Professional Artist Magazine, article by Ora Sorensen

ART N EWS + B USI N ESS ADVICE + R ESOU RCES + E DUCATION + TUTOR IALS JUNE/JULY 2013

Self-publishing Strategies PAGE 12

Get Your Art into Local Media PAGE 54

The National Arts Club

PAGE 61

Producing Giclée Prints PAGE 68 JUNE/JULY 2013

Tips for Oil Glazing PAGE 48 $7.95 US / $11.95 IN CANADA

Recorded Diffusion

by Alexandra Pacula

1 IN TROPICAL FRUIT, I USED MANY LAYERS OF GLAZE TO DEPICT THE HIGH GLOSS OF THE YELLOW GLASS BOWL, AND FEWER LAYERS FOR THE FRUIT AS THE SURFACE OF THE FRUIT HAS LESS SHEEN. ON THE FRUIT, I SCUMBLED LIGHT, OPAQUE COLORS AFTER THE FINAL GLAZE.

BY ORA SORENSEN

PAINTING wi" GLAZES

W

hen I began painting many years ago, I used watercolors. They were easy to set up and enjoyable to use. These days I mostly paint in oils, but I use the same trusted technique that made my watercolors glow — glazing.

Glazing is the term used for the method of painting thin, transparent layers of paint on top of one another. Each consecutive, transparent glaze alters or intensifies the color of the layers beneath it. When multiple glazes are used, the colors of all of the layers combine visually, yielding a clear, clean hue with a radiance and depth impossible to match by mixing pigments on a palette. The glow emanates from light as it travels through all of the transparent layers of glaze and reflects back off the canvas. This makes a painting so vibrant it seems to be lit from within.

1 Tropical Fruit by Ora Sorensen. Oil on canvas, 46” x 46”. 2 Yellow Roses Blue and White Vase by Ora Sorensen. Oil on canvas, 48” x 36”.

Copyright © Ora Sorensen. Used by permission of the artist.

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2 IN YELLOW ROSES BLUE AND WHITE VASE, I USED MANY LAYERS TO SHADE AND CONTOUR THE VASE FOR A GLASSY APPEARANCE. BUT FOR THE FLOWERS, I USED GLAZES MOSTLY FOR CONTRAST AND ADDED A LOT OF OPAQUE SCUMBLING TO MAKE VELVETY PETALS.

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I love the way glazes capture the vibrancy and sizzle of light and shadow in my still life, and I find the slow and deliberate method of painting completely enjoyable.

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5 The controlled, gradual build up of layers of sheer colors also makes it possible to depict details that would be more difficult with opaque paints. Glazing allows for subtle changes in value, hue and saturation. This method of multiple glazes of oil paint can be time consuming, but it gives a painting an incandescent brilliance, and allows for the blending of many colors without making a painting appear muddy.

LET’S GLAZE All you need to glaze are pigments, a glazing medium, soft brushes, knowledge of color theory and patience.

Glazes are mixed using color pigments floated into a glazing medium. For my glazing medium, I use Winsor & Newton Liquin, which is alkyd-based and formulated to speed up the drying rate of oil paint. It is a petroleumbased medium and should be used in a well-ventilated

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studio. Liquin beautifully increases the flow and transparency of the paint it’s mixed with, and it dries overnight when used with almost any color. You can also mix your own glazing medium, using 50 percent refined linseed oil and 50 percent turpentine.

I use a soft, flat bristle brush to apply my glazes. The size of the brush depends on the size of the area being painted.

I then use another dry brush, usually a soft and fluffy mop brush, to move around and feather the glazes. I have to wait until each glaze is completely dry, usually overnight, before adding another layer of color or the medium may tear off the prior glaze or turn the color muddy. This is when patience is truly a virtue.

Color theory is also important when you want to successfully use glazes in your painting. It will allow you to plan what colors will result from the application of the glazes. You will also need to know which paints are

STEP 4 When I begin painting the main subject matter, I block in all of the objects with thin opaque colors. I use Winsor & which changes the consistency

GLAZING DEMO For my demonstration painting, I put together a few, simple objects with different textures, such as the high gloss of the cup and the matte surface of the fabric.

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lowing morning.

STEP 1 I start with a set up of

STEP 5 After the base colors oil paint to intensify the colors, strengthens the contrast. To

ones, which will make an object

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saucer, which I think is visually

that I like to paint.

STEP 2 using a No. 2 pencil. The more problems I solve at this stage, the more relaxing the painting process will be later.

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STEP 3

transparent, semi-transparent and opaque (see list on Page 52). All of them can be used in glazing, but you’ll need to know how each one can be used.

For instance, when I use glazes in my paintings, I start by blocking in all of the objects with an opaque color, maybe yellow ochre. Then, I might begin with a glaze or two of transparent orange.

After that, I put down a glaze of a darker color, like alizarin crimson. Next, I intensify the hue with an even darker red such as perylene red. This is when the painting begins to glow. To add a deeper shadow or contrast, I may use the complementary color to the red, a transparent glaze of sap green.

For highlight areas, I paint a glaze using opaque colors, for instance, mixing some titanium white into the glazing medium and tinting it with a cool color. Always make sure each layer of glaze is completely dry before moving on to the next layer.

the look of a peach or velvet fabric. At this stage, I often use a rag or cotton swab to wipe out some paint for highlights or to smooth color transitions.

STEP 6

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is one of my favorite parts of the painting, when everything seems to come alive. I love how

smearing into the oil paint, out, I will use white gesso only on those objects, such as the area will shine through the submake that part of the painting

use some thick globs of paint for painting, I scumble some color on, or perhaps just apply thick paint with one quick stroke.

into the composition, which will help unify the rest of the piece.

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The glow emanates from light as it travels through all of the transparent layers of glaze and reflects back off the canvas. … it seems to be lit from within.

TIPS TO HELP YOU WITH YOUR GLAZING The more medium you add to your pigment, the more transparent it will become. However, be careful not to overdilute your glazes.

Become familiar with which manufactured pigments are transparent and opaque, since each yields a different type of glaze.

Adding a darker glaze over a lighter one will make an object glow. Putting lighter colors over darker ones will make an object appear duller.

Using semi-transparent or opaque pigments for a glaze will result in look. This is because the opacity of the paint blocks some of the light opaque glazes to create the texture of peach or velvet fabric. light-to-dark and warm-to-cool when glazing to produce the maximum luminosity.

COLORS FOR GLAZING Not all paint manufacturers state on their paint tubes whether the paint is transparent, semi-transparent or opaque.

The degree of transparency of each color will vary between manufacturers as well.

But through practice, you will learn how your favorites.

Here’s a list of some of my favorite glazing colors:

Of course, you’ll need to experiment to figure out the best combinations of glazing that will work in your paintings.

The process of glazing is always so enjoyable for me. I like the gradual method of slowly adding color, depth and details to my paintings, and I love the incredible luminosity achieved from many layers of transparent and translucent glazes. With glazing, the painting process is relaxing and meditative, and the finished result is a painting that glows like stained glass. PA Ora Sorensen (OraSorensenArt.com) was born in New York but grew up overseas in such countries as Libya, Turkey, Iran, Holland and Thailand. Her paintings are collected worldwide and have been shown in numerous exhibitions.

Tropical Bouquet by Ora Sorensen. Oil on canvas, 48” x 36”.

Copyright © Ora Sorensen. Used by permission of the artist.

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TRANSPARENT/SEMI-TRANSPARENT COLORS: alizarin crimson, aureolin yellow, cobalt violet, davy’s grey, indian yellow, indigo blue, olive green, payne’s grey, permanent rose, perylene red, sap green, thalo blue, thalo green, transparent orange, ultramarine blue and viridian green OPAQUE COLORS: cadmium orange, cadmium oxide green opaque, cadmium red, cadmium yellow, cerulean blue, chrome titanate yellow, titanium white and yellow ochre