If you want to start an adventure with oil painting, you will need a couple of things. Here is a list:
1. Oil paints
Oil paints are available in sets or in single tubes of various sizes (the typical ones are: 37ml, 60ml, 150ml, 200ml).
If you think seriously of oil painting and know that it will not be just something to try out, I advise you to buy oil paints in big, economical, 200ml tubes, which are much cheaper than the smaller ones. As you will use a lot of oil paint, the price is quite important, so bigger tubes make sense.
Of course the price is also related with the quality, but at the moment I will not focus on the subject of particular art suppliers and art material series (this will be the subject of another post). If you are a beginner, I would just suggest using some oil paints of student or premium class (depending on what is your budget), for example Windsor&Newton Winton or Talens Van Gogh (I use mostly Talens as it has a good relation between price and quality).
If you are not sure which particular brand will be suitable for you, you can also buy smaller tubes of a few brands just to test them and then, when you decide, continue buying bigger tubes.
In the beginning you will need the following colours:
Titanium White, Cadmium Yellow Medium, Cadmium Yellow Lemon (optional), Cadmium Red Deep, Alizarin Crimson (optional), Cerulean Blue (Phthalo), Ultramarine Blue, Burnt Umber, Ivory Black (optional – if you decide to use it buy a small tube as this colour is very intense, so you will not finish the tube for a long time).
Make note that you do not need green – you will obtain this colour by mixing yellow with blue. Black is also optional – you can obtain it by mixing burnt umber with ultramarine blue, however it will be less intense.
Limiting the pallet of paints wil also help you to learn how to mix the colours.
2. Something to make an intitial sketch
Before painting, you’ll need to make an initial sketch (at least in the beginning of your oil painting’s adventure), so you will need something that will help you to do it, for example: a pencil, a charcoal pencil or an acrylic paint.
My personal preferrence is an acrylic paint, as it is fast drying and there is no problem with smudging.
3. Brushes.
You will need a couple of brushes in different kinds (synthetic or natural), sizes and shapes.
In the begining, I would suggest buing just a few round and flat brushes in a couple of different sizes (small, medium and large).
I would also suggest buying good quality brushes, as the low-quality, cheapest ones will be much harder to work with, which would be a problem, especially in the beginning, when you are a painting newbie.
4. Painting medium
The painting medium is the substance that binds the pigment in paint and allows for easy colours blending.
The medium is usually a mixture made of the paint thinner (turpentine or mineral spirits) and the linsed or safflower oil, combined in a specific proportion: less oil in the initial layers of a painting and more in the later layers, according to the so called „fat over lean” rule.
I personally do not use the turpentine (or any other similar thinners), as it is a quite toxic substance, which may cause health problems (if it is used quite often).
Instead of it I use the Windsor&Newton Liquin Original medium, however it is quite expensive.
There are also initially prepared mediums of other brands (e.g. Eco-medium produced by the Renesans company), but I personally didn’t use it.)
There are also other medium types, intentended for different purposes (e.g. glazing) but you will not need them at the moment.
5. Painting surface
As a painting surface you can use a canvas (of cotton or fiber), a painting board, a wooden or masonite panel (that needs to be first appropriately prepared (primed)).
In the beginning I would advise you to use just a painting board or a cotton canvas of the student’s class, which are relatively cheap and you do not need to prepare them. Later on, when you start making paintings seriously, you can use the fiber canvas, which are of better quality, but are also much more expensive.
6. Palette
I would not recommend buing a round pallete from an art store, as it is a waste of money, and, what is more, it is just too small, especially in the beginning, when you need a bigger pallette to have anough place to mix and experiment with the colours.
The big, wooden board from the builder’s supermarket is perfect for that and doesn’t cost a lot (actually no more than 10 Zlotys).
7. Easel
An easel is something that every professional painter needs. Unfortunately the really good easels are quite expensive. If you cannot afford them, try to start with something cheaper or find a secondhand one on the internet sale.
If you plan attending painting lessons and you know that you will be painting mainly in the painting studio using an easel from there, just hold on… After some time you will see what is important for you when it comes to an easel, so you will be able to make the better choice. You can also ask your teacher for advice, however ask for the reasons of his/her prefferences. It may occur that the factors important for him are not so important for you, and vice versa.
8. Gummy gloves
I recommend using them in order to protect your hands from the contact with oil paints, medium or solvent while painting. You will be able to stop painting for a while (e.g. for a dinner) with no need to wash your hands with some chemical solvent.
9. Protective foil for your floor
This will allow you to keep your floor or carpet clean.
10. Something to clean your brushes
Usually the turpentine is used for that purpose, but I do not recommend using it, as this is toxic and can cause health problems when it is used frequently (e.g. headaches or problems with the respiratory system).
For the very dirty brushes, I use the so called Eco-thinner by Renesans first. Later on, I clean them with a regular soap.
If I paint day by day, I do not clean the brushes at all – I just leave them submerged in old, linsed oil.
I wish you a happy paining.
Best regards,
