What painting techniques exist?

When we talk about painting, it is most likely that the memory of works created from oil paints comes to mind.

Surely throughout our lives we have seen various works of art with techniques like this type of painting, which tend to be the most conventional and used in the history of art.

However, there are a series of techniques that you can explore and adapt to your needs and the exploration you want to undertake in your paintings.

Ideally, you should know what painting techniques exist so you can try different styles.

How are the different paintings different?
Mainly, the difference between paints is the way they dissolve and fix the color pigment.

The qualities of each of these paints depend on the solvent and binder material they possess, therefore, each one is different, neither better nor worse, just with different characteristics that will allow you to work on your work with different textures or color intensities.

Most common painting techniques
Acrylic paint
In this type of paint, the plastic substance called acrylic polymer is mixed with the pigments. Initially, acrylic paints dissolve with water, but once dry they are resistant to it, which is why they generate great durability of the works.

They usually change their tone slightly once dry, but in general you get intense colors.

One of the advantages of this technique is that as it dries quickly, it allows us to repaint over it in a short time, so it is very useful if you are practicing or starting out in painting.

In addition, it is more economical, because you do not need other attached materials, since it dissolves with water, making it quite easy to maneuver.

Oil painting
This technique has certain peculiarities that make it very versatile. It has a slower drying time, since its mixture is made up of vegetable oils that take longer to dry. The advantage of this feature is that you can mix colors and make various combinations or transform tones if you don't have a problem with the process taking longer.

It is generally used worked in layers, creating delegated layers and then generating thickness with dry paint or through direct painting, which generates layer upon layer, but wet. This technique requires more experience to generate adequate manipulation.

This technique was widely used by great impressionist painters such as Monet and Van Gogh.

There are also texture techniques, such as impasto, which consists of applying abundant dry paint using a brush or spatula or there is also rubbing, a technique where paper is used to rub on the painting and generate some textures and effects.

Watercolor
These pigments are fixed in gum arabic and dissolved in water. It has very good adhesion to the paper.

Its tones are light with low saturation, making them ideal for painting landscapes or experimenting with patches of tones.

Gouache
This is a technique quite similar to watercolor, since it is also diluted with water, but it tends to generate denser tones, since the pigments in the paint are larger.

In addition, it has white pigment, which makes the colors more opaque and solid.

Cake
It is a mixture of powdered pigments with resins that forms a dry paste. This paste is sold in the form of wax or a crayon, with which you paint or draw on the surface.

It has little adhesion and generates an opaque effect, similar to chalk.

Chinese ink
It is mostly sold in liquid form, although in some cases it is sold in powder form to mix with water.

It is ideal for working on works in black and white and sepia, applied with a pen, both for drawings and typography.

airbrushing
This technique is characterized by the use of acrylic spray paint or enamel. It is used as a dripping technique, when diffusers are not used and it is done through pouring paint.

Mixed technique
Mixed media uses more than one of the previously mentioned techniques, such as the use of Indian ink and watercolors, oils and pastels, among others.