Oils
Learning objectives
■ Tips and techniques for knife painting
■ How to create more texture and interest in your oil paintings
The humble palette knife is not only a tool for mixing paint on your palette, it is also an excellent tool for painting. Using palette knives and painting knives can bring a refreshing mixture of marks, shapes and textures to your landscape paintings, which are simply not possible with a brush.
They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and all are worth trying out to see what will work best for you. The blade of your palette knife should be thin and flexible, with some spring to it. Painting with a stiff blade will simply limit the possibilities you have. Plastic knives are available, but they are not as effective as stainless-steel knives.
In this article we will take a look at some of the techniques and textures that you can achieve when painting with aFrom spreading thick and textural areas of colour, to creating intricate stipple patterns and refined details in your landscapes. We will also look at what happens when you combine these techniques together, and why this combination of techniques helps you to create an exciting and visually interesting landscape.
