it is easier to stretch primed cotton and Polyflax canvas than it is to mount a primed linen canvas, since linen fibers do not stretch as much. Oil-primed canvas requires the most attention when mounting on a frame because it has virtually no stretch. When working with this type of canvas, you may have to remove tacks in wrinkled sections and then restretch and retack.

By following the above steps and using proper materials and a few tools, you can easily build your own canvas. With a little practice, the process becomes much faster and easier, almost to the point of becoming routine.

Airbrush Workshops With Robert Paschal, MFA