Painting (No PS, please)

[japangreg]

Hey, all.

My gf was kind enough to buy me an easel and paint set a while ago (w/watercolors, oils and acrylics) which I have set up in our living room.

Since then, the blank canvas has started to taunt me like the tell-tale heart.

I'm the 'measure-twice, cut-once' type - that means I spend months thinking about what to paint and deathly afraid to actually pick up abrush and start out. I've never actually real-world painted before (done some in PS and other digital formats) and I'm not sure if I know what I'd be doing...

Anyone in here paint in the tradtional manner? Any advice for working with acrylics (not going to touch the oils until I get some astringent) and for getting over the fear of a blank canvas?

[jAQUAN]

acrylics cover themselves very well. Work dark to light. paint the whole shape of something, then paint over it with detail.

I tend to sketch stuff out in colored pencil before taking to the canvas. Don't over-value the canvas, if your painting sucks, it sucks. Just move on.

[alty29]

Just do it, you can't learn without trying. Granted, is sucks messing up because you have to incorporate it into your painting somehow, and if you can't it is a waste....I suppose that may have only put more pressure on you.

[TallGuyLittleCar]

just do it!. Canvases are cheap and really just doing it is the best way to experiment. Work with the acrylics while they are still wet or wait till it dries. you are just going to have to play around. Only advice is be careful of going dark once you add a dark color it is hard to take that back.

Alot of schools up there offer drawing classes or just open drawing times on saturdays. Figure studies is the best way to train your eye in my opinion. Just find something that will sit still for a hour and throw down some pigment.

[japangreg]

Cool - thanks, guys.

I was thinking of grabbing an old photo from my collection and trying to work from that (TGLC, I can do without staring at old, nakkid people ). Can you actually sketch with a light pencil on canvis before painting, or will it show through?

[Ask The Geezer]

Since then, the blank canvas has started to taunt me like the tell-tale heart.

I wondered where you got to.

Maybe buy a brush that looks like a mouse? Or drill a hole in an old one and stick the brush handle in it.

[robbmcaulay]

There's no way in hell a pencil it showing up through acrylics, you need to lay it on thick to get a nice texture.

I like to put it on so thick you could hold a lamp behind it and not see it

You might also want to think about starting small to learn, canvas can be expensive.

Have fun, even if it's crap and you had fun, it's still art I feel. Nothing annoys me more that people moaning about art, if you ain't having fun, you ain't doing it right.

[TallGuyLittleCar]

(TGLC, I can do without staring at old, nakkid people .

they throw in some strippers for variety.

Can you actually sketch with a light pencil on canvis before painting, or will it show through?

yes, but you really shouldn't.

[stevietat]

couple tips for painting (some not really acrylic specific)

ALWAYS, always, always, work background to foreground. Its easier to paint over stuff than it is to paint a bunch of detailed objects in the foreground and then try to paint in your background afterwards.

Try if possible to paint in natural light.

For acrylics, don't be afraid to keep adding water to the paint on your palette to make it runnier. They also dry out much faster, so I personally like to work with acrylics by building tones and values up as layers, rathern than trying to blend everything perfectly.

Oils are opposite, you can leave ur painting for a day and come back and it will still be nice wet. To speed up the drying time use turpentine for your thinner. If you want to keep it wet even longer, use linseed oil (that also gives you final piece the sort of nice varnish/sheen you see in old classic paintings. Also better in terms of fumes!)

Now while you can get fancy palettes and things like that, IMO the best palette is to tear a page from any old magazine and use that, because when you are done for the day, you just throw it out...(rather than scraping dry paint off for 10 minutes). Oils are different, because they'll stay wet so I might use an actual piece of plastic for them. Also, try not to leave your brushes in your water container because they'll end up becoming warped (especially on smaller ones).

Oh ya, pencil lines are totally fine. You can always erase them. What I like to do is put down all my background colouring and then put the actual drawing with pencil in. (otherwise you end up just painting over ur sketches when you do the backgrounds)

[alty29]

I prefer an old white t-shirt for a palette, I recommend that you try it.

[indivision]

as others have mentioned, draw, even sketch on the canvas.

it can help to have a plan before starting but great painting can happen without a plan having existed as well. unlike programming, a solid plan isnt really essential with painting. just start. paint your foot.

[jAQUAN]

paint your foot.

thats the best advice yet.

[Markp.com]

I'm sure you'll think of something...

[clicky2]

Why not pick up a canvas pad to practice on first. They cost anywere between 15-20 bucks for 10 sheets of 16x20.

[robbmcaulay]

I'm sure you'll think of something...

I've seen that one... he painted the whole image with 8 sweeps of that brush

[admedia]

Awwww, Bob Ross.... God rest his soul.

"Happy trees! paint some more happy little trees over there..."

that dude would make a killer avatar.

[random25]

Dont forget the happy little clouds.

[ViRGo_RK]

And the happy little trees. Put the happy little bush in the bottom corner.

[Jujumon]

paint portrait of ur gf.

[ViRGo_RK]

Maaaybe not the best project to tackle first. You might want some practice before then, as no doubt you want that to turn out well.