Every artist was a beginner at one point. Maybe every artist will always remain a beginner in the sense that even the most experienced and famous one will find new techniques to learn and new mediums to try.
This article is intended for people who want to paint with acrylics and have never done so before. I'm certainly not an international expert but acrylics are my favorite medium and I have used them for years so I may be able to give a few tips on how to get started with acrylics.
1 - The subject
To have a painting, you need a subject. And to have a subject, you need a reference. You can paint from imagination, from life, from one or more photographs. Many people find it easier to begin by using a photo reference. Be aware though, that it is better to use one of yours or one with free copyrights. If you find a photo you love, it is always better to ask the photographer if you can use it, even if you do not intend to sell your painting.
People will tell you to choose something simple if you are a beginner. But what is simple? I suggest you paint what you want to paint. If you want to do a portrait, go ahead, even if you are told you should start with something easier, like flowers. Flowers can be difficult. Animals can be difficult and so can landscape. But if you, for example, love dogs and know dogs well, go ahead and paint one even if you have not done so before. Paint what you like and paint what you love.
2 - Choosing your paint
Good quality acrylics are expensive, and the prices vary according to the colours and the pigments used. Sometimes, you can get an artist quality set of watercolours for the price of two tubes of acrylics... This can be a drawback if you are on a budget or if you are not sure acrylics are the thing for you.
The best solution would be either to buy a set of cheap acrylics, bearing in mind that the texture and colour may not be the same as good quality acrylics (I started that way and I can tell you the quality does make a difference), or to buy a few tubes of essential colours. What are these essential colours? First, black and white. Then...it depends. Many people will tell you to buy primary colours (yellow, red, blue) as with those you can then mix every colour on the colour wheel. This is very good advice, but not one that I followed. Why? Because the paints you use depend on your subject and your style.
I mostly paint animals and landscapes and I found that the colours I used most were: titanium white, mars black, burnt umber, burnt sienna (brown, earthy colours), naple yellow ( a pale, creamy yellow), chrome oxide green (good luck trying to make it with yellow and blue...), portrait pink (very pale pink), and every possible shade of blue, cobalt, phtalo, ultramarine and so on (but that is a stylistic choice). I do not limit myself to these colours but I realised that I never used any red, for instance.
Now if you were painting flowers or buildings, your palette would be completely different. Moreover, it will evolve as your style develops. You may also realise you absolutely love a couple of specific colour and have to put them everywhere (my favorite colour is Naple yellow). Sometimes what can work, is going into an art shop and picking the colours that inspire you best, even if they do not seem to fit with your subject: don't worry, you'll find a way of making it fit and your painting will be all the more interesting and personnal.
3 - Canvas, canvas board or canvas-textured paper?
Again, good quality canvases can be expensive, though you can always find cheap one. You have to bear in mind that if you intend to put thick layers of paint on it, it may sag a little. I tend to like canvas boards because they are less fragile (and take less room when you store them!).
What about canvas-textured paper? I find it harder to work with as it reacts differently to the paint, but I still use it a lot: it is cheap, can be framed easily and you can always have a pad with you when you travel. However if you soak it too much it may curl and it is better to allow it sufficient time to dry between layers.
My advice if you are starting with acrylics is to get a reasonnably priced canvas board. Some people prime their canvases with gesso to get a better surface. I never do it because I buy canvases and canvas boards which are already primed.
What size should your canvas be? Again, it will depend on your subject, though I recommand that you buy a medium sized one. If it is huge, it will mean lots of paint, lots of layers, lots of trouble. If it is tiny and you want to do a realistic painting, you will have to do lots of small details and if you do not master acrylics very well this can prove difficult, especially if the paints you use have a thick texture.
4 - Using acrylics
Acrylics are very versatile and that's why they're a wonderful medium. Acrylics are water soluble paints which means that you can dilute them with more or less water to achieve the texture you desire. You can apply very thick paint with a painting knife to create a textured piece of art. You can play with different types of paintbrushes and get different kinds of effects.
Usually, acrylics are worked in layers, each layer having more detail and sometimes more colour than the one below. It helps give depth to a painting as lights and shadows and details are added. Unlike oil paints, acrylics dry very quickly and you do not have to wait very long in between layers. It is also very easy to paint over a mistake.
What paintbrushes should you use? It is nice to have a selection of different ones, with different shapes and different sizes. You can easily buy cheap sets which are ideal to get you started. Be careful to buy paintbrushes which are labelled as acrylic paintbrushes. The smaller the brush, the finer the detail. If you decide to go for a bold, painterly style, you may want to use a large one.
Applying several layers of paint will help you achieve depth, contrast and detail.
5 - As you start painting...
- Think of the colours you will use beforehand. Apply a bit of each on your palette (you can buy a plastic one; sometimes one is provided when you buy a set of acrylics). This is the moment where you will do some mixing to get different tones and hues. I do not recommend using black to get darker colours or to make shadows. But you really have to try and test to find what you like and what works best for you. Experiment and have fun.
- Think about the composition of your painting. Composition can be the key to a dynamic and attractive painting, whether it be realisitc, impressionistic or abstract. I have heard more than once that you should favour odd and not even numbers, meaning that if you want to paint say, flowers, it is better to paint one, three, five... flowers as opposed to two and four. I don't agree. If you want to paint two flowers, go ahead. However I believe the way they are placed on the canvas is important. Sometimes, having the main focus (your two flowers for instance) just a little off center can make your composition more dynamic, just like following an invisible diagonal line.
- Don't be afraid to experiment and try textures and colours. If it goes wrong you can scrape it off or wash it off with a damp towel if the paint is not dry yet, or cover it with another layer if it is dry.
- Acrylics stain and those stains do not go! You really don't want to put some on your favorite T-shirt, so you may want to put on an apron or old clothes you don't like. If you do stain your clothes, you can only take the paint off if it has not dried yet and acrylics dry fast so you have to act quickly.
- Enjoy yourself: painting is fun!
You can let me know what you think of this article in the comments and if you have found it useful.