Which Paint? An introduction to oils, acrylics, watercolour and pastel - Jackson's Art Blog

By A Mystery Man Writer

Last updated 23 Jun 2024

Which Paint? An introduction to oils, acrylics, watercolour and pastel - Jackson's Art Blog

Need to decide which is the best paint for you? Watercolours, acrylics, oils and pastels are each inspiring and exciting in their own way. Which set of marks, textures and colours will inspire you? Oil Paints Oil paints have a richness that is unparalleled. Finely ground pigments are carefully milled into a drying oil, usually linseed but sometimes if it’s a pale colour safflower or walnut oil. Different pigments have different particle sizes and absorbency, which means that some paints end up being more saturated, thicker or with a greater staining capacity than others. Oil paint is slow drying which means colour can be blended on the support – how you might imagine a sky by Constable would be painted. The ability to move and lift colour with a rag can lend the painting process an almost sculptural quality, as in ‘Impression, Sunrise’ (1873) by Claude Monet, where traces of lifted colour remain and exist alongside thicker applications of paint. Rubens-esque flesh tones can be created with layers of delicate glazes. Buttery impasto effects can be built up in thick layers to create rich colour and texture, effects that may bring Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’ to mind. Paints are thinned and