How to Get into Painting: realizing your Dreams

Are you wondering how to get into painting?

Painting art is a universal language that uses the senses, emotions and mind to create something beautiful. Anyone can start painting regardless of your age or experience.

This is your introduction to:

• Paint mediums
• Begin painting on a budget.
• The basics of painting art
• inspiration for painting

Art by Carol May is your go-to platform for painting, the principles of art and painting tutorials.

Enjoy the art of painting!

Paint Mediums: how to get into painting

Here in the United States the most popular painting mediums are oil paint, watercolor and acrylics. Each medium has its own characteristics and requires a slightly different approach.

• Oil paint is thicker, provides a textured appearance and has a slower drying time which allows you to work gradually.
• Watercolor is a light, delicate medium that's great for capturing the subtleties of light and color.
• Acrylics are versatile, providing the ability to paint in thin washes like watercolor or thickly like oil paint.

Amazon affiliates earn from sales with no cost to you. Learn More

oil paint

Oil paints were the classic medium of the old masters. They can be painted smooth or with lots of texture for added interest. 

Painting with oils is fun!

When oil paintings are well cared for, they can last for centuries.

Oil paint is made by mixing pigment colors with linseed oil that make it slow drying.

This is an asset because it gives plenty of time to change things before the paint dries.

Many people think oil painting is difficult. However, myself and all my family learned how to paint with oil paint.

If you have a good teacher, you can begin painting with any medium.

How long do oil paintings take to dry? Temperature and humidity affect the drying time. Thin oil paint can dry to touch in 2-12 days.

We may use various mediums to speed the drying time such as Liquin or Galkyd. However, thick layers of oil paint may take up to 6 months to dry thoroughly.

Oils are normally painted on a canvas. Choose either traditional stretched canvas or gallery wrap canvas that is stapled on the back, so the finished painting does not require a frame.

Canvas boards are great for learning to paint.

Oil paints are thinned and cleaned-up with a solvent. Odorless mineral spirits Gamsol is considered the best for painting indoors.

Alkyd artwork looks identical to oil paintings.

alkyd paint

Alkyds are a relatively modern paint. Their paint pigments are mixed with alkyd resin. They dry overnight or at the most within 24 hours.

They provide time for blending the strokes and colors, but they dry fast enough to paint layers in a short amount of time.

Finished alkyd paintings look exactly like an oil painting. They use the same brushes, solvents, painting supports and techniques as oil paint.

Alkyds have been my go-to paint since the 1980s. My mom and I both switched to them because of their short drying time.

"ad" Winsor & Newton Griffin Alkyd 6 piece set is a great way to try alkyds.

watercolor

Watercolors are an easy, portable medium that many of the old masters used for painting on location. A little tin of colors, some water, a brush and paper and off you go to paint anywhere you desire.

Many of the colors are transparent and let the white of the paper show thru. It gives it a light, luminous appearance. As the name implies, the paint is thinned and cleaned up with water.

It is somewhat unpredictable in the way it moves and blends with other colors on the paper. But that's the joy of using watercolor. The key is learning how much water to use.

Finished watercolor paintings on paper are framed with a mat under glass.

Flowers are a good subject for watercolor paintings.

Watercolor paint come in two forms.

Tube watercolors have glycerin and other additives that keep the paint flexible in the tube. They produce more brilliant colors because we don't have to add so much water to use them.

Pan watercolors are a dry cube placed in a pan. They are portable and are favored for painting on location.

Watercolor is often painted on "ad" 140# watercolor paper. Watercolor paintings on paper need to be matted and framed under glass for protection.

Hummer on watercolor canvas

We can also paint watercolor on canvas. Make sure the label says it can be used for watercolor.

Before painting, brush on a good amount of water to the entire face of the canvas to break the surface tension. Let the water soak in before you start painting. This will prevent the paint from beading up or sliding around.

After the paint is thoroughly dry spray the painting with a protective UV resistant spray. The painting may then be framed without a glass covering.

Aquabord is a rigid archival watercolor support made by Ampersand. Aquabord is textured like cold pressed watercolor paper.

The colors on Aquabord are more brilliant than many watercolors done on paper. It's easier to correct mistakes, than on paper.

The dry painting is sprayed with fixative and displayed without a mat or glass.

Acrylics

Acrylics are often chosen by beginners. It thins and cleans-up with water.

They dry very fast, so additional layers may be painted quickly. The down-side is they dry so fast that blending and transitioning the colors is quite a trick.

The colors are bright and durable. They dry to a flat finish, so the finished paintings are often varnished. They are economical, widely available, and considered a good way how to get into painting.

They may be painted on various surfaces like rocks or wood. I painted fruit and flowers on my kitchen cabinet doors and then varnished over the finished paintings for protection.

Regardless of the medium you choose, learning how to paint requires practice and patience. Let your art journey be guided by your love of the process and not just the end result.

As your artistic confidence grows, you can explore other painting mediums.

begin painting on a budget

Equip yourself with the supplies for your art journey. We can spend a lot of money at the art store, but what do we really need? How can we get into painting without spending a bundle?

Basically, we need: paint, brushes, a palette, something to paint on and clean-up materials.

The most expensive products are not always necessary. The best approach is to stick to the basics and then slowly build your collection as you progress.

The basics of painting art

All art paintings use the same basics: values, color, composition and a focal point.

They are the foundation of successful paintings. These basics are indispensable to the painting artist.

Take the time to learn and use them in all your artwork. You'll be glad you did.

Easy Composition

The rule of thirds makes easy compositions.

Artists Color Wheel

The artist color wheel is the basis for mixing colors.

Values in Painting

Contrasting values are the backbone of good paintings.

Create a Focal Point

Create a focal point to draw people into your paintings.

inspiration: how to get into painting

Now comes the fun part, deciding what you want to paint!

Paint what inspires you.

Begin painting with subjects that excite you, intrigue you, or calm you.

Paintings are personal. They are like a part of ourselves. The joy we find in painting will inevitably reflect in our artwork. That's the beauty of learning how to get into painting.

The best place to start painting is with the things around us. When we see something often, we have a better idea of its form and colors.

It's a good idea to start simple. A piece of fruit or a simple landscape scene would make a good start. As you progress and build confidence, then start painting more complex subjects. You may want more painting ideas for beginners.