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1 Making a start
Pond and Garden, Gibdyke House
Oil on canvas, 51 x 30.5 cm (20 x 12 in)
Each painting medium – be it watercolour, oils, acrylics, tempera or gouache – has its own character, potential and limitations, and naturally it takes time, as well as a good deal of commitment and perseverance, before we can start using the medium with confidence. An interesting aspect of oil painting is its long history, and this is something that can obviously benefit the present-day artist, who can learn from many well-established procedures and techniques. Placing an emphasis on traditional skills is always a good way to begin, I think. Of course the eventual aim is to paint in a style that is distinctly your own, but the best means of achieving that is to first arm yourself with a sound understanding and knowledge of oil paint and oil-painting methods.
I know from my own experience, when I started painting in oils more than forty years ago, that progress depends on a willingness to experiment, and indeed learn from the mistakes that inevitably occur. I went out painting with much older and far more skilful artists, and I soon found that the best way to start in oils was to paint with broad areas of colour and to think in terms of simple, block-like shapes. I was advised not to use the paint too thickly to begin with; to avoid body colour (the addition of white paint in a mix) until the later stages of a painting; to set the dark tones with pure colour, while leaving the extreme whites as areas of unpainted canvas or board; and to work with bold, contrasting strokes.
In this way, I was told, I would be able to control the painting right from the start. It was good advice, and certainly advice that I, in turn, would offer others. The essential things to remember in oil painting are to work from thin to thick paint (what is known as painting ‘fat over lean’); to consider the general shapes before any detail; and always to avoid unnecessary detail.
A Versatile Medium
Oil paint has very distinctive paint-handling characteristics, and what makes it so different from other media is the richness and resonance of the colour quality that can be achieved, and the potential for very expressive marks, textures and surface effects. It is not, as many people are inclined to believe, suited only to large studio paintings. As A Kensington Side Street shows, oil paint is also an excellent medium for plein-air work, especially for capturing the fleeting effects of light, which is something that particularly interests me.
In fact, when painting outside, I would say that I usually capture a light effect better in oils than in watercolour. For me, oil paint is ideally a ‘one-hit’ medium, by which I mean the colours are applied in a quick, direct way, as more or less finished colours with no subsequent glazing or overworking, as explained in the section on alla prima. I also regard it as the prime all-weather medium. Watercolour is restricted in damp conditions, but with oils there is always the chance of at least setting down the essence of a scene – I have even painted in a snowstorm! I find the plasticity of the medium enables me to tease out the most incredible atmospheric effects, and, as you can see in Old Fishing Vessels, Peel Harbour, Isle of Man, strong darks really sing out and play their part in a composition painted in oils.
A Kensington Side Street
Oil on board, 18 x 25.5 cm (7 x 10 in)
For me, oil paint is the perfect medium for small plein-air paintings that aim to capture a fleeting effect of light and mood.
Afternoon Light, Polperro Harbour, Cornwall
Oil on board, 25.5 x 35.5 cm (10 x 14 in)
This was a plein-air study that I made in preparation for a larger, studio painting.
Old Fishing Vessels, Peel Harbour, Isle of Man
Oil on canvas, 51 x 51 cm (20 x 20 in)
Here, for this more complex composition painted in the studio, I worked mainly from photographic reference and sketches.
Different Approaches
Many different working methods are possible in oil painting, and so with experience it is possible to select those techniques that are the most appropriate for the subject matter and effects you have in mind. The main techniques are explained here. However, whatever techniques are involved, their success and impact will depend to a large extent on the type of board or canvas surface that is chosen, and the way it is prepared.
When I paint outside I use prepared boards, as described below. But, after assessing the subject matter and the particular qualities that I want to concentrate on, as well as choosing a board of a certain colour, I decide whether I want to start with a wet surface or a dry one. Generally I like to work on a wet surface for subjects in which the dominant atmospheric or lighting effect would be best interpreted by drifting one colour into another. With a dry surface, on the other hand, I have already established an overall mid-tone against which I can place and subsequently develop strong lights and darks, as demonstrated in Sparkling Light, Staithes Beck.
Sometimes I prepare the board with an initial overall wash of colour the day before I intend to paint on site, and this gives a workable, though not slippery surface over which to create various effects of light and texture. On other occasions I apply the wash as the starting point for the painting and, while it is still wet, use a rag to remove the paint in those areas where I want highlights or extreme lights. Modifying the wet surface with different types of brushwork, or blending other colours into it, are useful techniques for suggesting a sense of distance or expressing the idea of fog, mist or other atmospheric effects. In the studio I may work on canvas, adopting similar methods for the initial ground colour and underpainting.
View from Cowbar Rise, Staithes
Oil on board, 25.5 x 30.5 cm (10 x 12 in)
Whenever possible I prefer to work on site, directly from the subject. Outside, the paintings are usually small scale and painted on a prepared board.
Canal Basin, Bruges
Oil on board, 25.5 x 18 cm (10 x 7 in)
I liked the drama of the contrasting tones in this low-light subject, and my aim was to capture the effect as quickly as I could, before anything changed.
Calm Waters, Loch Linnhe, Argyll
Oil on board, 30.5 x 25.5 cm (12 x 10 cm)
I painted this lovely atmospheric scene from a cottage window.
Sparkling Light, Staithes Beck
Oil on board, 23 x 30.5 cm (9 x 12 in)
For this study I used a board that was already prepared with a dry, mid-tone ground, which enabled me quickly to place and develop the strong lights and darks.
Light over Dark
In the studio, obviously, it is possible to work on a much larger scale, take your time and tackle more complex subjects and ideas. Paris Boulevard in the Spring is an example of one of my studio paintings, which in this case was developed from a small pochade-box oil sketch, some photographs, a number of sketchbook studies (mainly of cars and people) and of course my memory of the scene. Another approach I sometimes use is to start a painting outside and finish it later in the studio. It could be that the weather, light or some other factor prevented me finishing the painting on site. Blakow Hill, Nottinghamshire was painted in this way.
But whether I work in the studio or outside, I want the painting to have an Impressionist quality, to feel spontaneous and of the moment. At all costs I try to avoid any of the brushstrokes looking laboured. Rather, I want them to appear as though they were made instinctively and freely. This is easier to achieve outside, of course, where there is a greater sense of urgency because of the constraints of time and light. Another difference when working outside is that the approach is essentially alla prima, whereas in the studio the painting can be developed in stages and, if necessary, the paint built up in layers.
Paris Boulevard in the Spring
Oil on canvas, 51 x 66 cm (20 x 26 in)
This studio painting was inspired by a small oil sketch made on the spot. Additionally I used sketchbook drawings as references for the figures and cars.
