Intro to Abstract Acrylic Painting

Abstract Painting is non-representational art, or art that does not visually represent something from the physical world. Instead, abstract art is color and pattern  based on whatever appeals to the artist creating the work.

In this introduction to abstract painting, workshop participants will be shown step by step how to create an abstract painting with acrylic paint. With an emphasis on abstract expressionism -- abstract painting that is informed entirely by  how the artist feels and expresses themselves -- students will be guided how to begin with an underpainting and build from there. No previous art experience needed for this workshop.

Creating abstract art can be a highly liberating experience as abstract art depends more on feel and intution than capturing a real life scene. This takes away the pressure of realism and allows the art maker total freedom to explore color, pattern and texture. 

This workshop is limited to 12 students. 

SUGGESTED SUPPLIES

• 16x20 canvas panel or studio/gallery wrapped canvas
• Regular acrylic paint, a miminum of 6 colors including Titanium White and Carbon Black (small tubes of 2 oz are fine) Budget brands or acrylic craft paint is suitable for this workshop. 
• Fluid Acrylic Paint, Titanium White (small one ounce size is fine). This is a kind of acrylic paint that comes in small bottles and is very flowy. 
• Flat bristle brush, size 12 or larger
• Round brush, size 8 or larger
• Palette knife (or old business card or gift card to use for spreading paint
• Spray water bottle
• Paper Towels
• Hair dryer (trust me on this one!)
• PENCIL
• 8x10 or larger Art paper pad for practice, such as watercolor paper or mixed-media paper. These are available in a variety of paper pads from online retailers like Amazon or CheapJoes.com as well as local art and craft stores. Canson and Strathmore are two great brands for art paper. Look for a good value in pricing as this paper will be for practice and useful for art journaling which we will briefly talk about.