The New Oil Painting by Kimberly Brooks

The New Oil Painting
by Kimberly Brooks

ISBN-13: 9781452184791
Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Released: May 18th 2021

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Oil painting is an exciting and adventurous medium, but aspiring artists can feel daunted by complex setups and the thought of using harsh chemicals. The New Oil Painting walks you step-by-step through oil painting fundamentals—which materials you actually need, how to mix paint, how to set up your painting space—and, most revolutionary of all, how to eliminate harmful solvents from your work and replace them with safe, effective substitutes. This instructional handbook is organized into chapters with helpful diagrams throughout illustrating various techniques and tools. Whether you're a true beginner or have been painting with oils for years, you will find that this book has everything you need to build a new, thriving, toxin-free practice.


My Review:
The New Oil Painting explains how you can do oil painting without needing harmful chemicals or solvents. Much of the book focused on supplies and materials rather than on painting techniques. The author explained how to thin colors, glaze, and clean brushes without needing harmful chemicals. She provided lists of where to find the supplies you need. She provided step-by-step instructions along with pictures showing the process of cleaning a brush, for example. She provided a lot of interesting information about how artists historically did these things before resins were added to paints, meaning solvents were then needed. The author also discussed things like why you paint with fat over lean (and what that means), layering, and color mixing as well as briefly talking about storing paintings, painting the sides for display, varnishing paintings, and safety measures. If you're interested in oil painting but have been been deterred by concerns about harmful fumes and chemicals, then I'd recommend this very useful and informative book. However, a complete beginner to painting might feel at a loss on how to apply the information since the author assumed a certain amount of familiarity with painting.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.