Today I journey out to Katy once again for my beginners' painting class. It has really been a joy conducting this class for the last 3 1/2 years. I've met some very interesting people. I love to paint, especially with others.
At first, I didn't like acrylic paint. I was an art snob. I have been painting in oils all my life and absolutely love them. Acrylics always seemed to be for amateurs, at least in my mind's eye. I know some wonderful artists who only paint in acrylics but I never thought it was for me. Now, after using acrylics for this period of time, I'm beginning to love them.
One of the biggest differences is the drying time. This can be a positive and a negative. The positive part of it is that generally, acrylics dry completely within twenty four hours but the down side to this is that once they are out of the tube, you better use them fast. You can't save left over paint like oils. Once on the palette, oil paint can be used over and over again. Not so with acrylics. You better have a plan before squeezing the tube.
Another pro for acrylics is the easy clean-up. No chemicals needed, only soap and water. I used a paper plate as a palette and just throw it away when finished.
Something else that I have noticed about acrylics is that I don't like to mix them with water. I find that the molecules shrink as they dry and give the appearance of the canvas peeking through. It really makes the paint look weak. Acrylic mediums are lovely. You can make textures and glazes easily by using different mediums, and there are many to experiment with.
If you want to learn to paint, acrylics is a great place to start.
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