#acrylicvsoilpaint #oilpainting #arteducation #oilpaintingforbeginners
Acrylic vs Oil Paint Which is Better for Learning?
Acrylic vs Oil Paint! Which one is better for learning painting? Learn the difference, see side-by-side comparisons, and hear the objections.
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Chapters:
0:00 Which paint is better for learning art?
0:29 Why it matters
0:46 Fastest way to learn how to paint
1:29 Acrylic dries fast - good or bad?
2:59 Which paint is more forgiving?
3:46 Can you adjust drying times?
4:07 Mixing paint with acrylic vs oil
4:24 Why gradients are important
5:09 Which paint blends easier?
5:40 The gradient test
7:39 Which paint gives more control?
8:19 Acrylic vs oil paint T-chart
8:27 Oil paint is expensive
9:23 Cost-return analysis - acrylic vs oil
10:00 Does oil paint smell bad / toxic?
11:36 Oil paint is intimidating
13:33 Reaching pro level art skills
THE GRADIENT TEST
ABSTRACT: The fastest method to learn painting involves the least amount of unnecessary resistance to acquire skills. Painting gradients is one of the most essential but challenging skills every beginner must learn. Analyzing the differences between gradients of acrylic vs oil paint, we have found that oil paint blends more easily with the least amount of resistance compared to acrylic, contributing to a more effective and efficient path to pro level art skills.
METHODOLOGY: The gradient test sought to reveal the characteristics of the paint and minimize the effects of tools, technique and skill, while maintaining equal conditions and process. Daniel Folta was given the task of creating a gradient with specific parameters that would highlight any minor blemishes in the paint. This required each gradient to be made with a semi-opaque red transitioning into an opaque black; in this way, the gradient would have to transition through multiple extremes, in value (light to dark), color (red to black), and edge (sharp or soft). Semi-opaque was chosen for the red as it is a common opacity for bright colors that painters will often have to make gradients with, while the more opaque black would assist in creating a smoother gradient. A filbert brush was chosen as the tool; it is considered the best all-around brush and ideal for beginner artists. No other tools were allowed.
• High quality paint brands - M. Graham Acrylic Paint vs Old Holland Oil Paint
• Colors - Naphthol Red (semi-opaque acrylic) and Mars Black (opaque acrylic) vs Scheveningen Red (semi-opaque oil) and Mars Black (opaque oil)
• Brush - Simply Simmons Synthetic Filbert size 10
RESULTS: The oil paint gradient was easier to create and significantly softer than the acrylic gradient. It was also easier to fix mistakes. To compensate for the fast drying time, Daniel attempted 3 gradients in acrylic:
GRADIENT 1: Same process as Oil Gradient (no medium added). This process laid down the black, then red, side by side, followed by a buffer shade as a mid-tone between the red and black. Once the buffer was laid in, each side of the buffer was gently and carefully softened with both criss-crossing brush strokes and gentle down-stroke taps. The acrylic paint dried too quickly on the canvas for the paint to blend smoothly.
GRADIENT 2: The brush was slightly wetted with water. Instead of a buffer, paint from the red was pushed into the black, while paint from the black was pushed into the red. The paint became too thin, and despite adding more paint, the brush began to pick up paint off the canvas.
GRADIENT 3: To confirm that the paint was getting thinner as it blended together (Acrylic Gradient 1 and Oil Gradient 1 both got thicker), the gradient was made on top of an already dry swath of acrylic. This gradient copied Gradient 2, except that the brushstrokes went up and down continuously on the canvas (as is shown by the majority of tutorials for blending acrylic).
All three gradients were halted short by the effects of the acrylic paint drying on the canvas.
CONSIDERATIONS
If there were more tools, mediums, techniques, or different colors available, Daniel would have been able to create soft gradients in acrylic as well as oil.
Results may have differed in a larger sample size of artists participating in the same test.
Daniel also may have unknowingly avoided other factors that could have created resistance in making the gradient in oil.
Was this a good test? Let us know in the comments!