Oil
Oil painting is considered one of the most organic forms of art. In addition to brushes, an artist can use other tools such as cloth and even their own fingers to apply paint. Oil paint blends easier than acrylic paint, making it easy to create texture and convey emotion (i.e. a twinkle in the eye).
Acrylic
Though many people confuse acrylic and oil mediums, there are subtle differences. Since acrylic is less forgiving and a stiffer form of art in general, many acrylic paintings focus on or incorporate hair, fur, or whiskers.
Charcoal
As many people would agree, charcoal is one of the more fun mediums to use. Charcoal sticks can be used to draw sharp lines like a pencil, but can also be applied on larger areas by rubbing them directly onto the paper. If a mistake is made when using charcoal, it is easy to just rub it away with your finger. Unlike other types of art, charcoal can use ‘subtraction,’ meaning, instead of drawing or making shadows on a blank piece of paper, a shammy (sheep skin cloth) is used to create highlights on a charcoal filled canvas. To make brighter highlights, white charcoal can be used.
Soft Pastel
Soft pastel is like a combination of charcoal and mixed media. Like charcoal, it is a very forgiving medium, and mistakes are easily remedied. Pastel can also be used like color pencils. Pastel can be blended to blur parts of the drawing, and it can also be applied to create hairy or grassy textures. Because of this, pastel is used commonly among beginners, but it can also be used by professionals to create extremely realistic art.
Digital Art
I became immersed in digital art ever since I got a stylus. I use an art application with a vast variety of features, which allows me to create art that I wouldn’t normally be able to on paper.
Sketches
Sketching is a great way to improve art in general. When artists have some extra time on their hands and don’t feel like painting or using other mediums, sketching is a go-to. It can be as simple as a sphere or prism, or as complicated as a shaded, detailed figure, but any form of sketching helps. Photorealistic drawings are pencil drawings meant to look incredibly realistic, as the name implies.
Mixed Media
This is where my journey started. My love for art sparked with mixed media, and though these may look childish in comparison to the other artwork showcased, they still use the basic factors that determine the realism of art, like perspective and shading.