Problem Solving for Oil Painters: Recognizing What's Gone Wrong and How to Make it Right

by Gregg Kreutz

Finally - a book to help you solve all your painting problems!

Inside you'll learn how to study a painting and correct problematic areas. Study topics

Ideas
- Is there a good abstract idea underlying the picture?
- What details could be eliminated to strengthen the composition?
- Does the painting have a focus?
- Are the unessential parts subbordinated?
- Does the painting "read"?
- Could you finish any part of the painting?

Shapes
- Are the dominant shapes as strong and simple as possible?
- Are the shapes too similiar?

Value
- Could the value range be increased?
- Could the number of values be reduced?

Light
- Is the subject effectively lit?
- Is the light area big enough?
- Would the light look stronger with a suggestion of burnout?
- Do the lights have a continuous flow?
- Is the light gradiated?

Shadows
- Do the shadow shapes describe the form?
- Are the shadows warm enough?

Depth
- Would the addition of foreground material deepen the space?
- Does the background recede far enough?
- Are the halftones properly related to the background?

Solidity
- Is the underlying form being communicated?
- Is the symmetry in perspective?

Color
- Is there a color strategy?
- Could a purer color be used?
- Do the whites have enough color in them?
- Are the colors overbended on the canvas?
- would the color look brighter if it were saturated into its adjacent area?

Paint
- Is your palette efficiently organized?
- Is the painting surface too absorbent?
- Are you using the palette knife as much as you could?
- Are you painting lines when you should be painting masses?
- Are the edges dynamic enough?
- Is there enough variation in the texture of the paint?

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, How To, Reference

144 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1986

Reviews

[Chris Griffith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the author/artist paints in a very different style than what I'm used to, the teaching with regards to use of light, color, value, and form are priceless. I learned a lot from this book.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is always the first book I turn to with a painting problem. He asks the reader questions about the particular problem they could be experiencing and helps you think it through. It is not the usual 'How To' book; there are plenty of those on the market. The book is broken in to 9 chapters and beautifully written. A generous amount of his paintings are used to illustrate the particular chapter. His work is superb and I always enjoy picking up this book even though I've owned it for over a decade.