Paint Lab

52 Exercises inspired by Artists, Materials, Time, Place, and Method

Deborah Forman

• Publisher: Quarry Books
• Year: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781610589475
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Art Techniques

Experiment with painting materials and techniques and expand your skills with this collection of fifty-two fun exercises. Paint Lab provides readers with unique and experimental techniques and ideas in painting. The book is organized into fifty-two labs which may, but don't need to, be explored on a weekly basis and can be accessed in any order. Paint Lab is useful for both beginning and more-experienced artists who are seeking inspiration and discovery. One section of exercises is inspired by fine artists including Paul Klee, Helen Frankenthaler, and Gerhard Richter. Several Labs explore the use of unique media such as combining molding paste with stencils, painting on burlap, using image transfers, sgraffito, and oil sticks. Exercises based on time and place delve into concepts such as tempo, linear rhythms, quick gestures, and both real and imagined locations. The book also showcases the inspiring work of several contemporary painters. Paint Lab provides an exciting framework in which to learn and gain expertise through experimentation and play. There is no right or wrong result, yet you will find new forms of expression in your work and gain confidence in your skills. Praise for Paint Lab "Artist and art instructor Forman offers readers 52 exercises designed to open up their painterly thinking and introduce them to a broader range of materials and techniques. Readers can explore painting by following step-by-step exercises in chapters on time, place, unusual materials, and color. Each lab is based upon a finished piece by either a working contemporary artist or by a 20th-century master such as Frida Kahlo, Paul Klee, or Helen Frankenthaler. Throughout, Forman emphasizes the value of play in creative endeavors. VERDICT Beginners and more experienced artists alike will benefit from this guide." — Library Journal

UNIT 1

Getting Started

IN THIS BOOK you will find a wide array of projects and exploration of materials. Many of the projects are idea based; therefore, your preference for paints and materials can easily be plugged into the lab. The labs are merely structures to define and enhance your space to play and experiment. If you find yourself missing a specific material, substitute something else! Enjoy the process. And don’t worry about the outcome. This chapter reviews some of the basic materials you will be using.

Work Area

You can work anywhere that is comfortable for you. This can be on a tabletop or upright at an easel. Lighting is important, especially for perceiving color, so make sure you have a good amount of natural light, or install extra lighting as needed. Clip lamps are very helpful and can be purchased at the hardware store.

Substrates

Many of the exercises explore innovative surfaces to work upon, but basic supports for this book include prestretched canvas in a variety of sizes. Canvas boards are also great supports. Paper is also a wonderful surface to work on, and I recommend watercolor papers or any high-cotton-content “rag” paper. These come in a variety of weights, from 180 lb to thicker. Explore the paper department in your local art store—it’s fun! There are several online specialty art retailers, many of which are staffed with very knowledgeable personnel who can guide you in making selections.

Basic Materials

Here is a list of general supplies to get you started:

• 18" × 24" (45.7 × 61 cm) heavyweight drawing pad

• 180 lb inexpensive watercolor paper sheets

• 9" × 12" (23 × 30.5 cm) sketchbook

• black construction paper

• thin acetate sheets

• prestretched and primed canvases (various sizes) or canvas boards

• 2b and hb pencils

• white plastic eraser

• glue sticks

• pad of palette paper (small scale)

• 2 metal palette knives

• scissors

• 18" (45.7 cm) ruler

• craft knife with blades #1 and #11

• rubber-tipped stylus

Paints

Water-based paints are generally easier to manage and generally better for your health. Begin with student-grade gouache, watercolor, and acrylic paints. Gouache offers a richness of colored pigment. Consider using it for many of the color theory exercises in the final unit of the book. Purchase acrylics in medium-size tubes. Golden’s Fluid acrylics are a wonderful choice offering the same pigment strength as the Heavy Body acrylics in a pourable, low-viscosity formula. Gouache, oil, and watercolor come in all of the listed pigments and can be used for most of the projects in this book.

Basic Pigment Colors

• cadmium red med hue (spectrum red)

• quinacridone red

• alizarin red hue

• cadmium yellow light hue

• yellow ochre

• cadmium yellow deep hue

• ultramarine blue

• cerulean blue hue

• pthalo blue

• middle permanent green

• cadmium orange hue

• dioxazine violet

• titanium white (2 tubes)

• ivory black or mars black

• acrylic fluid gloss medium

• acrylic heavy gel medium

Mediums

Supplement your acrylic paint with a variety of mediums such as glazing medium, and a gel medium to create texture and body. Adding these mediums is the secret to creating rich luster in acrylic paint. Mediums can extend your paint. They can change the consistency making your paint thinner, thicker, harder, or softer. They can make the paint more translucent or more matte. A great site to learn more about acrylic paint is www.goldenpaints.com.

Brushes

Brushes for water-based paint tend to be soft, to aid in the absorption of water and to create flow in the strokes. Start with white soft nylon brushes in a variety of sizes such as wide flats, rounds, and filberts so that you have an expansive choice of paint application available to you, from broad washes to fine line work. A good way to test the quality of a brush is to give a little tug on the bristles; if many come out, don’t get the brush. These hairs will then be in your paint! Clean your brushes in warm sudsy water with a mild baby shampoo to maintain their longevity.

Recommended Brush Sizes and Types

• 1/2" (1.3 cm), 1" (2.5 cm), and 2" (5 cm) flat

• wide hake

• very fine, medium-size, and large-size rounds

Cleanup

If you don’t want a paint covered table, be sure to cover your work surface. A layer of newspaper or wax paper can be taped to your table and reused and disposed of when your finished. Rest your brushes in a jar of water while you’re working, then wash them thoroughly when you are finished and store them with the bristles facing up. Acrylic paint will wash out of fabric while it’s still wet, but once it’s dry, it’s fairly permanent. Consider an apron or designate suitable clothing for “painting.” Keep one wet and one dry rag handy for wiping spills or even for removing paint from your substrate.

UNIT 2

WHO: Inspired by Artists

WHEN I WAS IN SIXTH GRADE our art teacher, Mrs. St. Florian, had us create a project inspired by Picasso’s painting The Three Musicians. The assignment was to re-create the painting, and each student was given a piece of it to work from. Upon receiving my fractional square, I was amazed at the dots and dashes that Picasso used to enliven the surface, and his mastery of gray tones was evident even in my small section. This assignment made a huge impact on me at the age of ten, and it no doubt inspired and validated my journey as an abstract artist. Here, a known master of art was using a language of liberated, gestural mark making with basic mixt...