25 secrets from acrylic painting masters © all rights ......painting, and you’ve wisely chosen...


Table of Contents

Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 4

1.Brushes

.......................................................................................................................................... 4

2.Palette

.......................................................................................................................................... 5

3.Palette for Large Canvases

.......................................................................................................................................... 5

4.Painting on Paper

.......................................................................................................................................... 5

5.Metal Surfaces

.......................................................................................................................................... 6

6.Acrylic Paints

.......................................................................................................................................... 6

7.Texture- Palette Knife

.......................................................................................................................................... 7

8.Texture- Gel

.......................................................................................................................................... 7

9.Sponge

.......................................................................................................................................... 8

10.Dry Brush- Thick Application

.......................................................................................................................................... 8

11.Dry Brush- Minimal Mark-Making

.......................................................................................................................................... 9

12.Textures and Overlapping

.......................................................................................................................................... 9

13.Using ALL of your Paintbrush

........................................................................................................................................ 10

14.Modulate your Lines

........................................................................................................................................ 10

15.Create Sharp Edges

........................................................................................................................................ 10

16.Acrylic Mediums—Fast Medium or Fixer

........................................................................................................................................ 11

17.Slow the Drying Process

........................................................................................................................................ 11

18.Fixing Errors/ Reworking

........................................................................................................................................ 12

19.Mixed Media Projects

........................................................................................................................................ 12

20.Think in Layers

........................................................................................................................................ 12

21.Washes

........................................................................................................................................ 13

22.Use Transparency to Create Color

........................................................................................................................................ 13


23.Under-painting

........................................................................................................................................ 14

24.Blending

........................................................................................................................................ 14

25.Glazes and Glosses

........................................................................................................................................ 15

Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 15

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Introduction

You’ve done it! You’ve finally taken the plunge and have got yourself kitted out to start

painting, and you’ve wisely chosen acrylic to begin with. Easier to use than oil, acrylic is

very versatile, and is used by artists world over. But even a versatile medium takes some

getting used to, and there are tips and tricks to getting better at using it. Read on to see how

you can improve your skills at acrylic, whether you’re a beginner or someone who’s just

picking up a tip or two.

1. Brushes

Brushes can be as important to your acrylic adventures, so you need to make sure you have

them handy. You don’t need a lot of different types of brushes to produce successful pieces of

art. To start out, try amassing a modest array that you know inside out. You will need round

brushes with a fine point, numbers 2, 8, and 14, flat brushes that are ¼ inch, ½ inch, 1 inch

and 3 inches wide, Liners numbers 000, 1, and a big flat house painting brush of any width.

Before you begin to work on something, try these bushes out. Challenge yourself, and paint a

piece using only one brush, but with varied techniques. It will surprise you that once you

know a small arsenal of brushes intimately, you will not need any more.


2. Palette

A palette can be just as important as the brushes to the success of your painting. Why? Well,

because with fast-drying paints like acrylic, your palette can dictate the scale of your painting

as well as the techniques you use. The best way to get palettes is to head to your local art

supply store and find one that suits you. There are special stay-wet palettes available for

acrylic paint and may end up being a good investment. Alternatively, you can find a regular

palette you like and purchase a spray bottle so that you can keep spritzing the paint with

water on it to keep it moist and workable.

3. Palette for Large Canvases

If you’re painting a large canvas with plenty of different colors in it, you may need a large

palette. The larger surface will give you enough space to blend more and preserve these

blends as you work. There’s nothing worse than accidentally dragging a paintbrush through a

prepared blend with another color and running it, and a large palette will help prevent that.

4. Painting on Paper

You can also get paper for painting, either watercolor paper or special acrylic paper.

Whichever you get, it might be worth stretching your paper out with water before you begin,

and going over it with some gesso to prime it so that you painting is preserved for a long


time.

5. Metal Surfaces

If you are interested in painting metal surfaces with acrylic paint, try just the paint on first to

see if the material accepts it. If not, prime the metal by painting it completely with a clear

varnish or clear gesso before you begin painting. Decorating objects like water-cans, metal

tins or umbrella stands are all good uses of acrylic paint.

6. Acrylic Paints

One of the last things you need to look to for improvement in acrylic work is the paint itself.

Try and purchase artist quality pigment as much as possible, for these paints are of higher

quality than student variety pigments. Since Acrylics mix so easily, buying an acrylic starter

kit usually has enough pigments to get you started. For a shade you do not have, blend, and

only purchase it if absolutely necessary..

If unable to find a starter series of paints, the following colors ought to get you started:

Cadmium Red Medium

Phthalo blue

Cadmium Yellow Medium

Titanium White

Mars Black

Burnt Umber (Brown)

Phthalo Green

Cadmium Orange

Payne’s Grey

Golden Ocher

Titanium Buff (cream/nude

tone)


7. Texture- Palette Knife

A palette knife is invaluable when attempting to add texture to your work. If you’re trying to

paint bark, caked ground or other elements that require a thick, ridged texture, a palate knife

can help you create it. Just blend your colors to the shade you need and apply it on your

canvas with the edge of your palette knife. If the texture ends up being too much, you can

always smoothen it with a brush to the desired height. Play with your palette knife to create

texture that can give your painting more depth and character.

8. Texture- Gel

Your local art-supply store will have access to texturing gels, which are another great way to

introduce texture into your work. You can do this, of course, by adding your own materials in

the paint, but the gels usually allow for a uniform finish and longevity. The materials the gels

come with can include sand, glass and fiber amongst other things. Just mix with the desired

amount of paint and get started on your area of texture.

9. Sponge

If you’re trying to paint landscapes using acrylics, a sponge is your friend. A sponge is

available at your local crafts store, and can be either artificial or natural. A sponge can help


you apply paint on your canvas in a way that mimics foliage, and ca help you create rich

textures easily.

To use a sponge to create texture, mix the shade that you would like to use and dip your

sponge into it, dry, and apply it on the canvas. A firm push will give you an area of textured

paint on your canvas while a lighter application will look more like a small section of texture.

If you’re layering your colors, then dip your sponge without washing it into the next color

after you’ve completely applied the first shade. Now use the second shade to fill in your

highlights the same way, and keep going with more shades if you have them. Varying

pressure can be used as you apply successive shades to give an illusion of depth. This

technique can help you create convincing trees and bushes, but also help you create deeply

textured areas for more abstract work.

10. Dry Brush- Thick Application

Learning to apply texture with a dry brush is a great way to create intensity in your work. The

technique is simple, you use a dry brush with undiluted acrylic paint to paint with on your

canvas. As the paint is undiluted, it makes dark, intense marks on your canvas. Great for

abstract work, and for expressive work, the thick application of paint can create points of

interest on your canvas.


11. Dry Brush- Minimal Mark-Making

Use a thin, dry brush by dipping the tip in acrylic paint and pick out small details on your

canvas. This method can help you create great textured highlights, like a few light strands or

grass, or if applied patiently, create a great textured space on your canvas with an exposed

brushstroke. The brushwork that goes with this technique can be quite intricate, and make

your finished work seem painstakingly made with a lot of attention to detail.

12. Textures and Overlapping

One way to quickly create depth in your paintings is to use texture and overlap elements in

your painting. Figure out what your foreground and background elements are, and overlap

them to create an illusion of depth. For example, if painting a market scene, make sure to

have the stalls in your foreground overlap the ones in the background so that your viewer

knows that they are placed in the back. Varying your texture in foreground and background

elements also helps to differentiate them while maintaining the illusion of depth.

13. Using ALL of your Paintbrush

Knowing what the bristles of your brush can do isn’t enough, figure out what you can do with

the back of your brush as well. The back of your paint brush can be great for creating texture

with paint by scoring areas, cross hatching or creating little dots to make a textured space.


Alternatively, you can use your paintbrush to work on an area of wet paint, creating hatching

or scoring, or even scribbled textures by scraping away the freshly applied paint. Used in

moderation and strategically, the texture created with the back of your paint brush can be an

excellent way to add depth and interest to your work.

14. Modulate your Lines

One of the best parts about working with acrylics is that you can use them like you would

watercolors with brushwork. Dilute your pigment and use a wet brush to create modulated

lines with it, creating a sense of flow on your painting surface. This technique can be useful

for picking out profiles, working with figure, seascapes, almost any subject that requires a

subtle modulation in line.

15. Create Sharp Edges

If you want to create hard or sharp straight edges in your work, use marking tape over dried

paint layers. With the masking take protecting your line, you can paint without softening your

edge. Masking tape is ideal for this type of work as it can be removed easily from the

painting without any damage to the layers underneath.


16. Acrylic Mediums—Fast Medium or Fixer

When you’re purchasing your acrylic supplies, try and get a hold of some acrylic mediums as

well. Acrylic mediums are compounds that can help you alter way your painting dries, the

thinness of paint layers, help you glazes or help you create texture. Depending on your needs,

you can get different mediums to help you with your painting

A Fast Medium or a Fixer will make your paint dry faster. To use, mix the medium in with

your pigment and paint quickly. This helps you get in the parts of your painting that you want

to dry quickly, perhaps general outlines or specific areas.

17. Slow the Drying Process

A Slowing Medium can help you buy more time when you apply paint on your canvas,

enabling you to carry out intricate blending or mark-making processes. Mix in with your

pigment to buy yourself some time when you’re painting.

18. Fixing Errors/ Reworking

Since acrylic paints dry quickly, they can be notoriously difficult rework or go over if you

need after they have dried. Unlocking or Reworking mediums can help you reactivate dried

areas in case you need to rework them, making the process of adding finishing touches to


your painting much easier. They also ensure that your painting surface remains even, and not

lumpy from areas of excess paint where you may have had to use more to fix something.

19. Mixed Media Projects

If you want to make a mixed-media project, binders are your friend. Binders are mediums

that are good intermediate sealants, and can help you seal parts of your paintings. For mixed

media work, simply collage certain parts of your canvas with the help of a binder, either by

itself or mixed in with a pigment, to add paper or collage materials.

20. Think in Layers

Why must you to think about layers? Because they can be very important to your painting.

Acrylic paint is not opaque till you use it straight out of the tube or mix it with titanium white

to create a solid block of color The transparency of these paints can benefit your technique a

lot, so it’s worth playing with them to see how it works. Before you start painting, layer

paints to see what effect they can have. Layers can change the surface of the painting, where

the surface is raised when there are more layers and not so much with lesser layers. They can

also make colors look different, and add texture when they disturb previously applied paint

layers.


21. Washes

When you make an acrylic wash by diluting the paint with water an applying it evenly to

your canvas, it works something like an oil-wash. Acrylic washes are insoluble in water, so

whatever you apply your wash on remains undisturbed when you apply it. Similarly, you can

paint over a wash without diluting it or muddying the color

Washes can be a great way to modulate the color profile of your work. You’ve painted a

sunset, and it doesn’t look quite as bright as it should? Try a wash with the brightest shade in

your sunset’s color scheme, and see how it brightens the image right up. If you want to add

sombre low-lights, try a wash below your subject and see how that works. Washes can be a

great way to add cohesion to your work as well, so use them wisely and use them often.

22. Use Transparency to Create Color

While you should definitely blend the exact shade you need on your palette, it can also be a

good exercise to see if you can achieve a similar effect on your canvas using component

shades as washes. It won’t be the same, but the depth that you get from multiple washes

could be an interesting element to your painting. Try and figure out how layering your colors

can work for you in your work before you get started, and develop a sense for color


23. Under-painting

Under-painting is commonly used in oil painting to provide depth and richness to what is

being painted on top. Often, a rich brown was applied underneath what was painted to give

everything a soft, inner glow or richness. Acrylic paints can help replicate this process to

some extent, as they are transparent. Try different undercoats for different effects. A bright

yellow can make your entire painting seem brighter, while a deep red or brown can add rich

undertones. A hot-pink under-layer can produce exciting results, especially if you let a hint of

it peek through on your painting to draw the viewer’s eye.

24. Blending

Acrylic paints can create an intense, smooth texture on canvas when you need them to, and

blending is a technique that can help with that. To create elements like the evening sky or a

forest blade, or even an abstract piece with elements of blending, mix and choose your shades

first. One they are ready, choose your brush, a thick one for larger blended areas or smaller

depending on the various elements you want to blend. One everything is ready, spritz your

canvas with water once and get started.

Since you’re blending, you don’t really need to rinse your brushes as you go. Using the same

brush, add in your layers and fill up. Work with different shades to produce the desired

gradation, and work quickly before the paint dries.


25. Glazes and Glosses

Glazing Mediums can help you apply clear tints to your painting, and alter colors subtly in

the applied areas. These are useful towards the end of your painting to help intensify the

colors you want intensified and provide finishing touches. Use gloss mediums to reactivate

your painting and make things brighter. It helps you smooth out rough spaces, and can

provide a good surface for more paints or glazes. It can also act as a good way to finish your

painting.

Conclusion

While all these techniques can help you with your painting, what really helps is you working

and experimenting with these techniques. The more you work with acrylics, the better you get

at using them and the easier it becomes to execute your artistic vision on a canvas. So, don’t

wait, get started!

NEED PAINTS?

Buy high-grade acrylic paints from ElementPaints.com

25 secrets from acrylic painting masters © all rights ......painting, and you’ve wisely chosen...

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