PAINT TALK: Oil Painting Misconceptions

In this video I go over some of the biggest misconceptions about oil painting.

Materials
Titanium White
Cadmium Red Hue
Cadmium Lemon
French Ultramarine

Hi, I am the son of two artists and began painting in my hometown of Richmond, Virginia before I could walk. I was a rare combination of artist and athlete so I moved to Los Angeles in 2008 to play football for USC. I left the team my sophomore year to focus on painting and filmmaking, applying the same focus and discipline from my football career to my art. I primarily work in oils, and spend most free days painting "en plein air" in my new home of Sarasota Florida.

Where to find me:
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[rideauviewconstruction]

This is a fantastic video. I can’t tell you how much your insight has helped me. Thank you!

[bosiegabriel]

For late bloomers in their 60s, 70s you are god sent. You instill a lot of confidence. Bless you.

[sketchingjohn]

I avoided oils for my entire life until a year ago. Your advice is so on point. I bought a cheap set of paints, a bottle of linseed oil and some thinner and just dived right in. It's changed my artistic life. Thanks for this great video.

[snapperlee]

said it about mediums!!!
I ve been using gamsol and linseed oil for years, and liquin when I plein air
That’s LITERALLY all you need!.
The old masters used thinner and lineseed oil if it was good enough for them then it’s good enough for me

[gcsylvester]

I really enjoy your videos. I just wanted to mention something that few people talk about with oils in regards to reactions to the fumes. Yes, many people have a reaction to solvents, but that was not so much the case with me. I used to love to paint with oils but switched to acrylics because I was having a reaction to the fumes from the curing of the paint in my home and studio. I'd always have a bunch of pieces, some large, some small that were at different stages of drying. I didn't mind the odor but it was as if I developed a systemic reaction. I developed headaches and sometimes it was like my face was burning while painting. I tried linseed oil alone, painted without solvents, tried walnut oil paints, water soluble oils and various air filters but nothing helped much. I read somewhere that when oil paints cure they release organic compounds into the air that are similar to mold. Apparently I'm one of those people who has a sensitivity to mold. It was sad for me to give up oils. I was relieved to find that I have no reaction like that to acrylics. I've used acrylics now for about 12 years. There are creative work-arounds to plein air paint with acrylics that I've come to appreciate. Thanks again for all the great, informative videos. I can still learn a lot from your expertise without painting in oils!

[zaynkataw]

I love the way you talk funny yet serious. Great info

[WendyDaCanuck]

You really hit the nail on the head with the medium business.

[ralphstachler]

Great common sense ! Took me nearly 40 yrs. to learn this stuff. Thank you !

[justwilliam]

Excellent, a real down home, ma and pa’s store approach. I use as little medium as possible because I like to see coarse textural brush strokes. I built my own easel and I make and prime my own canvases. Thank you.

[sinisterd]

The thing about mediums!! Omg what an adorable rant that was. It shows how frustrated you are with people overcomplicating mediums. Super helpful to hear you talk about it.

[DustyBeans]

I absolutely LOVE the way you explain all of this!! I’ve been using acrylics because I had this preconceived impression that it’s crazy difficult and you need to learn SO much before even attempting a painting and I’m so glad I came across your video. It really helped me put that out of my mind and give it another go with oils ❤️🙌🏻

[AngelasJoys]

I paint but you're the guy I'm sending my granddaughter to watch. I love your way of teaching.

[marilynrobinson]

Chris you speak the truth and are fun to watch . Keep painting and encouraging others to explore their creativity . Thanks for brightening my day .

[mogalcat]

This is the best thing I've seen today. I've seen tons of painting videos and I guess if you're gonna teach something you have to sound like you know what you're doing, which is why many teachers come off sounding all puffed up and pretentious. I love your straighforward and honest approach. It's a breath of fresh air.

[rvgdfoj]

Thanks! That is very useful advice and I really like your no nonsense way of explaining :-)

[shellyenglandart]

Medium: “Just feel it out!” Hehehe. I switched to oil paints because of your videos and luckily, because of listening to you, I learned early on medium wasn’t a big deal. But I feel your frustration explaining this.

[manicmushroom]

Two less obvious safety points which I didn't come across for a while:

Sanding paintings can create breathable dust which is one way toxic pigments can easily cause you harm (in acrylics and oils). If you're sanding your painting for any reason make sure you aren't breathing that dust in and its not contaminating your home.

Also linseed oil soaked rags can literally burst into flames without any source of flame. This is more of a woodworking thing but check out the videos on Youtube and be safe.

[marke]

The part about mediums made me laugh, I thought you were close to swearing about it which was great. I agree about the mess people have made about them. Seems like a way for companies to make more money tbh. For me oils dry slow enough as it is so I don't use any mediums at all and don't have much problem getting the paint on there which is the only thing you need to do right? It is getting the paint in the right place with the right value etc which is the hard bit.

[Morticia]

I really like this talks, they are very informative and your channel should be much bigger! I love this no fuss approach to painting, you really helping me along big time.

[valgrymart]

You had the chance to have it explained right off the bat. When youre trying to teach yourself its pretty confusing when you never heard about it before and its name dropped in tutorials and stuff. good explanation