Uploaded May 2012 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
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Oil Painting Mediums: The Fat on Lean Principle
This tutorial is intended to help beginners in oil painting avoid cracking in their paintings.
Many painters progressing from acrylic painting or any water based painting believe they can operate oil paint using turps to substitute the water.
Top tip would be to avoid using paint straight from the tube or thinned using only turpentine.
Some sounds used courtesy of audionautix.com
The main tip in this video is not to just use thinners. I had a comment from someone who paints only with turps and has had no issues with cracking and I believe there will be others too. I would have to state that some peoples' painting processes even using only solvent will not be susceptible to cracking (some methods of wet in wet or alla prima). However there are other pitfalls of using just thinner. Your paintings may also appear dull/ washed out or even chalky with no medium. This is due to 'sinking in' once the paint dries. Using 'fat' medium with plenty oil will make the colours richer, the darks deeper and generally give a bit of life to the piece. Some don't like the gloss, but cold wax medium mixed in can help deal with it.
scottnaismith.co.uk
LIKE me on facebook: facebook.com/pages/Scott-Naismith-Scottish-Landscape-Artist/107776392866
scottnaismith.co.uk
Oil Painting Mediums: The Fat on Lean Principle
This tutorial is intended to help beginners in oil painting avoid cracking in their paintings.
Many painters progressing from acrylic painting or any water based painting believe they can operate oil paint using turps to substitute the water.
Top tip would be to avoid using paint straight from the tube or thinned using only turpentine.
Some sounds used courtesy of audionautix.com
The main tip in this video is not to just use thinners. I had a comment from someone who paints only with turps and has had no issues with cracking and I believe there will be others too. I would have to state that some peoples' painting processes even using only solvent will not be susceptible to cracking (some methods of wet in wet or alla prima). However there are other pitfalls of using just thinner. Your paintings may also appear dull/ washed out or even chalky with no medium. This is due to 'sinking in' once the paint dries. Using 'fat' medium with plenty oil will make the colours richer, the darks deeper and generally give a bit of life to the piece. Some don't like the gloss, but cold wax medium mixed in can help deal with it.
scottnaismith.co.uk
