It’s winter and I want to paint. Can I paint without the paint cracking off the panel or canvas?
For a landscape artist, winter brings new scenery to even old places. There are a few things you should consider before venturing out in to nature though. Some areas have rain, others such as the Pacific Northwest have rain and snow. Whether you’re painting on one side of the world or another, snow is snow.
Most people know that moisture isn’t always easy to work with, even in the warm summer but cold weather brings other issues for painting of all types.
Before I get in to paints, let’s talk about clothes and preparing your body. Painting in the elements can be great or miserable, depending on how you prepared for it. Many of us artists living in the north, no matter whether you’re in the US or abroad have gotten used to painting in inclimate weather. Many of us have painted under umbrellas and in certain times it used to keep the rain off of you and your work. Whether you are going out in rain or cold, you need to plan ahead.
Not worrying about venturing out during the summer and getting caught in a summer squall, let’s focus on cold weather painting. Temperature means a lot. Recently weather forecasters have started using this whole “it feels like” as a second temperature description. Forget that. It’s 50deg (10C) or less. What changes are factors like wind. Wind chill is a common adjustment. Not what you feel like. Having lived in cold country for many years you find that certain layers of clothes work for a range of temps. There are clothes that work from 60° down to around 45°. Below that you generally have a range between 45° down to around freezing. Below that the range gets much less. 15° – 30°. 15° – 0° and then 0° – -10°. If you are out in colder temps than that you’re crazy 🙂 Typically you can paint comfortably down to the 25-30° range. Layering is important when painting in cold weather. Remember, you are going to be standing or sitting still. Not hiking around once you start painting or drawing.
Where to start. Just talking temp., not rain or snow, you should start cold weather layering if it is going to be less than 50°. Everyone’s tolerance for cold is different but in the ranges of 45 – 60 deg. you should be able to use moderation in your layers. Light shirt, fleece or sweater and a coat. For most a single layer of pants are enough. Socks and shoes, based on whether it is going to rain or not. When you venture out in lower temperatures you need to consider more serious layering. Starting from the inside you should be wearing garments manufactured for cold weather such as Under Armor , Columbia, or one of the other manufacturers that specialize in cold weather clothes and or skiing. Adding technology of these fabrics are much more efficient and comfortable that the bulk of yesteryear. I wouldn’t say these items are cheap but they are reasonable for the comfort they provide. Above the undergarments, layer for the conditions you are in. Simply for cold, warm pants or jeans work well. What you would normally use painting. If the weather is going to be wet, add rain pants or a slicker to it. If you are painting in the snow, add some snow pants or what are sometimes called Powder Pants to your lower body. For the upper body, it is much the same.
If you are really going to do snow painting; in other words standing in the snow, your footwear is very important. Simple boots or even hiking boots are really not enough. If you are standing in the snow, the cold from it will eventually work through most shoes. Buy snow boots! For many, Sorel brands work well. There are others but what separates snow boots from just boots you can walk in are primarily the liners. Sorel’s and brands like them have heavy felt or other material liners that can be removed. The insulate your feet from the coldness of the snow. Standing on a matt can also help. Remember, you’re going to be there for a couple of hours typically. I am partial to Sorel’s, mainly because I have two pairs. One standard and one high top (Below knee) that I have had for many years. Note you will also find that none of my links go to Amazon. I do not use them.
All of that and I haven’t even gotten to paint…
Most people would know that rain isn’t good to work in with water colors. Rain can also present problems with Acrylics. Rain is water and both run in water. Oils however hate water. I was painting at Mt. Rainer a few years ago and got caught in the rain with no umbrella to protect myself or the easel. It just wasn’t pretty. What about water soluble oil paint? They would not be destroyed by water like conventional oils but remember, the water soluble part of it is primarily for clean up. Otherwise most manufacturers will tell you to paint with them just like regular oil paints. There are many articles on painting with water soluble paints.
How does cold weather affect my paints? I generally don’t paint in water colors however, Some do better than others. Water Colors generally fall under ASTM D 5067-99. According to the testing, they can freeze at temperatures 20° and below. There is an article on Artists Network that talks about using alcohol with paints. You can go here to read it.
Cold weather can be hard on acrylic paints though you can paint in cold weather. Just know how it will affect them and particularly how it affects the drying process. Acrylic paint like all paints has two drying stages. The first stage consists of evaporation. This occurs primarily in the outer layers. In normal conditions the paint or painting may feel dry yet the sub surface can still be wet or in a lesser stage of drying. The lower layers of paint dries slower and in acrylics this process also pushes the pigments together and towards the surface. This is why when painting with acrylics you need to be cognizant of the color the paints will appear when dry. Often the paint mixes will be less vibrant when first applied, only to become sharper as the paint dries. You also need to remember that acrylic paints are water based. That means that ice crystals can form in the paint under extreme low temperatures. This can affect the bonding of the paint to the substrate and can also cause cracking of the surface or below. You should avoid painting with acrylics in temperature under 50° You do not want acrylic paints to freeze on the canvas or in the tubes under any circumstances.
Cold does affect oil paints but primarily only in their consistency. Even water soluble oils do ok in cold weather. Oil paints can get rather sticky in cold weather painting. Polymerizing is the process that paints use to dry. What they are doing is forming long chains of particles adhering themselves. This is the process of drying. Oil paints polymerize fine in cold weather however they can become more viscus (heavy or stiff). What you don’t want to happen when painting with oils is to introduce water into the mix. I’ve painted in the rain and snow and it isn’t pretty. Simply the term of oil and water don’t mix runs true with painting with oils. There are times you want to use an umbrella to keep the sun off of your mixing area and painting; If it’s raining or snowing you want an umbrella or other protection to keep the water off of your palette and canvas or substrate. Otherwise the cold doesn’t affect drying because oils in general dry much slower that other mediums like acrylics and the body can recover during the drying process.