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From Planes to Realism: How to Soften Structure Without Losing Form

Struggling with your portraits? You might find my E-book helpful. Click here

When we first learn to paint the planes of the face, everything can look a little too hard — like carved stone. It’s normal. At the beginning, we focus on defining the structure, finding those clear divisions between light and shadow. But as we grow, the challenge becomes learning how to keep that structure while making the transitions soft and natural. That’s where realism begins.

The goal isn’t to erase the planes, but to understand them so well that you can blend them without losing their direction. Every soft transition you paint still belongs to a specific plane — it has an angle and a purpose. When you keep that in mind, your portraits stay solid even when the edges melt beautifully into the light.

One thing that helped me was thinking of the face as a sculpture covered with thin fabric. The fabric wraps softly around the form, but the structure underneath never disappears. When you blend too much, it’s like covering the sculpture with a heavy blanket — all the shapes vanish. So instead of blurring everything, try to keep some edges alive. Let some planes meet sharply, and let others fade slowly. This balance gives your portraits both clarity and softness.

How to Soften the Planes Naturally

1. Blend with Purpose
When you blend, ask yourself what direction the plane is turning. Don’t just move the brush randomly — follow the form. A small circular motion might flatten the area, while a longer stroke in the right direction keeps the structure clear.

2. Keep Value Control
Soft edges don’t mean muddy values. If the value jump between planes is too small, everything will look flat. Keep your light and shadow families separate, and soften only the edges that belong between them.

3. Vary Your Edges
Real faces have sharp, medium, and soft edges. For example, the edge between the nose and cheek can stay sharp, while the transition on the forehead can stay soft. This variety gives the portrait rhythm and realism.

4. Observe the Light Source
Soft light creates gentle transitions; hard light keeps edges crisp. When painting from life or photos, adjust your edges to match the lighting. This keeps the painting truthful to the source.

Practice: Keeping the Planes Alive While Blending

1. Block-In First, Blend Later
Start with strong, clear planes — don’t worry about softness yet. When your structure looks solid, then begin to blend carefully, keeping the direction of the planes. This helps you maintain form even as you refine.

2. Paint Half the Face Hard, Half Soft
This is a great exercise. Paint one side of the face with sharp edges and the other side softly blended. Then try to meet in the middle — balance both sides until the portrait feels realistic but still solid.

3. Use the Brush Like a Sculpting Tool
Think of each stroke as carving or wrapping around the head. Use the side of the brush for soft transitions and the tip for crisp accents. Small variations in pressure can make all the difference.

When you learn to soften without losing the structure, your portraits start to breathe. The planes are still there — guiding the light, shaping the expression — but now they feel alive under the paint. Realism is not about copying the surface; it’s about understanding the form and letting light reveal it gently.

How to Paint Planes of the Face in Warm and Cool Light

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Understanding Warm and Cool Planes of the Face

The first time I tried to paint temperature shifts, I completely overdid it. I remember being excited — I had just learned about warm and cool colors and wanted to apply it right away. I loaded my brush with orange and crimson for the lights, and deep blue for the shadows. When I stepped back, the portrait looked like it had been sitting too long in the sun — the colors were loud, disconnected, almost burning against each other. That day I realized something important: temperature is not about intensity, it’s about balance. The beauty of warm and cool lies in how gently they meet, not in how far apart they are.

When we talk about the planes of the face, we usually think about structure — how light falls across the forehead, nose, cheeks, and chin. But light doesn’t just describe form; it also changes color temperature. Understanding how warm and cool light affects the planes of the face can completely transform your portraits. It helps you create skin that feels alive, balanced, and believable.

When light is warm — like sunlight or a soft lamp — the illuminated planes of the face tend to carry warm tones: golden yellows, pinks, and oranges. The shadows, in contrast, often become cooler, with hints of blue or violet. In cool light, like daylight on a cloudy day, the effect is reversed — the lights appear cooler and the shadows warmer. This temperature contrast is what gives portraits depth and natural harmony.

A simple way to practice this is by painting a head study under different lighting setups. Try one portrait with a warm light source, such as a lamp, and another with cool daylight. Keep the same model or reference so you can see the difference more clearly. Focus on how the light planes shift — the forehead might appear more yellow under a warm lamp, while under cool light, it leans toward gray-blue. The side planes of the cheeks, where light begins to turn, are where this temperature transition becomes most beautiful.

Remember, you don’t need to exaggerate it. Even small temperature shifts between light and shadow can make a huge difference. Think of it like music — the notes are subtle, but together they create harmony. When you combine an understanding of the planes of the face with sensitivity to warm and cool light, your portraits gain that natural glow that feels real and full of atmosphere.

Practice: Studying Warm and Cool Planes

1. Paint Two Studies of the Same Head
Set up a simple bust or photo reference and paint it twice — one under a warm light (like a yellow bulb or candlelight) and one under cool daylight or a bluish lamp. Use a limited palette so you focus more on temperature than on color variety. Compare how each version changes the mood and structure.

2. Observe Light in Daily Life
Pay attention to people’s faces in different environments — early morning sunlight, cloudy daylight, or indoor lamps. Try to notice where the planes turn warm or cool. You can take quick notes or sketches to train your eye to recognize these subtle shifts.

3. Practice with Three Values
Use only light, midtone, and shadow, but shift temperature instead of value to create form. For example, keep the light warm and the shadow cool (or the other way around). This helps you see how temperature alone can describe the planes of the face.

The more you observe and paint from real light, the more natural these shifts will feel. Warm and cool tones are like the breath of the portrait — gentle, balanced, and full of life.

Top 5 Mistakes Beginners Make in Portraits

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When you start painting portraits, it’s easy to get lost in the details and forget what really builds a strong painting. I’ve made all these mistakes myself, and I still see them often in students’ work. I remember painting a lot of details on the eyes, somebody told me the likeness it was just on the eyes and that was enough for me to put a lot of time on the eyes, it took me a bit to understand that likeness is on the whole face and even without details we can get the likeness when values and proportions are accurate. Here are the five most common ones — and how to fix them.

1. Jumping Into Color Too Soon

Many beginners are excited to start painting and go straight into mixing skin tones. It’s understandable — color is what makes a painting look alive. But if the value structure underneath isn’t solid, all that beautiful color won’t hold the portrait together. You can think of values (light and dark) as the bones of your painting, and color as the skin that sits on top. Without a strong skeleton, the form collapses.

The biggest mistake is skipping the monochrome or value study. Working first in grayscale — or with a limited palette like burnt umber and white — helps you understand how light falls across the face. It trains your eye to see contrast, depth, and form before worrying about hue. Once you understand the pattern of light and shadow, applying color becomes much easier and more accurate.

2. Drawing That’s “Close Enough”

Portraits depend on accuracy. A small mistake — even a millimeter — in the placement of an eye or the tilt of the mouth can completely change the likeness. The truth is, painting doesn’t fix drawing problems. If the structure underneath isn’t right, the paint will only make it more obvious.

Slow down in the drawing stage. Take your time to compare distances between features — how far is the nose from the eyes, or the mouth from the chin? Use horizontal and vertical alignment lines to check proportions. If you tilt your head slightly or view your drawing in a mirror, you’ll instantly notice what feels off. Think of this step as building the foundation of a house: once it’s solid, you can paint freely without worrying that something will collapse later.

3. Overblending Everything

It’s tempting to blend every brushstroke until the surface looks smooth and polished. But too much blending kills form, texture, and the sense of life. Faces are not made of plastic — they have planes, transitions, and edges that shift from soft to hard depending on the light.

Instead of chasing smoothness, think about structure. Leave some visible strokes to describe direction and form. Keep sharp edges where light meets shadow, and softer transitions where the planes turn gradually. Try stepping back from your painting: if it reads well from a distance, it’s likely finished. Remember — expression often lives in those visible strokes.

4. Painting What You Think You See

Our brains love shortcuts. We carry an idea of how a face “should” look — two eyes, one nose, one mouth — and we end up painting that idea instead of the real person. To break that habit, we need to paint what we see, but also understand what we know about structure and light.

For example, beginners often paint the whites of the eyes pure white, even if they’re in shadow. But in real life, the sclera usually has grays, blues, or warm tones from reflected light. The same goes for teeth, hair, or skin — nothing is ever just one color. Observation and knowledge must work together. The more you study anatomy and light, the easier it becomes to notice these subtle variations that make your portraits come alive.

5. Ignoring the Background

Many painters focus entirely on the face, leaving the background as an afterthought. But the background plays a huge role in the mood and balance of a portrait. It’s not just empty space — it’s part of the design.

A well-chosen background supports the story of the portrait. Soft, neutral tones can make a face glow; darker tones can add drama; textured or abstract shapes can add movement. The key is to make sure the background doesn’t fight for attention. Ask yourself: does it help the viewer focus on the subject, or does it distract? Even a simple, quiet background — if it’s thoughtfully painted — can make the portrait feel more complete and professional.

Final Thought

Making mistakes is part of learning. The goal isn’t to avoid them forever but to recognize them faster each time. Every portrait teaches you something new — if you take the time to look and reflect before starting the next one.

How to Self-Critique Your Own Paintings

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One of the hardest things for any artist is learning to see their own work clearly. When you’ve spent hours blending colors and shaping forms, it’s easy to lose objectivity. You might look at your painting and feel unsure — something’s not working, but you can’t tell what.

That’s when learning to self-critique becomes one of the most powerful tools in your artistic growth. It’s not about judging yourself harshly — it’s about observing with curiosity, just like a teacher or mentor would.

Here’s a simple step-by-step guide I use (and teach in my critiques) to help artists evaluate their work and keep improving.

1. Step Back and Squint

Before analyzing details, step a few meters back from your painting. Squint your eyes until you see only the big shapes and values.
Ask yourself:
– Does the composition feel balanced?
– Is my focal point clear?
– Are the darkest and lightest areas placed where I want attention?

Squinting removes distractions and shows whether your **value structure** works. A strong painting reads well even when blurred.

2. Check Your Drawing and Proportions
Even in loose or expressive styles, good drawing underpins everything. Compare your subject to your painting — do the angles, distances, and alignments make sense?

Try this:
– Take a photo of your painting and flip it horizontally. Mistakes often jump out immediately.
– Look at it upside-down — it helps you see shapes instead of objects.
– Trace the main lines on tracing paper or digitally; see if the structure holds.

Don’t think of this as criticism — it’s simply about accuracy and flow.

3. Study Your Values
Values are the backbone of realism and form.
Ask:
– Do my lights and darks separate clearly?
– Are my midtones too similar?
– Did I lose the light source or shadow pattern?

Convert a photo of your painting to black and white. If it looks flat, strengthen your value contrast. When values work, colors shine naturally.

4. Evaluate Color Harmony
Now that your structure is solid, look at the color relationships.

Ask yourself:
– Are the colors too saturated everywhere?
– Do warm and cool tones balance each other?
– Is there a consistent light temperature (warm light / cool shadow)?

Color harmony often improves when you simplify. A few well-chosen colors can say more than dozens that compete for attention.

5. Observe Edges and Transitions
Edges guide the viewer’s eye and bring life to your forms.

Check:
– Are some edges too sharp where they should be soft?
– Did I lose definition where I need focus?
– Do my brushstrokes follow the form or fight it?

A mix of sharp, soft, and lost edges creates rhythm and realism — especially in portraits, animals, and still lifes.

6. Ask: What’s Working Beautifully?
It’s easy to focus only on what’s wrong. Instead, also ask:
– Which parts feel alive?
– Where did I express something honestly?
– What did I learn from this piece?

Every painting, even an imperfect one, teaches you something. Keep notes; over time you’ll start to recognize patterns — and solutions.

7. Take a Break and Revisit
After finishing, leave the painting alone for a day or two. When you return, you’ll see it with new eyes. Sometimes the problem solves itself; sometimes you’ll spot the exact area that needs attention.

Artists often say, “I couldn’t see it before.” That’s normal — fresh vision is part of the process.

Bonus Tip: Get a Second Pair of Eyes
Even when you practice self-critique, having another experienced artist look at your work can reveal what you can’t see yet. That’s why I offer personal art critiques — warm, constructive feedback designed to help you grow with confidence.

If you’d like me to review one of your paintings, I’ll show you what’s working beautifully and where small adjustments can make a big difference.
Four Live critique sessions Tuesday 10 am (Peru Time) for 24 usd payment through paypal or you can Join my critiques here: https://www.patreon.com/c/rensocastaneda/membership

Remember: learning to critique your own art isn’t about perfection — it’s about seeing, understanding, and evolving. Every artist, from beginner to master, goes through this process. The more you practice observing with love and honesty, the faster you’ll grow.

The Secret Rhythm of Brushstrokes on Skin

Struggling with your portraits? You might find my E-book helpful. Click here

When we paint a Portrait, we often think about color, value, and anatomy — but there’s something more subtle that gives the portrait life: the rhythm of the brushstrokes.

Every stroke carries direction, energy, and emotion. The way you move your brush can suggest the roundness of the cheek, the softness of the lips, or the quiet strength in a forehead. It’s not only what you paint — it’s how you move while painting.

Brushstrokes That Follow the Form

Imagine light flowing over the face like water. If your strokes follow that same flow — curving gently around the cheekbones, turning softly under the chin — the painting begins to breathe.
Each stroke should describe the form, not just fill in color. When your brush follows the planes of the face, you create movement and volume, even in stillness.

Try painting with your brush dancing around the structure — from the forehead to the temple, from the nose toward the ear. Think in rhythms, not just shapes.

The Music Within the Painting

Brushwork has rhythm, like music. Some passages need long, lyrical strokes; others short, quick accents.
Too much repetition feels mechanical; too much variation feels chaotic. The art is in balancing control and freedom.
If you’ve ever watched a great painter work, you can almost hear a melody in their movements — slow passages in the shadows, brighter notes in the highlights.

Let Edges Dance

Edges are where rhythm becomes visible. Hard edges stop the eye; soft edges let it move.
On the skin, it’s often better to lose some edges — let colors merge and flow. The viewer’s eye will connect what’s missing. This creates a sense of life, because real skin is never perfectly outlined.

Your Hand, Your Personality

No two artists paint brushstrokes the same way. Your rhythm is as unique as your handwriting.
The more you paint, the more natural that rhythm becomes.
So instead of trying to make the perfect stroke, focus on feeling the form beneath your brush. That sensitivity is what gives a portrait its heartbeat.

If your portraits ever feel stiff, don’t change the subject — change the rhythm.
Let the movement of your strokes follow the energy of the person you’re painting.
When the brush moves with intention and feeling, the painting begins to move too.

Dicas de Pintura de Retratos / E-book

Pinte Retratos Melhores – Mesmo que Você Esteja Apenas Começando

Eu sou Renso — já pintei mais de 300 retratos ao vivo no YouTube. E eu sei como pintar retratos pode ser frustrante.

É por isso que criei este e-book — para ajudar você a melhorar a semelhança, os valores e os tons de pele sem todo o esforço.

Este é mais do que um livro — é um companheiro para pintar retratos.

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Espero que este livro se torne parte da sua prática diária.

— Renso

How to Practice Seeing Portraits in Planes

Struggling with your portraits? You might find my E-book helpful. Click here

Learning to “see in planes” takes practice, but it’s one of the most rewarding skills you can develop as a portrait artist. During the time I practiced drawing the Asaro head, I think I never got one perfect. But my teacher encouraged me to just keep drawing. The goal wasn’t to get perfect angles on the face — the real practice was training our eyes and brain to see the planes naturally. And as a result, we started to clearly recognize the light, midtones, and shadows on any face we looked at.

Here are some simple exercises you can try to strengthen that skill:

1. Squint and Simplify

One of the easiest ways to start is by squinting at your reference or model. Squinting blurs the small details and helps you focus on the big masses of light and shadow. Ask yourself: Where does the light hit directly? Where does it turn away?
Try dividing the face into three tones — light, midtone, and shadow. This limited range forces you to simplify and think structurally, just like sculptors do before refining.

2. Draw the Head with Flat Planes

Instead of drawing curves, use straight lines to describe the head’s angles. Imagine you’re carving the face out of a block of wood.
Each straight line represents a plane change — the side of the nose, the slope of the forehead, the turn of the cheek.
Start with a simple cube or wedge to understand how light falls on angular forms, then move on to a simplified head (like the Asaro Planes of the Head model). You can even paint over a photo digitally, tracing the major planes to see how light breaks across the surface.

3. Paint in Three Values

Choose one of your portrait references and paint it using only three values: light, middle, and dark.
Forget about color — work in grayscale or with a very limited palette. The goal is to model the head using value relationships only. You’ll be surprised how much form and expression you can achieve with just three tones.
This exercise helps you understand that planes are what create the illusion of light, not fine details.

I painted this one Live in youtube: https://youtube.com/live/wxfxamniPaU

4. Study Sculptures or Casts

Painters throughout history have studied sculptures to understand structure. A plaster cast or a photo of a classical bust can be a great model for learning planes.
Since sculptures already emphasize form and light, they make it easier to spot where the head turns. Try sketching them quickly, noting the large shapes and where light breaks across them.

5. Turn the Head

When working from life or a reference, look at the head from different angles — front, three-quarter, and profile.
Notice how the planes shift with the light. This habit helps you understand that every portrait is a balance of structure and perspective.
The more you draw from multiple angles, the more confidently you’ll be able to invent or correct forms later.

6. Translate Planes into Soft Transitions

Once you can see the planes clearly, start softening them. Real faces aren’t made of hard edges, but understanding where those edges would be helps you create natural transitions.
Good portrait painting is all about knowing when to soften and when to keep a subtle edge — and that control begins with a solid sense of planes.

Final Thought

Seeing in planes transforms the way you paint. You stop copying what you see and start building your portraits as if you’re sculpting them with light. Over time, this understanding gives your paintings strength, clarity, and a sense of life that viewers can feel immediately.

Warm vs. Cool Colors: How They Affect Mood in a Painting

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We talk a lot about the power of art. It’s not just decoration—it’s an environment. Colors speak to us in a silent language, shaping our emotions and even the atmosphere of a space.

As painters, one of the most powerful tools we have is color temperature. Warm and cool colors can completely change the mood of a painting, and learning to use them with intention can make your work come alive.

Warm Colors: Energy, Comfort, and Passion

Think: reds, oranges, yellows, and earthy tones.

These are the colors of fire and sunlight. They feel close, lively, and full of energy.

  • Reds bring passion and excitement, but too much can feel heavy or aggressive.
  • Oranges feel warm, friendly, and creative.
  • Yellows carry light and optimism but can be overwhelming if used too strongly.

In a painting: A portrait with warm golden tones feels approachable and alive. A landscape with a sunset instantly makes us feel nostalgic and peaceful.

Cool Colors: Calm, Serenity, and Distance

Think: blues, greens, purples.

These are the colors of water, sky, and nature. They tend to recede, giving calm and space to a painting.

  • Blues are peaceful, clear, and trustworthy.
  • Greens connect us to balance, harmony, and nature.
  • Purples bring mystery, luxury, or spirituality, depending on how you use them.

In a painting: A seascape in cool blues doesn’t just show the ocean—it makes you feel its vastness and tranquility.

Neutral Colors: Balance, Subtlety, and Rest

Think: grays, browns, muted tones, or desaturated versions of any color.

Neutrals may not get as much attention as bright warms or cools, but they’re essential. They act as the “quiet” spaces in your painting, allowing brighter colors to stand out. Without neutrals, everything would compete for attention and the painting would feel overwhelming.

  • Grays create calm, sophistication, or atmosphere.
  • Browns add earthiness and stability.
  • Muted versions of any color (for example, a soft gray-blue or a dusty rose) can suggest subtle emotion while still harmonizing with the rest of the painting.

In a painting: Neutrals are what make saturated colors sing. Place a bright red next to a muted gray background, and suddenly that red feels more powerful. Think of neutrals as the stage that lets the main colors perform.

The Secret: Balancing Warm, Cool, and Neutral

The strongest paintings aren’t purely warm or cool. The magic happens in the balance—and neutrals are what tie everything together.

  • A warm subject against a cool, muted background pops with energy.
  • A neutral gray shadow makes a warm highlight glow even brighter.
  • A touch of saturated color surrounded by neutrals instantly becomes the focus.

This interplay is what makes a piece feel alive and emotionally resonant.

Try It in Your Work

Next time you paint, experiment:

  • Mix a gray or muted tone to use alongside your warm or cool colors.
  • Try balancing a neutral background with a single bright accent.
  • Notice how neutrals give your eye a place to rest, while color accents create impact.

You’ll see that neutrals aren’t boring—they’re the quiet strength of a painting.

Why Your Colors Look Muddy (and How to Fix It)

Recently, a student on Patreon asked me: “Why do I always get muddy colors?”

My answer was this: all the colors we use are muddy to some degree. The only “clean” colors are the pure ones straight from the palette—yellow, orange, red, green, blue etc. As soon as we start mixing, they begin to desaturate and shift toward gray. The more colors we add, the stronger this effect becomes.

And it doesn’t stop at the palette. Once we put paint on the canvas and start moving the brushstroke around to “find the right spot,” the paint keeps mixing. If we keep adding more strokes and then blend to smooth transitions, the mixture continues to dull little by little until it looks muddy.

With experience, you start to anticipate what will happen with your colors. Sometimes, for example, I’ll drop in a touch of pure orange on the skin and blend just slightly—I end up with a fresh, clean tone because I balanced the mixture with a primary color. The trick is in the pressure of the brush and how much of that pure color you add. Too much, and it changes the mixture completely.

Another approach is to place your color down and resist the urge to move it too much. Beginners often expect colors to stay the same on the canvas as they looked on the palette, but in practice, brushwork and blending change everything.

Struggling with your portraits? You might find my E-book helpful. Click here

The best way to fix it without saturating the skin color too much : “Adding a few touches of saturated colors to create simultaneous contrast can make the portrait look more colorful and vibrant.”

Common Causes of Muddy Colors

1. Too Many Colors Mixed Together

When you keep adding more and more pigments, you’re really mixing all three primaries together (red, yellow, and blue). The result is a neutral, grayish-brown tone.

Tip: Limit your palette when mixing. Often two colors—and sometimes just a touch of a third—are all you need. Try to keep your mixtures clean and direct.

2. Using Opaque Paint in the Wrong Place

Some paints are naturally opaque, and when layered carelessly, they can kill the brightness of the color underneath.

Tip: For glazing or subtle layering, choose transparent colors. Save your opaque paints for highlights or solid passages.

3. Not Cleaning the Brush Enough

If your brush still has leftover paint from a previous stroke, it contaminates your mixture before you even realize it.

Tip: Wipe or wash your brush between different mixtures, especially when switching between warm and cool colors.

4. Confusing Warm and Cool Colors

Mixing a warm version of a color with its opposite temperature can quickly dull the mixture.

Tip: If you want bright mixes, combine warm with warm or cool with cool. Use temperature shifts carefully.

5. Painting Over Wet Layers Without a Plan

In oil painting especially, working wet-into-wet without control can easily muddy colors. Too much brushing makes everything blend into a flat tone.

Tip: Place your strokes and leave them alone. Think of it like cooking—too much stirring spoils the soup.

Final Thoughts

Muddy colors happen to everyone, even experienced painters. The key is awareness. Keep your palette simple, clean your brush often, and think about the temperature and transparency of the paints you’re using. With practice, you’ll start to predict how your colors will behave and learn when to let a brushstroke sit on its own.

When you get this balance right, your colors will look fresher, brighter, and more alive—and painting will feel a lot more rewarding.

How to Glaze in Oil Painting: Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners.

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Glazing in Oil Painting

Glazing is a thin, transparent layer of oil paint applied over an underpainting. It’s one of the most powerful tools in oil painting because it lets you change the mood, adjust colors, and create a glowing depth that flat paint cannot achieve.

You can glaze with pure transparent colors or with mixes that include white (more opaque). Transparent layers let light shine through, while opaque ones cover more of what’s underneath. Both are useful—what matters is knowing when and how to use them.

A Short History of Glazing

Glazing has been around for centuries. Renaissance and Baroque painters like Jan van Eyck, Titian, and Rembrandt perfected the technique. They often painted a detailed grayscale underpainting (sometimes called a “grisaille”) and then added color through glazes.

Some of these artists built their works with 40–60 layers of glazes. The results were luminous paintings where colors seemed to glow from within. Light would travel through the transparent layers, bounce off the underpainting, and return to the viewer’s eye—creating an effect that mixed paint on the palette simply can’t match.

Glazing also allowed them to adjust colors without starting over. Too bright? A thin dark glaze could tone it down. Too dull? A warm or cool glaze could bring it to life. That flexibility is one reason glazing became such a key part of oil painting tradition.

How to Glaze in Oil Painting

Step 1: Prepare Your Surface

Make sure your underpainting is completely dry before you start glazing. If it’s still wet, the glaze will mix with the paint below instead of sitting transparently on top.

Step 2: Mix Your Medium

The traditional medium for glazing is a 50/50 mix of turpentine and linseed oil. (lately I am using just linseed oil) This makes the paint thinner, smoother, and more transparent. Today, many artists also use modern glazing mediums that dry faster and are less toxic—use what works best for you.

Step 3: Choose Your Brushes

Keep two brushes handy:

  • Soft synthetic or sable brush → to apply the glaze smoothly.
  • Stiff brush → to blend, soften, or “fade” the glaze into the underpainting because sometimes to glaze does not stick to the paint if that happens to you add more paint than medium and press harder with the brush.

Step 4: Apply the Glaze

  • Load a small amount of thinned paint on the soft brush.
  • Spread it evenly over the area you want to glaze.
  • Use the stiffer brush to feather the edges so it blends naturally.

Step 5: Decide the Purpose

Glazing can be used in two simple but powerful ways:

  1. Tone down a color → e.g., a cool glaze over a too-bright red to calm it.
  2. Enhance a color → e.g., a warm glaze over a dull blue to make it glow.

Why Try Glazing?

Even if you don’t use dozens of layers like the Old Masters, a few glazes can transform your painting. They give depth, atmosphere, and subtle color shifts that are impossible to get with just direct paint.

It’s also a technique that connects us to centuries of painting tradition. When you glaze, you’re painting in the footsteps of Rembrandt, Titian, and countless others who discovered the magic of light shining through paint.

So, whether you’re adjusting a single passage or layering for a glowing effect, glazing is a tool worth practicing—it can truly bring your paintings to life.