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Art & Art History vocabulary · Materials & Techniques

Oil paint

Meaning in art & art history, with examples

/ˈɔɪl ˌpeɪnt/nounCore term

In art & art history, oil paint means: Paint made by mixing pigments with a drying oil, usually linseed oil; it dries slowly, so artists can blend colours and build up layers.

In Turkish: yağlı boya

How it is used

Artists work in oils or use oil paint; the finished work is an oil painting, or simply an oil. It became the main painting medium in Europe in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, especially through Netherlandish painters. Common verbs: thin, mix, apply, layer.

Example sentences

  1. Oil paint stays wet for days, so you can keep blending the colours.

  2. Is that an oil painting or an acrylic?

Common collocations

  • work in oils
  • oil painting
  • a tube of oil paint
  • layers of oil paint
  • canvasA strong woven cloth, usually cotton or linen, stretched over a wooden frame and used as a surface for painting; also a painting made on it.
  • acrylic paintA fast-drying, water-based paint made with a plastic binder; it can be thinned with water but becomes water-resistant when dry.
  • pigmentA coloured powder, made from minerals, plants, insects or chemicals, that gives paint its colour when it is mixed with a binder such as oil, egg or gum.
  • mediumThe material or technique an artist uses to make a work, such as oil paint, bronze, video or photography; also a liquid added to paint to change how it behaves.
  • temperaPaint made by mixing pigments with egg yolk and water; it dries quickly to a matt, durable surface and was the main technique for panel painting in Europe before oil paint.

More terms: Materials & Techniques

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