Learn to Paint in Acrylics with 50 More Small Paintings: Pick Up the Skills, Put on the Paint, Hang Up Your Art

147 Pages·2020·22.184 MB·English

by  Mark Daniel Nelson

Learn to Paint in Acrylics with
50 Small Paintings
More

Learn to Paint in Acrylics with
50 Small Paintings
More
Pick up the skills, put on the paint, hang up your art
MARK DANIEL NELSON
Contents
Copyright © 2020 Welcome 6 Chapter 2:
Quarto Publishing plc
Project gallery 8 Putting on the paint 34
First published in 2020 by
Quarry Books, an imprint of
Chapter 1: 1 Basic paint application: Door 36
The Quarto Group
100 Cummings Center, Suite 265-D Materials, tools, 2 Mixing tints and shades: Envelope 38
Beverly, MA 01915, USA and techniques 12 3 Opaque layering: T-shirt 40
T [phone] F [phone]
QuartoKnows.com 4 Expanding your color palette:
Acrylic paint 14 Child’s chalk drawing 42
All rights reserved. No part of this
Brushes 18 5 Mixing values of gray: Wax crayon 44
book may be reproduced in any form
without written permission of the Palettes 20 6 Getting to know your brushes:
copyright owners. All images in this Pastry with sprinkles 46
Choosing a surface 22
book have been reproduced with
the knowledge and prior consent Transferring your drawing 24 7 Cutting out a shape: Toy duck 48
of the artists concerned, and Color and value 26 8 Introduction to massing: Daisy 50
no responsibility is accepted by
producer, publisher or printer Basic design principles 28 9 Textured layering: Red barn 52
for any infringement of copyright Displaying your work 30 10 Simple composition: Tabletop still life 54
or otherwise, arising from the
11 Painting wood grain: Artist’s palette 56
contents of this publication.
12 Distressing the surface: Brick wall 58
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 13 Simple reflections in water:
Hot-air balloon 60
ISBN: 978-1-63159-851-7
eISBN: 978-1-63159-852-4 14 Rough and smooth surfaces:
Egg on toast 62
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-
15 Understanding fabric: Theater curtains 64
Publication Data is available.
16 Color contrasts: Door and padlock 66
Conceived, edited, and designed by
17 Intricate details: Butterfly 68
Quarto Publishing
an imprint of The Quarto Group
The Old Brewery
6 Blundell Street
London N7 9BH
www.quartoknows.com
QUAR: 334017
Editor & designer: Michelle Pickering
Consultant editor: Sarah Hoggett
Photographer: Mark Daniel Nelson
Editorial assistant: Charlene Fernandes
Art director: Gemma Wilson
Publisher: Samantha Warrington
Printed in Singapore
Contents
Chapter 3: Chapter 4:
Light, shadow, and form 70 Interpretive approaches 108
18 Introduction to cubes: Block of butter 72 36 Random edges: Cumulus clouds 110
19 Introduction to ellipses: Pineapple slice 74 37 Expressive brushstrokes: Banana peel 112
20 Introduction to spheres: Pincushion 76 38 Luminous light effects: City at sunset 114
21 Introduction to cones: Holiday hat 78 39 Luminous glazes: Illuminated lightbulb 116
22 Light and shade on a cube: 40 Creating clean, fresh whites: Swan 118
Multi-layered sandwich 80 41 Simplifying the subject: Flamingo 120
23 Reflective surfaces: Pawn 82 42 Dramatic contrast: Light on road 122
24 Introduction to cylinders: 43 Broken brushstrokes: Tree 124
Stack of pancakes 84
44 Gradation and depth: Misty mountains 126
25 Creating a unified color scheme:
45 Mixing colors using glazes: Lighthouse 128
Cactus 86
46 Complementary colors:
26 Multiple spheres: Toy panda 88
Lemon branch 130
27 Hatching brushstrokes: Bee 90
47 Translucency and transparency:
28 Understanding color values: Butterscotch candy 132
Paper bag puppet 92
48 Painting a backlit subject: Thistle 134
29 Shadow colors: Building block giraffe 94
49 Creating a sense of scale: Canyon vista 136
30 Combining cones and spheres:
50 Tonalism: Landscape with setting sun 138
Ice-cream cone 96
31 Complex ellipses: Button flower 98
Glossary 140
32 Multiple geometric shapes: Toy rocket 100
Index 142
33 Reflected light: Takeout carton 102
Credits 144
34 Multiple textures: Paintbrush 104
35 Complex cylinder: Pretzel 106
Welcome
It’s been several years since the initial printing
of my first book,Learn to Paint in Acrylics with
50 Small Paintings. Since then, I’ve received—
almost daily—messages in my email inbox from
readers who have praised the first book, criticized it,
asked for clarification, wondered about materials,
celebrated a return to painting after a long drought,
and asked permission to use the book for various
unexpected reasons (one reader used the book to
help rehabilitate patients following hand surgeries,
which made me very happy).
I’ve been invited, unexpectedly, to lecture
at college and high school art departments,
I’ve had friends from long ago reach out to
reconnect because either they, their friends,
their parents, or their children were working
their way through the book, one small
WELCOME 7
painting at a time. I can’t sum up in words the thrill What hasn’t changed is my ongoing love of small-
I get when I see a reader post their interpretations format paintings. Each of these exercises is designed
of my projects on social media. to be executed in under an hour and ready to share
(whether in the virtual or physical world) instantly.
Which brings me to my purpose for writing this The subjects are whimsical and intended to appeal
second volume: I felt like there were a lot of things to children, parents, grandparents, and anyone else
I wanted to expand upon and, frankly, some that interested in embarking on a fun-filled journey
needed fixing. In hopes of improving and expanding learning the difficult skill of painting in acrylics.
upon the first volume, I’ve suggested in this book My hope is that you will approach these 50 small
using a limited palette of affordable colors. I’ve also paintings with an open mind and an eager spirit—
limited the number of brushes to four, to remove one small painting at a time.
some of the confusion about paint application.
I’ve simplified the subject matter and have attempted
to create a great deal of room for reinterpretation and
combination of the projects—there’s a bee and a
thistle, for instance, and related items such as food
and toys. Most projects also offer room for easy
colour substitutions. Mark Daniel Nelson
“Great things are done by a series of small
Vincent van Gogh
things brought together.”
Project Gallery
The project gallery showcases the 50 paintings
in this book. You can work your way through the
projects progressively from first to last or look
around the gallery, select the one you would like
to paint, and then turn to the relevant page of
instructions to create your chosen piece.
Page 36 Page 38
Page 40 Page 42 Page 44 Page 46
Page 48 Page 50 Page 52 Page 54