THE PAINTER IN OIL
A COMPLETE TREATISE
ON
THE PRINCIPLES AND TECHNIQUE
NECESSARY TO
THE PAINTING OF PICTURES IN OIL COLORS
BY
DANIEL BURLEIGH PARKHURST
PUPIL OF WILLIAM SARTAIN, OF BOUGUEREAU AND TONY-FLEURY, AND OF
AIMÉE MOROT; MEMBER OF THE NEW YORK WATER COLOR CLUB;
FORMERLY LECTURER ON ART IN DICKINSON COLLEGE;
AUTHOR OF "SKETCHING FROM NATURE," ETC.
"La peinture à l'huile est bien difficile;Mais beaucoup plus beau que la peinture à l'eau."
BOSTON:
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO.
Copyright, 1898, by Lee and Shepard
All Rights Reserved
The Painter in Oil
TYPOGRAPHY BY C. J. PETERS & SON
PRESSWORK BY BERWICK & SMITH, NORWOOD PRESS
NORWOOD MASS.
TO
A. M. P.
THIS BOOK IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED.
September 4th, 1897.
PREFACE
Books of instruction in the practice of paintinghave rarely been successful. Chiefly because theyhave been too narrow in their point of view, andhave dealt more with recipes than with principles.It is not possible to give any one manner of paintingthat shall be right for all men and all subjects.To say "do thus and so" will not teach any oneto paint. But there are certain principles whichunderlie all painting, and all schools of painting;and to state clearly the most important of thesewill surely be helpful, and may accomplish something.
It is the purpose of this book to deal practicallywith the problems which are the study of thepainter, and to make clear, as far as may be, theprinciples which are involved in them. I believethat this is the only way in which written instructionon painting can be of any use.
It is impossible to understand principles withoutsome statement of theory; and a book in orderto be practical must therefore be to some extenttheoretical. I have been as concise and brief in[Pg viii]the theoretical parts as clearness would permit of,and I trust they are not out of proportion to thepractical parts. Either to paint well, or to judgewell of a painting, requires an understanding ofthe same things: namely, the theoretical standpointof the painter; the technical problems ofcolor, composition, etc.; and the practical means,processes, and materials through which and withwhich these are worked out.
It is obvious that one cannot become a goodpainter without the ability to know what is goodpainting, and to prefer it to bad painting. Therefore,I have taken space to cover, in some sort,the whole ground, as the best way to help thestudent towards becoming a good painter. If,also, the student of pictures should find