art treatise from photography to oil O
IL PAINT and the artists who use it have contributed to some of art history’s most impressive achievements, like
da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” and Van Gogh’s “Starry Night.” The unique medium is composed of a variety of pigments
and the addition of a drying oil — often linseed and nut oils — as a binder, providing a vibrant palette. The
medium is popular with artists and art lovers for many reasons, not the least of which is its versatility and utility
in developing texture and light. For Wilmington artist Patricia Barrow, a photographer for 25 years before making
the switch to paint, oils have heightened her creative practice.
“It’s fast and forgiving in a way that acrylic is not,” she says. “In oil, I can do an entire painting, change my mind,
and then wipe it all out. You can move it, you can manipulate it. I’ve always loved oil paintings, so that’s where I wanted to go.”
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WBM january 2018
