My Favorite Way to Work in Oils

My last post talked about the basics of oil painting. I talked about the main materials needed to get started as well as the basic rules that I have learned about oil painting that are important to know no matter what technique you use to paint.

The standard rules, however, are somewhat annoyingly restrictive (to me at least) and at this point in time, I am very impatient when it comes to the cure times of oil paint and sometimes waiting for a layer to become touch dry in order to continue working without affecting layers underneath is maddening.

I am constantly learning new ways of working that best suit me, and right now I have a method that gives me a lot of satisfaction in terms of speed, and flexibility. So without further ado, here is my method for painting an oil painting in under a week (or even under 2 days!)

Step One: Surface Prep

I have been on the search for a durable surface that will give me the fastest results without losing quality.

I have worked on canvas, but it's prep time takes the longest. Especially if you have a canvas that is cradled. You have to gesso not only the surface, but the sides as well. Then you have to sand the surface and repeat the process until you have the desired smoothness.

I am not picky when it comes to the texture, and in fact I love texture in my paintings because it's more interesting to look at up close.

Masonite has been my preferred surface lately. Masonite is just a fancy term for wood panel and I get the 1/8" panels so that I don't have to prime the sides. I will however first use gesso on the back and paint a big white "X" on the back. By doing this the board won't warp up when I go to prime the painting surface. This technique I learned from Jeff Mericola.

Another surface that I plan to try is clayboard. This is a specialty surface made by Ampersand that has a clay layer on tope of masonite (it comes cradled or as a board). I am planning some paintings to experiment on clayboard so I will come back write about my experience when I have something to share.

The most important thing is that you use 2-3 coats of gesso and sand down to your desired smoothness. Since I like using dry brush techniques, having a little texture amplifies the effect so I don't smooth the whole surface. It's important to wait 24 hours before painting. This time can obviously vary depending on humidity, but 24 hours is a good baseline to start from.

Step Two: Sketching and Composition

You can either use pencil or paint for this part, but this is just a basic sketch to layout where things will be in your composition. You can use acrylic paint to sketch underneath. Acrylic can under an oil painting, but you can't add acrylic on top of oil since it is a water-based medium.

What I typically do is sketch with a acrylic, and then I will also tone the surface with acrylic (my go to color for toning is a raw sienna/yellow mix and I will use paynes gray for my sketching.

In this stage its just about getting the general forms, shadows and lighting. You won't necessarily see this layer by the end, but it just acts as a guide.

Step Three: Blocking In

You can use acrylic for this stage, or you can use oil paint. If you jump to oils at this stage then you will need a special medium to pull of this technique correctly.

Enter Galkyd (Affiliate link)

Gamblin makes a medium called Galkyd, which is added to the oil paint to thin it out. Galkyd speeds up the curing time of oil paint in such a way that it becomes touch dry within 24 hours. Depending on how much medium you use, you can still manipulate it the same way as if it were oil, but if you use it for all of your oil layers, you will be able to varnish much sooner (I will usually wait a week to be safe, which is better than the 6 month rule for a typical painting).

Blocking in is al about getting the darkets parts of your painting down on the painting surface. Then working in the lights and midtones. This stage is all about the big shapes. No detail.

Step Four: Refining

This is about pushing and pulling the paint in thin layers of oil and galkyd. If you make a mistake you can always wipe it away with paper towel. This process is just about getting more detailed with your forms and bring things more in focus or out of focus depending on your scene.

Step Five: Details

As you continue to work you'll start to use smaller and smaller brushes to add little details. Sometimes a painting may not call for a lot of detail. The option is there though if you are looking to express more realism into your painting.

In order for this process to work, you need to use at least some galkyd in your paint for every layer. If you don't, then you will likely have to wait 6 months before you can varnish it.

And that is the basic technique for creating a painting that is ready to be varnished in under a week.

What did you think? Have you tried this method before? Let me know in the comments and if you have any questions about this method let me know that too!