Oil painting on velvet is something that I’ve always wanted to do. There’s a trick to it. If you don’t know how, you’ll mess up the painting. Some people have the ability to come up with ideas and their creativity comes through. A good example, are people that live in Mexico, along the Texas-Mexican Border.
Across the Rio Grande
Living close to the border, I cross the Rio Grande River once in awhile. All of a sudden I am in another world. Everyone there is always looking for ways to make a living. They come up with ideas and expand on them. I’m talking about artisans that make pottery, silver and turquoise jewelry, paintings, little trinkets of any kind to sell.
Many years ago, I won’t say how many, but I will say around the 1970’s and 80’s. Artisans in that period started coming out with paintings on black or red velvet material. They were using oil paints. I’m not sure if all this started in Mexico or somewhere else. All I know is that what struck me was how the human spirit was and is alive in these people. I see it in people here in the states as well. People willing to go the extra mile. Make a living for their families. Anyhow, I’m getting away from my story.
Summer in Nogales
One summer my wife and I traveled from South Texas to Arizona. When I was between the ages of 5 to 10, we lived in Nogales Arizona. We had an uncle who lived in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. Around those parts there is no river to cross the border. It’s just a hurricane fence. You just walk across and you’re in Mexico.
My Uncle Cesar, the eldest of the clan, had a Curios Shop where he sold liquor, Mexican products like hats, sarapes, jewelry and I noticed paintings on Velvet. One of my many talents or hobbys has been drawing and painting with water colors. I had never really worked with oil paints on velvet. While there I watched my uncle. He was painting the figure of a clown on black velvet. I knew he had many talents. I didn’t know he could paint. Turns out in talking with him, until this time, he had never painted. But other people all over were doing it and he picked up on it.
Oil Painting on Velvet / Secrets of the craft
He told me that there was a secret to painting on velvet material. The problems with painting with oil on velvet is learning how to erase when you make a mistake. If you use black, red or blue velvet, the trick is to learn to use the dark parts to blend with the oil paints. When ever you see a velvet painting, look for the dark parts. There’s no paint there. It’s just the material. The paints gradually blend into the shadow.
Oil Painting on Velvet
But I had a problem when I tried. Every time I started, I would mess up and would try to cover up my mistake with more paint. This went on for a while until my uncle, watching me struggle, told me. “There’s a secret to erasing your mistakes. First paint where the light hits and let your colors come out. Make use of the material where there is no light.” But what do you do when you make a mistake? He said, “Take a little cup and put some gasoline and always use a clean brush. Every time you make a mistake, you erase ever so carfully with the clean brush and gasoline. Then you let it dry. That’s the secret.”
Wow!!! Who would have thought. Such a simple thing to do and it works. Coming home that summer, I was energized and eager to produce or give it a try. For the next four years, I developed the skill and got pretty good. I even managed to sell some paintings. Soon after, I started teaching music and that took most of my time. But the experience, although it may seem like not much, and the knowledge that my uncle passed on to me, will never be forgotten.
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