First Painting

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Acrylic Painting Course
Part One

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The Sunset Painting

Part One - Introduction

Welcome to the beginning of a new and exciting hobby. Just by reading this section you’re already on your way to enjoying an interesting and enjoyable pastime. Many people feel that they cannot paint a picture nor do anything ‘arty’. However you will find that, by following simple steps, you will be able to produce effective artwork and enjoy a new and fun activity.

Each part of this four part course will take you step-by-step through three finished pieces. The techniques you need to know will be explained and demonstrated. The equipment you need will be recommended, and often alternatives discussed too. All through the course there will be tips to improve your technique. At the end of each part you will have at least three paintings that you have produced yourself. Also, using the techniques you have learned, you will be able to design and produce your own works of art.

Part One, the Introduction, explains a little about acrylic paints, the reasons for choosing the equipment we do, and the surfaces suitable to paint on. The three projects in Part One concentrate on how to apply the paint without too much mixing of the colours.

Part Two looks at painting with acrylic paints using mainly watercolour techniques - using glazes to give a transparency to the picture as seen in watercolour paintings. This is painting from the lighter areas to the darker areas, and also covers how to sort out any mistakes along the way!

Part Three shows how acrylic paints can be used in a thicker way, more like oil paints. We look at how textures produced by brush strokes can give ‘movement’ to the painting. It also explains how to use a painting knife which can add texture and interest to your picture - it is amazing the different effects you can achieve, even if some of them are by accident!

Part Four discusses and shows different ways of using the paints. We will be making a collage which will demonstrate how the paint can work as an adhesive. This part will give you ideas, and places to look for inspiration too.

This course will show you the basics of painting with acrylic paints. Why acrylic paints rather than any of the others? Acrylic paints can produce many of the same effects achieved with other types of paint, but as acrylic paints are water based there is no need to use smelly thinners - a great advantage if you are using them indoors. The other advantage of acrylic paint is the option of painting over previous layers without disturbing what is underneath, this allows any mistakes to be easily dealt will.

Acrylic paints can be used in a similar manner to watercolours by using thin transparent layers. Acrylics can be used in a thicker style which allows the use of oil painting techniques. They can be used in collages as the paint will also act as the adhesive. Add texture paste (this is widely available), and other materials like sand or crushed egg shells, and your pictures can become three dimensional. As you become more adventurous you will find that acrylic paints can produce varied effects, and they are the choice of artists who like to experiment.

From my point of view one of the greatest advantages is the quick drying time of acrylic paints. This is a real bonus when it is time to tidy away, as most of us do not have access to a large space kept exclusively for our hobby.

In oil painting the painting would need to be carefully stored as it would still be wet, and the smell of the oils and thinners would linger on! Also some people are allergic to the solvents used in oil paints.

Another benefit is that acrylics do not fade or discolour with age or exposure to sunlight, and once dry they form a tough skin. To me this is the main benefit of using acrylic paints over watercolours. In watercolour painting you work from the lightest colour to the darker colours. If you go back to a section and decide to change it, the process works the first time, but should you still be unhappy with the effect and do it again you will end up with a muddy coloured area. This happens because the top layers of paint mix with the lower layers. I personally do not find watercolour painting a relaxing hobby as I become too stressed knowing that there is little margin for error, and the difficulty in correcting areas that I really dislike. With acrylic paints there are ways of correcting any problem areas, which makes the whole activity much more fun and enjoyable. Why have a hobby that isn’t fun?

In this course you will learn the various painting techniques by using them in a painting. I understand why it is good training to practice techniques repeatedly, but this is supposed to be an enjoyable and fun hobby. Let’s just learn as we go. It will work just as well and you can skip the boring bits.

Unlike other painting courses you do not have to be able to draw, there are alternatives to this part of painting a picture and if you do not like to draw then you don’t have to. You will be shown alternatives to drawing that will leave you the good bit - the painting.

A Bit About Acrylic Paint

The scientific bit that you do not need to know! Acrylic paints came onto the market in 1962. They are a by-product of the plastics industry. They consist of the colour, the pigment, and a binder which is acrylic polymer resin. This binder is water soluble when wet, but changes to an impermeable layer when it dries. The resins are milky white when wet, but dry clear - so acrylic colours dry a bit darker than they look when wet.

The pigments used (which give the colour) are mainly the same organic, natural pigments as those used in other artist’s paints. The majority are chemically treated to make the colours permanent and stable.

This is worth knowing though! Acrylic paintings can be cleaned by gently sponging them with soapy water.

Things You Need To Know Before You Start.

The Paints

Acrylic paints come in tubes of either Standard Formula or Flow Formula.

The Standard Formula is thicker and more suitable for oil painting techniques as well as for using with a painting knife. Paintings can be built up for impasto work where very thick layers of paint give a three dimensional result.

The Flow Formula is a thinner paint and is more suitable for brush work. However other acrylic mediums can be added to thicken the paint for impasto techniques.

Although acrylic paints are water soluble when wet they are not when dry. Should some of the paint dry on your hands while you are doing a painting you will see that it is like a thin layer of coloured plastic. This means that should the paint dry on your clothes or furnishings you will not be able to remove it. Always work on top of newspaper or some other surface that can be replaced.

Acrylics dry very quickly.

After use, always put the lid back on the tube of paint. Otherwise the paint will dry in the tube, and this is very annoying and a waste of money.

It is often cheaper to buy a starter pack of acrylic paints, and this is a good way to start. If the pack is the Standard Formula then you will need to add more water for some of the techniques compared to the Flow Formula paints. Once you start using the paints you will quickly see if you prefer to paint in a thinner style using only a brush - in which case Flow Formula paints will suit you better. However if you rather paint in a thicker style and enjoy using a painting knife, then the Standard Formula paints will be the ones you should use. (If you have a choice I would buy the standard formula, it is easy to add a little extra water if necessary.)

However bear this in mind when you replace existing colours, or if you are buying additional colours. Consider how you like to paint and you will know whether to buy the Standard or Flow formulas.

The colours used to complete the paintings in Part One are

Cadmium Yellow
Cadmium Red
Ultramarine Blue
Payne’s Grey
Sap Green
Titanium White

However if you have bought a starter pack and the colours are different just use what you have to begin with. It is all good practice and fun.

The Brushes

The brushes used with acrylic paints are nylon ones. While painting the brushes are kept in a tray of water. A long shallow one is best (like an old ice cube tray). The brushes should be lying mainly on their sides ensuring that the points are not bent out of shape but still kept wet as in the photo on page 8. Nylon brushes can take this kind of treatment where a sable brush would not. The brushes can be kept in this manner all the time, 24 hours a day. When you go to use the brush again, dry it on a piece of paper towel. Generally you will only need the ‘tube consistency’ of the paint so you do not want to add extra water to the paint initially.

A roll of paper towel is handy for drying the brushes when you take them out of the water and before you use the brush for painting.

ALWAYS PUT THE BRUSH BACK IN THE WATER TRAY EVEN IF YOU ARE GOING TO BE USING IT AGAIN.

Should the paint dry on a brush the brush will need to be thrown away and be replaced.

It is a good investment to buy good quality brushes, they will be easier to use and produce a better result. Sometimes you will want to use a brush which is not nylon. Treat it in exactly the same way while painting. However when you are finished your painting session rinse the brush, wash it in soap and water, rinse it again, and form it back into the shape it was when you bought it. Place it end first, so the brush tip is facing upwards, into a container and let it dry naturally.

Loading a brush

When loading a brush with paint dampen the brush if it is dry. If the brush has been stored in water, tap it onto a piece of paper towel to remove the excess water before loading it. To load most brushes just pull the tip across the paint you wish to use. If you are loading a fan brush pull the brush through the paint on its flat side, turn over to the other flat side and load that side too - this can be done a couple of times depending on how much paint you want on the brush. If it is a fine brush you wish to load, it is easier to draw the brush tip through the paint, rest the brush at the edge of the paint and then rotate the brush around to bring it to a fine point.

The brushes used to paint the pictures in this book are -
No 12 round brush - large
No 6 round brush
No 2 fan brush
No 1 fine brush
All nylon ones, and a 1 inch decorator’s brush - the kind used for home decorating, of no particular bristle type!

A Palette

At first you can use a small sheet of glass or plastic surface as a palette, remember the paint will dry as it sits there, so only put out as much as you think you will need. However I think that a reservoir palette is worth having and is cost effective. It will minimise the amount of paint that is thrown away because it has dried up.

Most reservoir palettes on the market have a damp reservoir with a paper palette on the top. This stops the paints from drying out and can save wasting paint, and the palette also has a separate section for keeping the brushes wet. It comes with a plastic lid that is used between painting sessions, keeping the moisture in, and everything ready for use.

Money Saving Tip - No 1

A similar palette can be made by using a tray or flat dish with a low edge on it. Either blotting paper or capillary matting (from the garden centre) can be used for the reservoir, and a layer of tracing paper or greaseproof paper is put on top as the paper palette. As long as the reservoir is kept moist - not too wet - the paint on the surface will not dry out. When you are not using the paints cover the whole of the palette with a plastic bag or cling film. The paints keep remarkably well like this.

Water Container

You will also need a container of clean water to rinse out your brushes while doing your painting. It is often convenient to have two containers especially if you are trying to keep your colours pure. Anything from a jam jar to a plastic container will do.


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