What are the differences between oil and acrylic paints?
Oil paints, which have been in use since the 15th century, use oil as the medium to bind the color pigments together. They were the dominant medium used until recently, when acrylics were developed (in the 1960’s). Oil paints have the following characteristics: they generally are slow-drying; they tend to be richer and more luminous on the painted surface; and if applied correctly, will last many, many years. The longer drying time is good for painters who work slowly, like myself; they will remain wet while you are working on the painting, and generally take from 24 to 72 hours (sometimes longer) to dry. This slow to dry quality also means that tubes of oil paint have a much longer shelf life than acrylics; I’ve had some of my tubes for 20 years – this is economical.
