Importance of Oil Painting (and authors-examples)

Serena Cuoghi
Biology Teacher Title

One of the most used resources in the plastic arts throughout history is oil painting, both as a base and as a technique itself. which has given rise to countless artistic works from the Renaissance to contemporary art, due to the great variety of plastic properties that it has, among which the following stand out: 1) the malleability it has for the creation of effects, as well as its adaptation and adherence to various surfaces; 2) the variety of colors that allows in composition and their construction from multiple elements and organic and inorganic chemical substances, presenting itself as the ideal vehicle for the capture and transmission of color; 3) its durability due to its high adhesion to surfaces, a quality that has allowed it to transcend time; 4) the unlimited use it allows for texture and depth in the works; and 5) the effects of light and shadows that can be developed through techniques that challenge visual perception and facilitate the creation of particular atmospheres and styles.

All these skills have made oil painting popular among artists for centuries, to the point of being part of the mandatory studies in the disciplines of the arts. plastic arts on a global scale, with which not only has its universalization been achieved but also the complementation in artistic training, through a technique that stimulates and challenges the creative, visual development and abstraction capacity of students, guiding them towards the maximum exploration of their gifts and talents for art.

Practical advantages that dry over time

In addition to stimulating cognitive skills related to visual-spatial management and interpretation, oil painting, due to its particular characteristic of slow drying, is It is proposed as a powerful tool for the development of the patience necessary in the construction of a work, allowing its continuous intervention for long periods. that encourage the maturation of the idea of ​​the work in the mind of the artist himself, a more than prevailing need in the reality of the contemporary immediatism of today's life. which has also infected the world of plastic arts, and for which works made in oil continue to be considered with a much higher value than their counterparts in acrylic.

The patience that the artist develops through the use of oil paint together with the base of technical knowledge necessary to achieve an efficient artistic result, They are among the most valued qualities of his expression by those who contemplate and acquire his work, to which must be added the personal imprint that each stroke of oil reflects, revealing the development of the artist's manual skill over time, and the use of oil paint becomes a discipline that stimulates the artist permanently throughout his career, guiding him towards constant growth that challenges him in all his aspects mental and personal. This intimate connection that is capable of evoking the work in the handling of oil has guided towards the adoption of this resource as a therapeutic potential in the approach of multiple disorders. mental, making him a great ally of modern psychology and psychiatry, who contemplate with interest and fascination the correlation between the use and management of color and the tracings, with the patient's emotions and moods, just as happens with artists, revealing valuable information that they often cannot obtain in the sessions. conventional therapeutics, understanding through this with greater accuracy and depth the nature of the mental imprints that may be disturbing the psychic state of their patients.

Commercial participation

To the subjective value of the work made with oil paint framed in the context of the complexity of its use, is added the high cost of the materials in comparison to the investment necessary to work with acrylic and other aqueous paints, generating a commercial dynamic naturally aimed at a greater target in regarding the potential clients of the works and the exhibition galleries, seeing oil painting as a more elite product, above the works developed with other techniques and materials, which allows the artist to generate greater profits through his work in compensation for the demands made by using oil to express himself, while the quality of personal development embodied through the evolution of his work, stimulates the desire to collect his work before the public. art connoisseurs.

On the other hand, the conservation of oil works also demands greater complexity, requiring advanced technical preparation of the professionals dedicated to restoration and a constant investment in the matter by galleries and museums, especially for works protected over the centuries, this being a task that is not at all simple and economical, which usually consumes a large part of the profits generated through artistic exhibition, while collectors Individuals must ensure, with their own means, the maintenance of the state of conservation of their works and the trajectory that they will continue, once they are no longer able to do so. continue enjoying his admired collection, often reaching the thriving auctions through heirs with a taste for art not as resistant as that of his predecessors.

Traces in the History of Art

Regarding the longevity that oil paint gives to the works, this stands out as part of the essential elements that have allowed the transcendence of their use since its beginnings in 15th century Europe, when experimentation began with mixing oils, such as linseed oil, with various pigments that allowed the capture of color for its conservation over time, quickly popularizing both artistic expression and desire experimental for the improvement of a resource whose transformation over the centuries has also allowed it to preserve the permanence of its applicability.

Among the artists recognized throughout the centuries, both for their talent and for the contributions they generated to the development and popularization of oil painting, the following stand out among many others:

1) Jan van Eyck (1390-1441), who is commonly attributed with the development of the oil painting technique in the 15th century, with his work “The Man in the Red Turban” being one of the most cited representations of him.

2) Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), who used this technique to recreate “The Last Supper”, while at the suggestion of the strokes in the oil painting by “La Gioconda” is considered by many to be an unfinished opera as part of the charm that makes it the most famous painting in the world. world.

4) Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669), as a painter of the Dutch Golden Age, he is given the responsibility of having magnified the dramatic capacity of oil, with the play of light and shadow that allowed him to create portraits and historical scenes of particular realism.

5) Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), whose peculiar impressionist capacity became the oil painting's impetus towards its transcendence within the modernization that has allowed it to reach contemporary art.