glazing Tips

 

Tips for Glazing in Acrylics

Hello, I was reading on the website about glazing etc. and I was wondering if you could direct me to more information about indirect painting. Currently I am considering buying some more glaze-appropriate paints and don't want to waste on unimportant colors etc. Also, I have read some various techniques and am unsure about which ones "do" which. For example I read that Leonardo worked from a dark underpainting whereas Rubens went from light to dark. I don’t know what is appropriate for me.  I think that I will pursue this method of painting more than many others so I am trying to get a good introduction and background. Thanks for any help you can offer.  Ari

Hi Ari,

That is true, da Vinci and Ruebens had very different approaches, and mediums, for painting in oils. 

You can glaze with just about any color in oils or acrylics.  The transparent colors make more transparent passages of course.  Most Manufacturers have charts or symbols on the tubes that identify the relative transparency of the pigments.  It helps to know that it is the pigment itself that imparts the specific transparency/opacity to colors and not the medium as much.  So, a transparent/opaque color will have the same properties in oils, acrylics, and water-media paints.  Remember too, that there are many, many more colors available to us modern painters than at any time in the past.  A good, glossy medium to mix with the paint is the key however. 

 

 

Hi David,

I am an amateur painter, using acrylics paints, which I love.  I have been working hard to figure out and understand how to effectively use acrylic mediums to create deep glazes.  Then I came across your paintings and saw, frankly, that you have achieved what I have been trying to capture - your paintings are
Fabulous!!!!  I am keenly interested in learning more about
Glazing, and understanding your method. 

What medium(s) do you use?  How do you "build' the paintings from the start?  This may be presumptuous of me to ask for this information and expect to just receive it.  Let me know what you think about this idea!
Thanks, Brian

Hi Brian,

I am happy to share any information that might help you on your quest.  I remember doing the same thing, the only problem I had was that all the painters I wanted to learn from had been dead for a few centuries. 

You would enjoy taking one of my workshops called ‘Mastering Acrylics.’ The FCA has one scheduled in Vancouver for September 27-28.  The Federation has many great artists among the members and most are happy to share their knowledge and skill with other painters. 

In the meantime, start by reading and studying this article:  (insert link to ‘light Rules’ article on FCA website).  It is a collection of guidelines for painting that I learned by studying the methods of the greatest painters since the Renaissance.  In my opinion it is the essential foundation for superb technique and it applies to most mediums, including acrylics.  It is the basis of my teaching and the subject of a book that I will one day get around to publishing...

For now, here are a few tips to get you started.  I have come to prefer the Golden GAC 700 medium for glazing, it is less sticky and flows better than regular gloss medium, and; I never use matte medium, and little, or no water in my glazes and veils (a glaze with white or another light opaque colour added) – and I keep my paint brush clean and dry, that is, no water in my brush.  This insures that the glazes and veils remain luminous and transparent. 

I use gel mediums of all varieties to create textured effects.  I rarely mix them with my paint, preferring to apply them first.  Once they are dry I paint in layers over top of them.  From a technical standpoint it is perfectly safe to mix them with your colors, but again, I do not like to add anything to my paint that compromises its transparency and color saturation. 

Thanks for the question, David