Oils vs. Acrylics: What are the differences? Which should you choose and why?

[@Polecat54941]

Excellent unbiased comparison! I used to be an oil painter and then switched to Acrylic but the main problem for me was my mixed colours drying on the pallet and having to continually remix as I painted where with oils you can use your colours and tones all day long :) so switching back to oil again for this reason.

[@ArtByCedar]

Oils are great for longer working time! You can also extend the working time of your acrylics by using a "Sta-wet palette." They are very popular. You can also keep a spray bottle of water handy and give your palette a mist occasionally. Just a couple tips. ;)

[@artplussk_222]

Nice info. Thank you

[@mitchellscott1843]

When I did a search for this topic you're video was exactly what I was looking for. Thorough and objective. Really enjoyed it....making me lean a bit towards acrylics but at least I have better understand of the pros/cons of both mediums now.

[@AlonzoTheArmless]

Excellent and thorough explanation. Thanks, Cedar!

[@ryan0150]

Awesome video very helpful, thank you!

[@j.a.gilbertanimalart3978]

Thank you Cedar, all very true and insightful. I am an acrylic painter at heart, mainly because I like the advantages you described about the medium and simply put, I tend to be impulsive and am therefore too impatient to be an amazing oil painter such as yourself.

[@ArtByCedar]

I do love both, but I've switched back to acrylics this year and I think I may be an acrylic painter at heart, too!

[@FabledFrame]

Thanks for the information; Your paintings are wonderful!

[@ronaldm4835]

Excellent as always Cedar! I'm sharing this so some of my FB friends that are in the early stages of their artistic careers can see/read. You are a wonderful instructor, and a fantastic artist! Thank you for taking the time to share your wealth of knowledge.

[@ArtByCedar]

Thank you :)

[@paulschnyder938]

Great video, thanks! 👍👍

[@stephanerichard6267]

great info on the differences between both mediums

[@jerrykooyman]

Very good explanation!

[@dhirajshetty483]

Brilliant Video !

[@ellensilva9720]

Thank you!

[@thewhitehotel8348]

it's a trade-off in the sense that I love the luster, of an oil painting especially after it's been varnished but of course the downside is have to wait so long if you want to go over top with some clean painting. you have to sit there and wait for the paint to get a good thick skin on it whereas with acrylic you just wait a few minutes and it's almost bone dry

[@cristinamaria1181]

Great, Cedar💖

[@TeeNorbu]

Thank you for your wonderful informative video. I recently started doing arts with watercolor but now I am trying oil paints. Its nice to paint with oil because i can do corrections but drying time sucks (pardon my language 😀) and cleaning the brushes is another pain. I am thinking of switching to acrylic but then the result wont come up like oil. I mean the vibrant color, glosssy looking. whereas the acrylic will look flat after drying. What do you think? is there any way I can make acrylic look like oil paint? Pls let me know. Thank you. BTW you have a beautiful paintings. Love it.

[@ArtByCedar]

Hi! I think one reason acrylic can have this problem is that it dries darker than how the paint looks when it's wet. I've found that purposely adding more brightness than you think you need, while painting, can help. As far as the gloss factor, I love varnishing my paintings with a gloss varnish. I find that most people cannot tell from looking whether a painting is acrylic or oil, even sometimes other painters! But yes the process is quite different. I say, keep playing around with it and you will find ways to create effects that you like. Have fun!

[@TeeNorbu]

@@ArtByCedar Thank you so much. I am still thinking to stick with oil because I get time to process in my brain what to change. Please keep positng and we can learn from you. Thank you.

[@supritimondal1934]

good video..one quick question please...which color would be better and easier to learn for a complete beginner??

[@ArtByCedar]

Hi Supriti, if you mean your color palette to learn color mixing, I say start with the basics: white, red, yellow, and blue. A typical standard for students is titanium white, cadmium red, cadmium yellow, ultramarine blue. From there, I would add a couple earth tones. (Burnt sienna and burnt umber are both versatile.) If you mean, should you try oils or acrylics, they are both very different and I say make it your goal to try both! But I, personally, would start with acrylics. They are less expensive and easier to clean up, and they dry very fast so it forces you to think decisively as you paint. Ultimately there is so much to learn, so try everything you can, find out what you love, and have fun!

[@supritimondal1934]

​@@ArtByCedarthank u sooooooo much....

[@potato168]

I find that oil paints are much more blendable than acrylics. Is that really a thing or am I just not good at acrylic painting( I’ve only been using acrylics for a year vs 3 for oils)?

[@ArtByCedar]

They definitely stay blendable for much longer! The use of various mediums to get the effects you want can help here with acrylics, as well as just learning different painting techniques. For example, even though acrylics dry super fast, you can achieve blending of colors by applying multiple thin layers of semi-transparent glazes. If you've tried both and your preference is oils, maybe you are just an oil painter! 🙂

[@thewhitehotel8348]

hello Cedar that was a wonderful video.but at 2 minutes and 1 second your shoe was not zipped up properly

[@ArtByCedar]

This comment made me laugh! You are correct. Those are my "painting boots" I've had for many years, and I often wear them unzipped. My studio is in my back yard about 10 steps from my house, and I often run back and forth between the studio and the house for something or other, so the shoes get slipped on and off frequently. Good eye!

[@thewhitehotel8348]

@@ArtByCedar good job on capturing light the painting at your right during the video made me feel as if I needed sunglasses.this is a good thing

[@Anthony-gq7dk]

The paintings in the background are distractingly good !!

[@ArtByCedar]

Thanks Anthony! :)