Acrylic Revolution. New Tricks and Techniques for Working with the World's Most Versatile Medium

131 Pages·2007·101.937 MB·English

by  Nancy Reyner

acrylic revolution

acr ylic
new tricks & techniques for
working with the world’s
most versatile medium
Nancy Reyner
NORTH LIGHT BOOKS
CINCINNATI, OHIO
www.artistsnetwork.com
About the Author
Nancy Reyner has been painting, exhibiting and teaching for more than
thirty years. Nancy holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and
an MFA from Columbia University. In addition to this formal art training, she
credits the varied and unusual jobs she has held to contributing to her artis-
tic and technical knowledge. While living in New York City, she created cos-
tumes and sets for Broadway and off-Broadway theater and fi lm (including
a Madonna fi lm); coordinated public arts programs for New York’s MTA for
the subway, bus and train systems; directed and performed with the Raga-
bash Puppet Theater; held several graphic design and color technician jobs;
and managed a print production facility. While living in Phoenix, Arizona,
Nancy was selected for a two-year painting and drawing residency for the
Phoenix Center. There she exhibited, curated shows, taught drawing and
painting, and created new works. She has been a technical consultant for
the acrylic paint company Golden Artist Colors, Inc. in their “Working Artist
Acrylic Revolution. Copyright © 2007 by Nancy Reyner. Manufactured in
China. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form Program” for the past seven years. She was born and raised in Philadelphia,
or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and
Pennsylvania, by two wonderful parents who were both dedicated school
retrieval systems without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a
reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. Published by North Light teachers. Their love for teaching has defi nitely rubbed off on Nancy, who
Books, an imprint of F+W Publications, Inc., 4700 East Galbraith Road, Cincin-
now lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and continues to teach in the Southwest.
nati, Ohio, 45236. [phone]. First Edition.
Nancy’s current artwork can be seen on her website at www.nancyreyner.
Other fi ne North Light Books are available from your local bookstore, art sup- com. You may contact her at [email protected].
ply store or direct from the publisher.
11 10 09 08 07 5 4 3 2
Distributed in Canada by Fraser Direct
Art from page 2:
100 Armstrong Avenue
Georgetown, ON, Canada L7G 5S4
You Have Been Chosen
Tel: [phone]
Acrylic and mixed media on canvas
62" × 48" (158cm × 122cm)
Distributed in the U.K. and Europe by David & Charles
Nancy Reyner
Brunel House, Newton Abbot, Devon, TQ12 4PU, England
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected]
Distributed in Australia by Capricorn Link
P.O. Box 704, S. Windsor NSW, 2756 Australia Metric Conversion Chart
Tel: [phone]
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
To convert to multiply by
Reyner, Nancy. Inches Centimeters 2.54
Acrylic revolution : new tricks & techniques for working with the world’s most Centimeters Inches 0.4
versatile medium / Nancy Reyner. Feet Centimeters 30.5
p. cm. Centimeters Feet 0.03
Includes index.
Yards Meters 0.9
ISBN-13: 978-1-58180-804-9 (concealed wire-o : alk. paper)
Meters Yards 1.1
ISBN-10: 1-58180-804-6 (concealed wire-o : alk. paper)
Sq. Inches Sq. Centimeters 6.45
ISBN-13: 978-1-60061-605-1 (EPUB)(cid:13)(cid:10)
Sq. Centimeters Sq. Inches 0.16
1. Acrylic painting--Technique. I. Title.
Sq. Feet Sq. Meters 0.09
ND1535.R49 2007
Sq. Meters Sq. Feet 10.8
751.4’26--dc22
2006026035 Sq. Yards Sq. Meters 0.8
Edited by Kelly C. Messerly Sq. Meters Sq. Yards 1.2
Designed by Guy Kelly
Production coordinated by Matt Wagner
Cosmic Sea((DDeettaaiill)
AAccrryyllic and mixed media on canvas
48" × 62" (122cm × 158cm), Nancy Reyner
I have had way too much fun writing this bbook. The best part by far was A very big thank you to Barbara and Mark Golden, Mike Townsend,
working with so many talented people. While creating, inventing and con- Sarah Sands, Scott Bennett and Pat Pirrone. A special thank you to Patti
juring up the variety of techniques, I was reminded of advice my brother, Brady. I could use a whole page to thank Patti. Many of the acrylic teaching
Dr. Peter Reyner, once gave me on baking bread. He reminded me that the tips I fi rst learned from her, and in particular a love for acrylic paint.
yeast is alive, and showed me that if I kept this in mind while kneading the Thanks to Jamie Markle and Kelly Messerly. Jamie, thanks for the fun,
dough, the bread would rise to the occasion. I found the same principle at collaborative effort in coming up with the idea for this book. Kelly, thanks
work with paint. Paint, too, can seem alive. I often feel a certain type of for keeping me on track with a positive attitude.
magic while painting and imagine donning a witch hat and cloak while A big thanks to all my students for trying out all my ideas, which formed
mixing paint in my cauldron. I was especially pleased to have discovered the seeds of this book, and to all my colleagues who submitted their art-
so many fellow alchemists along the way. Sorry, no full moon ceremonies work for the gallery section. The professionalism and variety of your work
here, but hopefully this book has whipped up a few practical potions with illustrates an essential point of the book—that acrylic is a professional
possible side effects such as inspiration, creativity and fun. artist’s medium with a range of possibilities that goes beyond any other.
I have learned that what makes life truly worthwhile is people. I want
to thank my husband and son, Phillip and Jacob Cohen, for love, support
and a never-ending sense of humor. Thanks also to my parents, Nora and
Jack Reyner, who instilled in me a love for exploration, experimentation
Dedicatioon
and especially teaching. A big thanks to my life sisters Tabitha and Danielle
Marceau, Cleves Weber, Laura McClure, Mary Ross, Julia Santos Solomon This book is deddicated to my wonderful support team at home, Phillip
and Marcia McCoy. and Jacob Coheen, and to our Earth and its natural resources. The beau-
My assistant, Bonnie Teitelbaum, was a gift beyond words. I was equally tiful materials, ccolored pigments and wealth of inspiration the Earth
blessed by having the talented photographer Daniel Barsotti shoot all the affords is a gift to all artists.
technique images.
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table of contents
Essential Acrylic Tips 8
SECTION 3
Materials 10
surface treatments and grounds
TECHNIQUE
Palette Ideas 12
19 Absorbent Surfaces
Materials and Equipment Setup 13
20 Nonabsorbent Surfaces
Glossary 14 21 Gritty-Textured Surface
22 Soft-Textured Absorbent Surface
SECTION 1
23 Mixed Surface Using Acrylic Products
you can paint on anything
TECHNIQUE 24 Mixed Surface Using Paper Overlay
1 Canvas 25 Drip Resist
2 Paper and Cardboard 26 Painted Resist
3 Wood and Composite Panels 27 Drawing Resist With Oil Pastel and Crayon
4 Patterned Fabric 28 Cracked Surface
5 Silk 29 Metallic Underpainting
6 Metal
7 Glass SECTION 4
8 Objects spatial effects
30 Condensed Space
SECTION 2
31 Veiling to Create Depth
you can paint with anything
32 Translucent Color Fields
9 Dancing With Brushes 33 Layering Textures to Create Depth
10 Palette Knives 34 Contrasting Edges
11 Cheesecloth and Rags 35 Atmospheric Depth Using a Spray Bottle
12 String 36 Atmospheric Depth With Sanding
13 Sponges 37 Drybrushing
14 Brayers 38 Contrasting Color Intensities
15 Eyedroppers 39 Contrast With Values
16 Toothbrushes 40 Using Warm and Cool Hues
17 Feathers 41 Embedding Objects for 3-D Depth
18 Paint Tubes
6
ON 5
texture
TECHNIQUE
42 Products That Add Texture
43 Enhancing Your Picture With Logical Textures
44 Surprise Viewers With Contrasting Textures
45 Experimental Texture
46 Hatched-Line Texture
47 Pressing Shapes Into the Surface
48 Crackle Effects With Hide Glue
49 Fresco Effects With Crackle Paste
50 Peeling Paint With Petroleum Jelly
51 Plastic Wrap
52 Alcohol Dissolve Fluid Movement
TECHNIQUE Mixed media on panel
SECTION 6 80 Pigment Control 23" × 35" (58cm × 89cm)
transfers, collage and mixed media 81 Light But Still Bright Aleta Pippin
53 Poured Shapes 82 Changing Opaque to Transparent
54 Reusing Your Old Palettes 83 Changing Transparent to Opaque
55 Gluing Paper 84 Maintaining Color Intensity
56 Gluing Objects
SECTION 9
57 Metallic Leaf and Acrylic
ssiimmuullaattiinngg ootthheerr mmeeddiiuummss
58 Drawwing Over Acrylic
59 Stabiilliizziinngg DDrraawwiinnggss OOvveerr AAccrryylliicc 85 Simulating Watercolor
60 Sticker Mania 86 Beyond Watercolor
61 Basic Transfers 87 Making Acrylicc FFeeeell LLiikkee OOiill
62 Direct Transfers 88 Old Masters Gllazing
63 Foouunnddaattiioonn DDrraawwiinngg WWiitthh TTrraannssffeerrss 89 OOiill--lliikkee BBlleennddiinngg
90 Simmuullaattiinngg tthhee LLuster of Oil
SECTION 7 91 Faux Tempera
innovative stencilingg and line work 92 Faux Encaustic
64 Make Your Own Stencils
SECTION 10
65 Raised Stenciling
magical effects and fi nishing sheens
66 Rainbow Stenciling
67 Creating Sharp Edges 93 Holographic Effects
68 Creating Controlled, Ripped Edges 94 Faux Metallic Paints
69 Spraying 95 Real Metallic Paints
70 Integrating Water-Soluble Drawing Materials 96 Marbleized Skins
71 Line Applicators 97 Marbleized Painting Layers
72 Ruling Pens 98 Surface Finishes: Glossy, Satin or Matte
73 Scrafi to 99 Making a Print Look Like a Painting
100 Antique Pour
SECTION 8 101 Glassy Gloss Look With Poured Acrylic
customize your paint
bonus tips
74 Slower Drying
75 Faster Drying 102 Cleaning Up
76 Thickening for Texture 103 Preserving Your Artwork
77 “Brushless” and Smooth 104 Varnishing and Care
78 “Jackson Pollock” Drips
79 Staining Control Gallery 120
Index 126
The First Blush of Spring
Acrylic on linen
36" × 50" (91cm × 127cm)
Aleta Pippin
7
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Introduction
essential acrylic tips
It’s important to understand some general characteristics of acrylic paint stirring or handling. If you need to stir a batch of paint, use a palette
before starting. This will hopefully make painting easier, make the tech- knife instead of a stiff bristle brush. After stirring mediums for use in
niques you try more successful, expand the possibilities for each technique pours, let the bubbles settle out overnight.
and possibly save you time and money. • As you paint, keep your brushes in water until you can clean them well
• Acrylic can be used in combination with other mediums. If you like with soap and water. Soap removes paint from the brush more effec-
using other mediums (such as oil, gouache, pastel, or egg tempera), then tively than water. If the brush in use is left out of water too long, the
try using them on top of the acrylic techniques in this book. Avoid the paint will dry on your brush and be diffi cult to remove later. To make
reverse: using acrylic over other mediums. Oil paint, for example, can be cleaning easier, slightly dampen the brush bristles with water before
used over acrylic but not the other way around. Also avoid combining dipping them into the acrylic paint. Damp bristles keep the paint from
different wet mediums in the same wet blend. For example, watercolor gripping the bristles too tightly, making the paint easier to remove. (See
can be used to wonderful effect on top of acrylic that is already dry, but technique 102.)
blending the two when wet is less effective. • In general, mix paint with a knife. Brushes are meant to hold paint, while
• Acrylic products are compatible with each other. You can combine knives more easily release the paint. Mix a batch of paint with a knife for
any acrylic products together to create new mixtures and hybrids. For a clean, homogenized mixture. Use a brush to mix paint in a hodgepodge
instance, you can mix paints into gels and again into mediums without manner, for a painting technique called “dirty brushing.”
decreasing their stability. Keep in mind that the characteristics of one • There are two choices for thinning acrylic paint: water or acrylic medium.
particular paint or product will change when you mix it with another. Adding water will break down the acrylic binder in the paint, creating a
This can work to your advantage; for example, mixing a gloss medium thinner paint that appears like watercolor, with more of a matte fi nish.
with a matte medium will produce an excellent semigloss. However, The more water you add, the more the paint will be affected by the
some specialty products, such as Golden’s Clear Tar Gel, which makes absorbency of the painting surface. Most of the techniques in Section 3
the paint tar-like and stringy, will lose their special abilities when too focus on using over-watered acrylic, in particular techniques 19 and 20.
much of another paint or product is added. Specifi c cautionary advice Using acrylic mediums, however, will maintain the acrylic’s properties,
is mentioned with the techniques where such products appear. You can offering a rich, glossy paint.
also use acrylic products and paints in any order on your surface. Gels • Acrylic shrinks in volume while drying. As acrylic dries, the paint layer
can go on top of mediums and mediums on gels. Diluted paint works will shrink by about a third in volume. This is more noticeable when
on undiluted paint and vice-versa. Glossy can go on top of matte, then using thick pastes and gels. Generally, apply a paint layer that is a little
on satin and on glossy again. thicker than what you want at completion.
• A few acrylic products are better used alone. • Acrylic appears lighter in color when wet. The acrylic binder is naturally
1. Use acrylic gesso as a primer and not as a paint. In thick applications, white when wet, but dries clear and glossy. With acrylic paints, the color
acrylic gesso may crack. will appear lighter when wet but will go to its natural color when dry.
2. Use a varnish as a fi nal protective coat. Even though it can be used The more mediums and gels you add to a paint color, the greater the
in the middle layers of a painting, it is meant to be removable and difference between this lighter version when wet and its natural color
used as a fi nal coat. (See technique 104.) when dry.
3. Additives need to be used in correct proportions. There are only two • Acrylic is naturally glossy. Matte products such as matte mediums, matte
additives used in this book: retarder and fl ow release (see techniques gels and matte varnishes have matting agent (a fi ne white powder)
5 and 74). It is always a good idea to read product labels for correct added to them to create their characteristic appearance. This matting
use and application information. agent will slightly cloud and lighten colors underneath. The thicker the
• Acrylic is a glue. Any acrylic paint or product can function very well as a application of a matte product, the more this cloudy and lightening
glue. You can add collage elements and mixed media to acrylic while wet effect will be apparent. Techniques 31, 42 and 92 describe methods
and it will adhere. See techniques 55 and 56 for more details on gluing. that use matte products to create interesting effects. Acrylic products
• Stir gently and don’t shake. The small amount of soap which remains in labeled semigloss or satin have matting agent in them as well, just less
the acrylic products from processing may create bubbles with vigorous in proportion to a matte product.
8