Art Tips

A    B     C     D    E    F    G   H   I    J    K   L   M   N    O   P    Q   R    S    T    U    V    W    X    Y    Z

 

 

C

COLOURS


Using the complementary colour  instead of black to darken a colour makes for a more interesting painting as our eyes are naturally tuned to complementaries - so the use of complementary colours throughout a painting intensifies contrast. For example, ultramarine blue and cadmium orange mixed together can produce a colour quite close to black - so try using a bit of ultramarine to darken your orange, or purple to darken yellow, or green to darken red, an vise versa.
There is a simple experiment to prove that our eyes naturally see the complement of a colour: Take a plain white sheet of paper and put a red dot of colour in the middle of the left half. Stare at it for about 30 seconds, then look into the middle of the blank half of the paper. You should see the complementary of red appearing. (the variation of red would yield different results - a red with a bias to orange would produce an aqua green, while a red with a bias toward purple, would produce a more lime green). Try doing this with other colours too. This is an experiment we do in  art class all the time.

 

Illustration


If you stare at the blinking pink dots, you will see only one color, pink. If you look at the the + in the center, you'll see a circle of pink dots and a rotating green dot.
Now, stare at the + without moving your eyes. The pink dots will disappear and you will see only a rotating green dot.
Your brain will see the complementary colour of pink: green

Marsha Bhagwansingh

Links to Colour Theory Homepages:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_theory

How to Mix and use Color by Tony Paul- online book- click here

 

 

O

Oil Paint Drying Rates

Different drying rates occur in oil paints because each individual pigment reacts diffently when mixed with the oil. Typically, oil paint is pigment mixed with linseed oil which actually oxidizes rather than evaporates.

Examples of fast drying oil paints ( approximately 2 days) are as follows:

Cobalt blue, Prussian blue, Raw Sienna, Raw Umber, Burnt Umber and Flake White 

Examples of medium drying oil paints (approximately 5-6 days) are as follows:

All Cobalt violets, and greens, Sap green, Cerulean blue.

Examples of slow drying oil paints ( approximately 6-10 days) are as follows:

Alizarin Crimson, French Ultramarine, Lamp Black, Ivory Black, Titanuim white, Cadmium colours.

Marcus Gooding

 

P


PREPARING A WHITE CANVAS BEFORE PAINTING WITH OIL PAINTS

It is important to prep a canvas primarily for two reasons:

  1. To tone down the harsh white canvas to a neutral colour which allows the artist to better ascertain the effect of the light and dark areas of the subject matter.

  2. The neutral colour, preferably a mix of yellow ochre and payne's grey, thinned out with turpentine assists with making the work feel natural.

Marcus Gooding

 

S

SKETCHING

  1. When sketching portraits of any kind (people or pets), viewing the image through a mirror from time to time will expose errors.
  2. Sketching upside down is always a good way to get over an area of difficulty. Turn the image and the support upside down. In fact, many artists do this as a warm up before beginning a project. This exercise stimulates the use of the right side (the creative side) of the brain.
  3. After sketching, but before you begin to paint or shade, always remember to identify your light source and look for your areas of tone (highlights, medium areas, shadow edges, cast shadows and reflected light areas). Make sure you understand how the light is affecting your subject/s.

Marsha Bhagwansingh