Any Oil Painters Out there?
3yr
Christopher Beaven
Hi everyone! It seems that most of the artists on here are doing digital media which is cool. Most, if not all, of the concepts will translate well. But I'm an oil painter and love it and wanted to follow some other oil painters. Also, I wanted to see if my latest video "Safe Non Toxic Oil Painting // 6 Tips for Your Health can help any other oil painters on proko. Check it out! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1Jnwn46CLw
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Amy Skaar
3yr
Hi Christopher, I'm an aspiring oil painter as well. I took my first oil workshop about 14 years ago, but then didn't pursue it at all until about a year ago. Since then I've been diving in and loving it! Here are a few of the things I've done. I'm looking to learn more about painting from imagination. I'm looking forward to making some friends here and exchanging ideas with other artists! -Amy
Christopher Beaven
Wonderful paintings! That flower is fantastic! Thanks for commenting. I haven't been posting much oil painting lately I've been doing some digital work and using it to prepare for my next few oil paintings. If you want to see my work you can check out my website at https://chrisbeaven.com. Please keep sharing your work and if you have any questions I would love to help. :)
Jeff Reid
3yr
I am an oil painter too. I also enjoy other mediums such as charcoal and graphite
Christopher Beaven
@Jeff Reid I like your portrait for avatar. Wanna share more of your work?
Barbara Lentes
I started painting in oils last year. This is my first oil portrait (selfportrait). I am still learning and the medium is amazing, and a big challenge. I am not working digital at all. I love the process of classical painting and drawing, sometimes making a mess, having fun. Maybe someday i‘ll try digital, am always curious.
Christopher Beaven
Great portrait! You definitely painted in another medium before this :) I agree, I have tried digital a bit but could never get over the lack of tactile sensation. It fills dead to me versus all other traditional mediums.
Elias Lemus
Hi there! I've started to do more digital recently, but I will never leave my oils! Oil painting is one of my favorites! My instagram is @eliaslemusart if you're interested. Where can I find your work?
Christopher Beaven
Yes! Thanks! I'll take a look.
Grace Mounce
Hi @Christopher Beaven, just wanted to say hi and a huge thank you for the major boost of inspiration you gave me today. I really appreciate the work you are doing to help artists with mindset and motivation. And it goes without saying that your paintings are incredible!! I'm just getting into digital painting now, but oil painting is one of my first loves. I'm a big fan of James Gurney. And it's nice to meet a fellow artist from WA!
Christopher Beaven
Awesome! Thank you so much! Your comment means a ton. Anytime I can help let me know :)
Liandro
3yr
Hey @Christopher Beaven! I know @Jo Sheridan was making some cool stuff with oils a while ago, I wonder if she still is. I’m definitely not an oil painter, but I checked out your website and, whoa, your artwork is stunning! I was also curious about your story. You say you made a commitment with yourself and have been making art daily for nine years so far - that’s a pretty impressive streak. In you “About” section, you say “Establishing my identity as an artist meant I practiced as an artist every day” - I found this sentence very striking because it reminded me of something I once heard from @Steve Huston: “You want to be an artist? You gotta draw and paint every day - that’s what artists do” (maybe not these exact words, but the meaning was it). I figure yeah - perhaps building a career, earning money or achieving “success” requires more, but, before any of that, BEING an artist per se is really that simple: it’s about the habit. If we’re making art every day (or at least most days, at a regular pace in the “big picture”), we’re living as artists. And it feels natural: as you say, there’s no “must” or “have to”, it’s just part of who we are. It’s a “want-to”.
Jo Sheridan
Hi @Christopher Beaven Jo Sheridan here - thanks to @Liandro for remembering that I was dabbling in oil paints - I think I was posting a lot as I was trying to work out where to start with it all and was finding it really tough to make sense of all the videos out there. I must admit, that like you, I found that most on Proko are into character design and digital media, which isn't really me at all... I have found more like minded students on the New Masters Academy website - although this is a yearly subscription model here. I did do Steven Baumans Proko course on traditional approaches to Oil Painting which was an interesting ride - and probably not the place to start out - but I still really enjoyed it - I did stop at the Grisaille stage, so will come back to full colour later on... I got distracted by the NMA 100 day challenge - which I did complete - doing a drawing to do with the head every day for 100 days which was a real bootcamp, - and I agree with Liandro - Steve Houston does talk about "making a lot of starts" and I didn't really get that until I did the challenge - makes a real difference. I do plan to get back to my Oil painting once the weather in the UK warms up a bit as I do my messy art in a shed at the bottom of the garden and its too cold down there at the moment. I'll check out your YouTube channel when I get the chance...
Christopher Beaven
@Liandro Thank you so much! I'll check out Jo. I'm glad you like my work and especially my message. I'm trying to build a following on my YouTube channel so I can start sharing wisdom I've collected over the years to keep going every single day. There is not much there now but check it out if you like. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4ha7UwUyI5cuvO-SX6KeuQ Also your very correct it all boils down to showing up every day and pushing the ball forward just a little more. Consistency and longevity beat out inconsistent leaps forward all the time. Although, the difficult part about this is staying motivated especially on the bad days. This is the type of wisdom I want to start sharing with many people here on Proko and beyond. The skill of art is only one half of the equation but the most important is how to stay consistent with the practice because it doesn't matter how good you are if you never put pencil to paper or brush to canvas. Thanks again!
Liam O'Neil
Hello! I'm an art student studying illustration, who is at the relative beginning of their journey. I'm am learning oil painting outside of school at this moment, and I found your video to be quite good! The non-solvent gel seems to be worth a try specifically. Also, I'm in a public speaking class at the moment and I have to say your delivery and hand gestures during the video were fantastic (as well as the way you structured it). That's besides the whole art point but it was a well done video. The oil work I've done to this point has been mostly studies so I won't fling anything at you quite yet-- but when I get something I'm proud of I'll certainly send it your way. Regardless, I'm excited to see what content you put out in the future and will certainly follow you to keep updated!
Christopher Beaven
Thanks Liam! I would love to see your studies and help you all that I can. I've been painting in oil all my life so I feel like at this point I know a thing or two ;p Regardless I'm here to help.
@paper
3yr
Hello Christopher_Beaven,I don't use oil paint but I use the water mixable version of it if that counts.Here are some works I have done with it that I am proud of (You can critique it if you want) (Also on the topic of wanting to follow other oil painters,might you know of Skip Liepke?He is a fantastic artist I looked up too) P.s. nice video.
Christopher Beaven
Hey Paper! Water mixable oils definitely count. I do like Liepke and I know of his work but I'm wanting to have actual conversations with artists that aren't already famous, haha. It looks like you have some illustration goals for those paintings, is that correct? Also, was the low chroma colors intentional?
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