Oil painting

Oil painting is a technique in which pigments are combined with a drying oil that acts as the binder. For several centuries it has been the dominant medium for artistic painting on canvas, wooden panels and metal supports such as copper. The medium’s advantages—including its flexibility, rich colour, capacity for layering and broad tonal range—made it central to the development of Western art, particularly during the Renaissance.
Oil painting can be traced to much earlier traditions, with the oldest known oil-based artworks created by Buddhist painters in Afghanistan in the 7th century AD. In Europe, oil-based mixtures were used from at least the 12th century for painting objects, sculptures and woodwork, but it was not until the innovations of Early Netherlandish painting in the 15th century that oil became the dominant medium for painted images. By the height of the Renaissance, oil techniques had largely replaced egg tempera in most parts of Europe except in Orthodox icon traditions and fresco wall painting.

Materials and Properties

Common drying oils used in traditional practice include linseed, walnut, poppy seed and safflower oil. Each oil produces different visual and chemical effects:

• Linseed oil dries relatively quickly and forms a strong paint film but may yellow over time.
• Walnut and poppy oils yellow less but generally dry more slowly.
• Safflower oil is often used for lighter pigments to prevent yellowing, though it produces a weaker film.

Painters can modify the consistency and behaviour of the paint using solvents such as turpentine and mineral spirits or by incorporating resins, waxes and varnishes. These additives influence drying time, translucency, sheen and texture. When boiled with resins such as pine or frankincense, oils produce varnishes that contribute both protective qualities and surface character.
Oil paint’s natural plasticity allows it to form textures ranging from smooth, glassy layers to thick impasto. Because oil dries by oxidation rather than evaporation, it remains workable for extended periods. This enables blending, reworking and even scraping back entire layers during the early stages of the process.

Techniques

Traditional oil painting generally begins with a preparatory drawing or underpainting on a primed support. Artists may thin their paint with oil or solvents to achieve glazes or washes, or apply it thickly for opaque passages. A widely observed guideline is the principle of “fat over lean”, meaning that each successive paint layer should contain a higher proportion of oil than the one beneath. This reduces the risk of cracking as the painting cures.
Other techniques include:

• Glazing: building up subtle, translucent layers to create luminosity.
• Wet-on-wet: applying fresh paint over still-wet layers for soft blending, used notably by some Early Netherlandish painters.
• Impasto: leaving visible, textured brushstrokes; a technique developed further during the Renaissance and exploited heavily by artists such as Titian and, later, Rembrandt.
• Palette knife painting: applying or scraping paint with a metal blade for varied surface effects.

Because oil paint dries slowly, artists can adjust colour, form and texture over long sessions. After the wet stage, hardened layers may be scraped or abraded if revisions are required.

Historical Development

Early Origins in Afghanistan

The earliest surviving oil-based paintings are Bamiyan murals created by Buddhist artists in the 7th century AD. Located behind the rock-cut chambers of the Bamiyan Buddhas along the Silk Road, these murals reveal sophisticated techniques: a range of pigments, oil-based binders and even varnishes. Their existence suggests that oil painting had been well established in Asia centuries before it appeared in European art.

Medieval Europe

By the early 12th century, oil techniques were known in Europe, as described in Theophilus Presbyter’s treatise On Divers Arts. At this stage, oil was used principally for decorative objects, sculpture and durable surfaces such as shields. Cennino Cennini’s Book of Art later outlined similar methods. Although Northern European painters were long credited with inventing oil painting, modern scholarship shows that they refined rather than created the technique.

Early Netherlandish and Renaissance Innovations

Painters such as Jan van Eyck and Robert Campin in the 15th century developed the systematic use of oil on panels, utilising transparent layers and fine detail to achieve unprecedented realism. Their methods spread across Northern Europe and eventually to Italy, where oil painting conceptually transformed Renaissance practice.
By the late 15th century, canvas began replacing panel as a support. It was cheaper, lighter and easier to transport, enabling larger compositions. Venice, with its ready supply of sailcloth, became an early centre of canvas painting. Artists also experimented with metal supports such as copper plates, valued for their smoothness and durability.

Maturity and Divergence

During the 16th and 17th centuries, oil painting techniques diversified. Some artists sought seamless surfaces with invisible brushwork, while others, especially the Venetians, developed expressive handling and textured surfaces. The impasto effects of Titian and the dramatic chiaroscuro of Rembrandt illustrate the medium’s growing capacity for personal expression.

Industrial Advances

Until the 19th century, painters ground their own pigments and prepared their paints, making outdoor painting impractical. This changed after John Goffe Rand patented the collapsible metal paint tube in 1841. Ready-made oil paints allowed artists, particularly the French Impressionists, to paint en plein air with unprecedented ease.

Ingredients and Modern Developments

Linseed oil, derived from flax seeds, remains the most widely used binder. Linen canvas, also made from flax, has long been the traditional support for oil painting. Alternatives such as safflower, walnut and poppy oils continue to be used judiciously due to differences in yellowing and drying characteristics. Modern chemistry has introduced water-miscible oils, which behave similarly to traditional oils but can be thinned and cleaned with water.

Supports

Early oil paintings were executed on wooden panels, but by the end of the Renaissance, canvas had become the dominant support. Canvas offered durability and flexibility, proving particularly suited to large works. Artists also employed copper plates and other metals for small-scale works requiring fine detail. The choice of support influences the final appearance, surface texture and longevity of an oil painting.