How to Paint Backgrounds in Acrylic
Learn how to paint backgrounds in acrylic. I have three easy ideas for how to paint backgrounds in acrylic to share with you. Background acrylic painting is a great way to add some interest to your acrylic paintings. Learn how to paint backgrounds in acrylic below!
How to Paint Backgrounds in Acrylic
If you prefer to watch the video explaining how to paint backgrounds in acrylic - you can click on the video below.
Background acrylic painting is a great way to jazz up your acrylic paintings and add interest to your paintings. You can paint on canvas, canvas board or water colour paper.
When I paint my backgrounds in acrylic paint I like to use a one inch flat brush. This way I am able to paint the background faster and cover more surface area and I am able to create a smooth look if that’s what I desire for the background.
For painting backgrounds you can paint your background in whatever colour you would like. It is good to think about what the other colours you are using in the painting so you can plan your background colour accordingly. You can add multiple colours in your background and you can choose if you want your background to blend in or to stand out.
Learn about the three different background painting styles below and how to paint backgrounds in acrylic.
Click the button below to download my FREE acrylic painting guide to improve your painting skills!
Textured Background
With the textured background you can experiment with dry brushing -where there is little to no water on your brush. You can also experiment with different brushstrokes in your background painting. You can watch this video here with nine different brushstrokes to try!
Wash Background
Again, I like to use my flat one inch brush to paint this background in acrylics. You can use any colours you would like. One colour or multiple colours are fine. Start by dipping your brush in a colour you would like to use for the background then dip into a cup of water to make sure the bristles are wet. Then apply a thin coat of the watered down paint (the wash) to your surface. You can add other colours or another coat as needed.
Variant Background
This is a great background to use if you are painting a sky in a landscape. Just like a sky painting you are going to start with the darkest colour at the top of the canvas or paper and gradually add a little more light to the colour so that you have the lightest colour at the bottom of the canvas or paper. You can paint horizontally (if your doing a sky -keep the strokes in the same direction so it looks nice and smooth). You could also do your variant vertically, diagonally or in the arc -like I have done in my example in the video.
Let me know which background you like the most in the comments!
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