Today's Class Demo

Today's lesson was about how to create washes and transparent paint...and, knowing the difference between the two.

Washes are done at the very beginning by diluting the oil paint with turpentine; this is done to tone the white of the canvas or to establish a loose drawing. Typically, you can use "transparent paints" or "opaque paints" to do this. This stage is nearly identical and feels just like using watercolors–instead of water, we are using turpentine. It may help to know that turpentine degrades the paint, it breaks down the paint. This will leave the paint looking flat or "sunken" after it is dry because turps strip the paint of its luster and integrity. Turps will also cause cracking over time if the paint is applied any thicker than a wash. Linseed oil doesn't do this; linseed oil gives the paint elasticity and gloss (or semi-gloss). 

For applying transparent paint, transparent paints can be applied anytime during the painting process and is typically used with linseed oil or stand oil (thickened linseed oil). You may also use Liquin Original by Windsor & Newton. If any turpentine is used at this point, it would be in very modest amounts and only in addition to linseed oil (as if to slightly thin the oil). Too much turpentine in the mix and it will reactivate the previously applied layer of paint or wash. The previous layer must be dry, or "sticky", before a transparent layer can be applied.

Transparent paint can be applied thin, semi-thick or thick–unlike a wash. The key to applying transparent paint is to use only the transparent colors; such as, Viridian, Alizarin, Transparent Brown Oxide, Indian Yellow, etc. Know which paints are transparent and which ones that are not! Cadmium colors are not transparent, for example. Also to further complicate matters, know which paints are semi-transparent and semi-opaque. You should know every color in your box and whether it is opaque, transparent, semi-transparent or semi-opaque. Many manufacturers list this information on the paint tube. If not, then go to the manufacturers website and look it up.

Please post any questions you may have so that I may post the answers for everyone to see.