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Comments on sketchbooks acrylics mixed media oils drawings

Rosie Britton

Oil Paintings by Rosie Britton
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Oils were my first love. My mother was a painter and throughout my childhood the smell of turps was what painting was all about. Recently I have been seduced by acrylic, something I never thought would happen, but eventually the lure of my huge 'Rembrandt' palettes, that evocative smell, and the sheer romance of the medium have enticed me back. Almost my favourite activity is to spend a whole day mixing palettes of dozens of colours made up from 4 or 5 tubes. These then go into a freezer in the studio and will last almost indefintely.

It was the gift of lilies for Mother's Day that inspired me to raid paints mixed two years ago, though I soon decided that I needed a new range of colours. In an unprecendented burst of activity a whole series of flower paintings followed. Since then I have also been working on some oil landscapes, using techniques very similar to those that I enjoy when working in acrylic. I much enjoy the greater precision with which colours can be mixed, knowing that they will not change as they dry, and the rich texture of the paint, but I do quite miss the quick drying time that makes it so much easier to build up the layers. On the other hand it is sheer luxury to be able to keep all my colours out, knowing that they will not dry up, instead of constantly having to ensure that I screw the lids back onto my plastic pots of premixed acrylic. Having all those delicious colours spread out at my disposal I feel like a child who has been given the run of a sweet shop!

Comments on sketchbooks acrylics mixed media oils drawings

Rosie Britton