In yesterday’s post I shared why I like digital painting. In one of those likes I mentioned that there is no mess. In this post I share why I like real paint even though it can be messy. It’s about the physical 3D quality.
I don’t use traditional painting medium that many artists use. I use Behr paints from the DIY store. They come in lots of colors, they are less expensive than artist acrylics and I can get them in small sample batches. I tend to go through white paint faster because I use it to prime my panels so I purchase it by the quart. I can also mix colors together to achieve another color or shade of a color. I usually work with flat paints but sometimes will get a paint sample with a satin finish. These paints can be sanded smooth or given a scratched texture. Sanding with a well used block can act as a buffer giving the flat paint a slight sheen.
I started using this type of paint when I did my first temporary Flying Objects sculpture. I used interior/exterior paint and after the sculpture sat outside in the sun, rain, and snow for over a year the paint still looked like it did when the sculpture was first installed outside.
The range of colors is so large that is is hard to choose sometimes between colors and shades. This is a small portion of my collection of 80 containers of colors.
Fresh paint is quite liquid and can get slightly thicker as time goes by. I use wooden craft sticks to stir the paint. I like to use paint that has become thicker to add texture to a painting.
The colors of the flat paints are solid and opaque. Sometimes I use brushes to apply paint but I tend to use old plastic cards to spread and smooth paint more than a brush. I will use brushes when I want to achieve visual texture and will also smooth the paint after it has been applied with a brush. If I’m now using a brush I will apply the paint to a surface with a paint stir stick as you can see in this picture where I have dribbled some paint on a card.