MASTERCLASS
A
s a teenager, I began painting
in oils and got used to unhurried
blending. Fifteen years ago, however,
I switched to painting in fast-drying acrylics
and had to formulate new ways to tackle
subtle gradations and colour mixing. In this
step-by-step masterclass, I want to show you
several of the techniques I use to overcome
the frustrations of fast-drying acrylics and
employ their attributes to my advantage.
Instead of using retarders or open acrylics,
I prefer to work with a minimum of mediums
to dilute the acrylics to a soft, almost fluid
consistency. I don’t blend colours but prefer
to use pure or premixed colours right out of
the tube and layer them in translucent or
transparent glazes to create optical mixes
- for example, I might use a vivid red and
then tone it down with a brown glaze.
I keep a small spray bottle of water mixed
with Flow Improver next to my palette, using
that and a bit of Gloss Medium to dilute the
acrylic to a runny, transparent consistency
that spreads easily. Diluting the acrylics with
only water will weaken the integrity of the
paint surface. The Gloss Medium is an
acrylic polymer (basically acrylic paint
without colour), however, so it holds the
pigments better. It looks milky when wet
but dries completely clear.
The transparency of the paint allows light
to filter through each layer, making the end
result richer, deeper and more intense.
This is a deliberate process of building the
painting slowly and adjusting it with each
subsequent layer – a push and pull that
allows me to change colour and value
without haste, knowing I can continue to
fine-tune things as many times as needed.
Lorena’s latest book, Complete Guide to
Acrylics, is published by Search Press.
http://www.art-lorena.comLorena’s materials
•Brushes
Winsor & Newton Series 101 round brushes,
sizes 000 and 1; Daler-Rowney System 3 SY67
filbert brush, size 4; Creative Mark Polar Flo
Wash-Mate 1.5” flat brush
•Paints
Bone Black, Cobalt Blue, Viridian Green, Van
Dyke Brown and Diarylide Yellow, all Golden
Acrylics; Brillant Blue, Burnt Sienna, Burnt
Umber, Payne’s Gray, Unbleached Titanium,
Neutral Gray 5 and Quinacridone Magenta, all
Liquitex Acrylics; Greyish Blue, Cadmium Yellow
Dark and Quinacridone Rose, all Amsterdam
Acrylics; Pale Terracotta and Titanium White,
both Winsor & Newton Galeria Acrylics
•Mediums
Galeria Gloss Medium, Flow Improver and Satin
UV Varnish, all Winsor & Newton
•Wooden panel, 20x20cm
•White acrylic gesso
•Graphite paper and pencil- Darken your tones
More colours were added, including Cobalt
Blue and Greyish Blue to some of the leaves
and petals. I applied Bone Black with the size
000 brush to some of the patterns and to
delineate the shapes in the centre of the
plate. Highly-dilute Bone Black was also
applied to the darkest areas of the gold rim
and handle of the jug to start creating
three-dimensionality.- Colour by numbers
Using a round size 1 brush, I filled in the
shapes one by one with translucent colours.
This phase reminds me of my childhood
colouring books. Burnt Sienna was used
for the little twig on the plate, Viridian
Green for the leaves, and Venetian Rose,
Pale Terracotta, Cadmium Yellow Dark, and
Quinacridone Rose for several of the flower
petals. Unbleached Titanium was brushed
lightly over the centre of the plate.
Instead of covering the surface solidly,
I prefer to add thin layers one at a time – as
many as it takes to reach a flat, even finish.- Trace your image
After sketching out my composition,
I diluted a bit of gesso with water to a milky
consistency, then applied it swiftly over the
pencil lines using the 1.5” flat brush. This not
only fixes the graphite, but also lightens the
drawing so the lines are less stark.
I began to build the background colour
solidly using Diarylide Yellow and the filbert
size 4 brush. Once dry, I added Titanium
White to one side and used drybrush strokes
(soft scrubs with minimal paint) to achieve a
smooth gradation into the Diarylide Yellow.
Top tip
While acrylics are still
wet, clean up smudgy
edges with the help of
a slightly moist
cotton bud