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Airbrush Portraits
Hmm... I am not sure why you would want to use an air brush with oil paints since any effect you can get with an air brush can be achieved using traditional painting techniques. But I do have some advice anyway.
First off, traditional oils as you get from the tube can only be thinned so much using a thinner of any kind alone. If you want to experiment I would add some type of a binding agent like dammar varnish and follow the rule of fat over lean. Since in thinning out this paint so much it is a basically a tinted varnish. You would not want to put this over a layer heavy in oil until it is fully dry. And I mean more than just dry to the touch.
Personally, I don't think it is worth the trouble since you can achieve the same thing using traditional glazing techniques that would not be as experimental.
I have other advice about what paints to use with an air brush besides acrylics and water-based inks.
A word of caution even in a well ventilated room when using the painting techniques and materials I am going to recommend: I would wear a respirator (not just a mask).
I was commissioned to paint a portrait on a motorcycle gas tank and for this I used lacquer paints and an airbrush. To thin the paint I used lacquer thinner. It evaporates very quickly and the paint dries very fast. Now, would this paint work over traditional oils? I don't know.
Do not paint using lacquer on any flexible surface (like canvas) or it will crack. But in the case of a commission to paint on an auto, van or motorcycle an airbrush and lacquer works well. You can use enamel paints also but if the top coats are going to be a hand rubbed lacquer clear coat then you can't.
You can paint enamel paint over lacquer but not lacquer over enamel. To remember that just think of an E will cover an L but an L can't cover an E.
Could you combine lacquer or enamel paint and traditional oils? I don't know. I would think you could as long as the oils were completely dry and you put a layer of varnish between the oils and any layer of other paint. But I can't say if it would be a good idea or not. And I would think it would have a tendency to crack. Could you spray them on a wet area? NO
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