The Complete Oil Painter: The Essential Reference for Beginners to Professionals

by Brian Gorst

Oils are perhaps the most versatile of all paint mediums. Yet for many artists oil painting is either shrouded in mystique or considered very difficult. Filled with clear, step-by-step instructions and surefire strategies, The Complete Oil Painter is an essential, one-stop guide to becoming an expert in every aspect of this medium. Artists will discover everything they need to know about materials (pigments, supports, canvases); tools and equipment (palettes, brushes); paint application (wet-into-wet, alla-prima, glazing, impasto); form and color (light and dark, expression, color mixing); exploring themes (still life, portraiture, figure painting); and much more.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent guide. I ordered a copy to have at home. Covers a number of techniques as well as paints, binders, brushes, solvents.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm teaching myself to oil paint and read this book to help get things started. I like the basic aspect to this book, but felt like the author was conservative on sharing more tricks of the trade.... I would use this as a way to start, but get something else for more advice. We'll see, maybe my rating will change as I get more into the hobby?

[Jedkimball]

I use this as a textbook for my Painting 1 class. It covers all the bases in a very intelligent way.

[Dlp · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best instruction book I have found on this topic.