Do You Need Liquid Clear for Bob Ross Technique?

Liquid clear is one type of base medium. It is used for different reasons. Some important reasons are:

• As a base coat, it creates a transparent layer on the canvas, so the paint color is not affected by the background color(white), which the liquid white does. 
• In the wet-on-wet technique, it can add a liquid clear layer on top of the paint layer. The liquid creates a clutch surface which helps new paint stick to the surface. 
• Liquid clear increases paint flow without adding more paint and pigment.
• It can be used to make paint thin.

So following the mentioned points, you need liquid clear. 

In other articles, I already explained:

• Liquid Clear Vs. Linseed Oil: What Is the Difference?
• Different mediums that bob ross uses.

Which liquid clear does Bob ross use? Alternative?

	Grade	Note
Bob Ross Liquid Clear	Artistic and Bob Ross brand	Bob Ross use it
Winsor & Newton Refined Linseed Oil	Artistic	Most common oil for painters. Can be used as an alternative of liquid clear.

Why does Bob Ross use liquid clear?

Bob Ross has done many black canvas paintings in the ‘Joy of Painting’ tv show. For black canvas, he uses liquid clear as a base coat. And then, apply different colors on black canvas to make the paint highlight. 

It also applies between layers, so the upper layer paint does not affect the bottom layer.

Liquid clear has the ability to not dilute the color with the background, which is very important for black canvas. Also, he applied liquid clear to make a smooth and slippery surface. 

Additionally, he uses liquid clear to make the paint thin and increase color flow. 

How do you apply liquid clear on your painting?

It has already mentioned there liquid clear has a multitude of uses. And also, applying methods is different. To sum up, you can apply for some main uses

1. Base coat
2. Paint medium
3. Create a layer on a painting

How do you apply liquid clear as a base coat?

It is very easy to apply.

You need

1. Liquid clear
2. A paint brush
3. Soft clean rug 

How to apply?

Step 1. Preparation: Put a very small amount of liquid clear on a paint Palette. A small amount is enough. If you add too much, the canvas will be oily, and paint can not stick to it. 

Step 2. Apply: with a paintbrush, separate the liquid all over the canvas. Start from one side and spread it all over the canvas. 

Step 3. Remove the extra liquid: Take a clean dry rag or paper towel and rub it smoothly with not high passer and not low passer to remove extra liquid.

This is a tutorial video; you should watch it. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fLEuDerRXo

How do you apply liquid clear as a paint medium?

You can mix titanium white with liquid clear and create liquid white. As well as you can mix the liquid clear with other colors. Which makes your paint thin and strong.

You need to follow just one rule for transforming your paint thin and strong, which is ½ any color and ½ liquid clear. To achieve the different thicknesses, you can increase or reduce the ratio of liquid clear and paint. 

What is Magic Bob Ross Liquid Clear used for?

Bob Ross magic liquid clear and Bob liquid clear are almost the same, and Bob Ross is just a brand name. You can apply the product as liquid clear: like a base coat or paint medium, or create layers and more. 

What can I use instead of Liquid Clear?

Liquid clear is a great product of oil-based paint. If it is not available, you can apply linseed oil, sunflower oil, walnut oil, Safflower oil, hemp oil, and more. You need to keep in mind all are different oils, so you will get a little bit different effects from these oils.