FruitBowl432

Oils Drying

Did you know that oils do not dry by evaporation, but by light curing? This means that if you leave an oil painting in a dark room, it will stay wet for a long long time. This can be used to your advantage if you get interrupted while painting and want it to stay workable longer. It’s not a good idea to delay the drying for too long though. A few days is fine, but longer than that and the paint might have a tendency to yellow. However, if you are in a hurry to dry an oil painting, putting it under bright light both day and night really helps speed things up. But using a hot hair dryer to try to speed up oil paint drying is a completely useless exercise. 
Boy1T

Childlike Creativity

When it comes to art, I can see some real benefits to being childlike. Here’s my list: 1. A sense of wonder. This comes naturally to most artistic people. The wonder of colour, of nature, of the world about and within. Einstein said it was key to who he was. /  2. An avid curiosity. “What happens if..” The ways of completing that are endless in art. /  3. A willingness to learn new things. With art, there is always something new to try: new colours, new shapes, new subjects, new types of lines, new combinations of these – it’s truly endless. /  4. That sense of joy that creating brings. Sometimes I can’t stop smiling when the art is going well. It even makes me give a little dance or laugh out loud at times – too much information? /  Maybe this is why children do art so naturally and easily. Have I missed anything on the list? What do you think – are there positives about being childlike as an artist?