Franz Marc Tyrol
Oil painting is a process where in color is blended with a drying oil medium. The most common medium used in oil painting is linseed oil. Aside from linseed oil, sunflower oil is also used since it doesn’t cause yellowish discoloration in lighter pigments. Oil painting has been considered as one of the basic ways of expressing art. A distinctive quality of oil paint is its ability to remain wet for a long time. It could take as long as weeks before the paint dries completely so the artist has the chance to blend and mix the pigments. Oxidation is the term used to describe the process where oil paint is exposed to air. As soon as it “dries” up, it becomes a solid.
Around the Renaissance time, artists experimented on traditional oil painting. By exploring new possibilities, these artists were able to create modern art. Today modern oil paintings have become a new form of art starting from 1863 and continued and evolved till the 1960s and 1970s. The early artists of modern oil paintings were Paul Cezanne, Vincent Van Gogh, Georges Seurat, Paul Gauguin, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Their works made the fundamental nature of modern art as abstract. Around the 19th century; Impressionist, Romantics and Realists became the leading innovators of modern art. The painters were able to make a living on their creations through public exhibitions and commissions. Even the government also offered their support for artists and their paintings.
In the 20th century, Pablo Picasso made his mark in modern art. It signaled the beginning of the “Picasso’s style” by incorporating his own touch on the traditional art technique called cubism. A prominent work he created that depicted such art form was in the Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. It has incorporated geometric shapes as an avant garde technique of expressing art even though the majority may not completely understand what it aims to portray.
Modern oil paintings can be seen at homes and offices as decorations. However, the famous works of notable artists can be found in museums such as the Tate Gallery in London. Aside from the paintings, even the architectural structure of the building screams out modernism. Modern painting is created by not having a subject in mind and letting the mind wander at each stroke of the paintbrush. With the help of oil paints, an artist’s feeling and ideas are brought to life. Unlike traditional painting where the artist and the spectators have a similar understanding of the work, modern art allows both the artist and the spectators to freely interpret the painting.
Modern oil paintings are made through a distinct texture and style. It has become a way of providing pleasant ambience to offices and houses. The cost of modern art not only depends on the size of the artwork but also how the artist feels about his/her work. The painting is sure to be pricey if the painter holds special emotions for it. Another factor that determines the price of artwork is by the person who created it. If the painter is prominent at his craft, then his products are sure to be expensive.
