Taking the Fear Out of Oil Painting

Many artists get overwhelmed with fear and anxiety when they first venture out into oil painting. While this isn’t a comfortable experience, it is quite common.

In order to succeed in anything important, you need to devise means of effectively eliminating fear and anxiety. Any artist who’s ever tried oil painting knows just how much effect this can have on your work.

The reason for this is that oil painting is particularly not easy, compared to other painting styles. Fear leads to low productivity, not only in oil painting but in anything worth spending time on.

Fear is natural and it is not entirely strange that someone experiences it amidst a task. However, your level of control is what makes the difference. It can take some time to gain full confidence and rid yourself of fear. Oil painting is one of the best activities you can engage in - it can be highly rewarding and satisfying.

Any artist that has made it to the top doing oil painting has definitely had their fair share of tribulations. It is not something you can just pick up along the way and indulge in, most people start way back as kids.

Kids are fond of building mud houses and painting them with slurry mud, thus picking the love from an early stage. While it’s important to have passion for painting from an early stage, becoming good doesn’t mean that you ought to have painted a mud house at some time in your life.

There are things that can help eliminate fear from oil painting. Firstly, you need to embrace your fear. Many times, fear arises from being afraid to make mistakes. So the best way to overcome it is by allowing yourself to make mistakes again and again until you’re confident. You’ll find that the more mistakes you make, the more you learn, hence, the better your skills develop.

It’s worth noting that oil painting is not entirely pleasing when you’re just starting out. You’ll not find your first paintings particularly attractive on the wall or canvas - often, it will seem rough and generally unpleasing.

But that is exactly what painting is about; you start with something rough, and then touch it up until it is perfect. Work patiently, and enjoy your work, only then will you see it as good. When you feel good about your work, it will show in your paintings, and other people will see it as good too.

A single oil painting can take weeks or even months to get accomplished, therefore, you need to motivate yourself every day. A painting requires a lot of semi-transparent layers until before the final layer is applied, which eventually reveals if the work is a success. A good painting takes time, dedication and passion. Start by learning how to oil paint at home to build confidence.

You should not be discouraged by those who care less about your painting. Find your own audience that you need to serve. Never give up your passion since it is all your efforts that will determine success.