Scott - The Acrylic Artists Bible

Learn about tools and materials

The book is divided into four sections. The first, Choosing and Using Materials, contains helpful advice on the paints and equipment you will need to make a start, as well as providing tips on preparing your own boards and canvases. The second section, Color, explains some of the basic properties of color, showing ways of mixing colors, either on a palette or on the working surface, and provides essential advice on choosing a starter palette. The third section, which forms the core of the book, presents the exciting range of techniques available to the acrylic painter. The chapter begins with a demonstration of three different ways of building up a painting from an initial sketch through to completion, so if you have not tried acrylics before, use these as your starting point. You will then be introduced to more unusual methods, all of which are fun to try out, so if you have not tried painting with knives, scratching into paint, squeezing paint on with an icing piper, building up exciting textures, or glazing over an underpainting, here is your chance. All the techniques are shown as a series of clear step-by-step demonstrations done by a carefully selected group of professional artists, with captions explaining what to do at each stage. In the final section, Subjects, you will see the techniques in action. Finished paintings by a wide range of well-known acrylic painters illustrate the amazing diversity of styles possible with this wonderful medium, while text and captions provide hints on composition and uses of color. As an added bonus, there are two specially commissioned Tutorials, which enable you to follow an artists progress from the planning of the picture through to completion. This section is intended to help you learn by example; looking at other peoples work is an essential part of any artists learning curve, and you may find that it helps you toward establishing your own style.

Build a basic palette

Discover new skills

But the most important aspect to being an artist is to enjoy what you are doing, and to be willing to experiment with ideas and methods, so treat this book as a springboard to launch you into the exciting world of painting with acrylics.

Look at paintings by established artists

Introducing acrylics

Acrylic paints are a by-product of the plastic industry, just like the latex paint we use on our walls. The pigments used for acrylics, with a few exceptions, are the same as those used for oils, watercolors and pastels; what makes them different is the binder, which is a polymer resin. This, once dry, acts as a form of plastic coating which cannot be removed.

Because the paints are water-based, they are thinned by mixing with water or with a combination of water and one of the many mediums specially made for the purpose (see ). With acrylics, you can paint in any consistency you like, which gives these paints what is perhaps their greatest virtue: amazing versatility. You can use them in thin washes resembling watercolor, or apply colors with a knife in thick slabs. You can use thick paint in one part of a picture and thin in another; you can build up an infinite variety of textures; and you can employ traditional oil-painting methods such as glazingmuch easier in acrylic than in oil.

Painting sets

Several manufacturers offer introductory sets that include a range of pre-selected colors and, occasionally, different acrylic mediums, brushes, and palettesall contained in either simple packaging or a tailor-made wooden box. These sets can be an expensive way to sample acrylics, and also the colors may not be to your liking, so it is usually better to purchase a few tubes and brushes separately.

Students colors

Acrylics, like most other paints, are produced in two versions, students and artists. The former contain less pure pigment to the proportion of filler, making some of the colors slightly less intense, and the range of colors is smaller than the artists colors. However, most are of very good quality, and being considerably less expensive than artists colors, are ideal as an introduction to the medium.

Artists colors

A selection from a range of artists colors. This manufacturer produces a wide range of colors, all of which are classified as flow-formula, which indicates that they are slightly runnier than some other paints.

Full-bodied paints

This manufacturer produces both full-bodied paints, shown here, and flow-formula. The thicker paints are best for oil-painterly effects.