Impasto is the most interesting thing in blogs. Impasto technique: relief painting

With the advent of acrylic paints, the world saw new reality. Acrylic quickly gained popularity in the most different areas: painting, interior design, beauty. They paint nails with acrylic and paint pictures. What is good about this polymer material?

Acrylic paints are water-based and do not require any special thinners. The paints do not turn yellow and do not cause allergies. They simultaneously have the properties of watercolor and oil. Check out the amazing paintings of Justin Geoffrey, who uses acrylic to create three-dimensional paintings!

Like any other technique, acrylic has its own characteristics.

When working with acrylic you can use various techniques and successfully combine them in one picture. In general, a picture painted with acrylic paints can be indistinguishable from watercolor or oil. It also happens that certain picture has its own unique and inimitable color rendition, which is almost impossible to replicate with other techniques.

Learning to paint with acrylic is not difficult, especially if you are already familiar with oil or watercolor. But you need to keep in mind that acrylic dries very quickly. For example, while you are enthusiastically waving your brush, you may be “disappointed” in the palette in the form of dried paints. However, already while “swinging” the brush you will see how the paint is already drying. Therefore, for some this is a clear advantage over other paints, but for others it is a complete inconvenience. But you just need to act correctly. So.

What is the best way to organize a workplace for an artist?

Well, everyone understands that a well-organized place has a positive effect on the creative process. Convenient workplace allows you not only to work comfortably, but also to save money. To organize your workplace, we recommend following simple rules that will help you concentrate well on work:

• Diffused and even lighting
• the most optimal for work;
• Make sure that the lighting of the canvas plane and the model does not change sharply during the day;
• The light on the canvas should fall from the left;
• Do not allow sharp differences in lighting between nature and the canvas;
• Artificial light should not blind the artist.

Important!
Keep in mind that when painting with artificial lighting, shades of paint on canvas may change due to exposure to incandescent lamps.

What is needed for painting?

You will need: A canvas stretcher, a tablet or an easel, any surface for painting, masking tape, a spray bottle, a set of acrylic paints (main range 6-8 colors), art brushes, water, a moistened palette, acrylic thinner and a palette knife.

Canvases. The good news is that for acrylic painting You can use any surface, but no matter what you choose, it needs to be primed, except for white watercolor paper.
To make the surface white, use acrylic emulsion. You can also use dark acrylic paint, which can give the work the desired contrast.

Brushes. As you know, there are natural and synthetic brushes. This is of course individual, but for convenience, it all depends on how diluted the acrylic is:
If the paints are diluted, I recommend brushes made of kolinsky, oxhair, sable or synthetic.
If the paint is thick (impasto technique), use hard brushes made of sable, bristles, or combined with synthetic fiber. It is appropriate to use a palette knife.
Squirrel suitable for filling large surfaces.

Advice: Don't use hot water- acrylic from it can harden at the base of the hair tuft of the brush.

You can use sponges to apply strokes and create textures, as is done in watercolor painting.

Basic principles of acrylic painting

So, we must definitely take into account that acrylic dries quickly, so there is no time for “fussing around”. The best and easiest way to start your painting with diluted acrylic is with the “wet on” technique. Only a sheet of watercolor paper must first be moistened with warm water and stretched on the tablet, securing the wet edges with masking tape.

You can also paint with diluted acrylic paints on a dry base, but for this it is still better to moisten it. It will be much more convenient for you to paint if you take two brushes, the first to actually apply the paint, and the second (clean or wet) to remove excess, smooth out contours, correct defects and soften color transitions.

In painting, you can add more depth, shine and expressiveness if you paint a picture using the layer-by-layer glaze method. It consists in the fact that first you need to apply thick paints as an underpainting. Afterwards you can paint already diluted, but it is very important to wait until each layer has completely dried.

In acrylic painting you can also use the impasto technique, as if working in oil. Fortunately, this allows for the remarkable hiding power and thickness of the paints in an undiluted state.
You can do the underpainting with acrylic and complete the painting with oil.

Important nuances

1. When working with acrylic in a pasty manner, it happens that the result does not justify itself, such as the effect of oil, even if the acrylic is glossy.
2. Theoretically, you can rewrite over dried layers many times, but with some paints there are problems, so you have to scrape the paint down to the base.
3. There are acrylic paints that are not highly transparent. Therefore, with such paints the glaze technique may be ineffective.
4. In general, you need to develop individual techniques through trial and error, then acrylic will “sparkle” in your hands!

When you need to smoothly mix several colors on a canvas, the quick drying of acrylic often gets in the way, so there are a few tricky things that will increase its drying time:

1. Soak your brushes in water overnight. This will allow you not to waste precious moisture from the paint when dry brushes quickly suck it up;
2. Before applying paint to the canvas, spray it with water using a spray bottle (the main thing is not to overdo it!);
3. Spray the canvas a little and often while working;
4. Use special additives that slow down the drying of acrylic paints (oils).

The palette also needs moisture! But for this moment there is one trick:

Use a special palette with moistened foam rubber placed at the bottom.

You can make such a palette yourself. To do this, select any flat container with a lid, in which place a layer of wet wipes or toilet paper(moistened). Make sure that there is not too much water; the napkins or paper should not become limp. Level the surface and cover it with a sheet of thick and smooth tracing paper. It will become an incomparable palette for your colors.

In conclusion: how to make a palette

Finally, it would be worth highlighting one convenient and profitable way, for which you only need a thick sheet of plastic or cardboard (A4). Place a clean transparent file on it, and it can be used as a palette. A dirty file is simply thrown away, and the dense base can serve for a very long time. Agree - cheap and cheerful!

Impasto in painting means applying a thick textured layer of paint.

This technique is widely represented in Van Gogh's paintings. The artist often applied paint in thick strokes using his finger. The impasto strokes turn out to be very thick, you can almost touch them, they are so embossed. That is why the technique got its name, translated from Italian as “dough”.

Creating texture using oil paint using the impasto technique allows, first of all, to enhance the color effect of the painting. Bold, energetic brushstrokes dictate the work in a fast and expressive manner, allowing for the effectiveness of the work.

Impasto technique

Impasto is a technique that allows you to quickly and easily make a painting incredibly impressive. This is a technique when an uneven textured surface, due to a very thick and bold application of paint.

Works famous Wang Goga have a rich texture thanks to this technique. In such works, texture is not inferior in importance to such important components as composition, color and plot.

Acrylic paints are best suited for impasto, as they are flexible and can be squeezed directly onto the canvas. An excessively thick layer may crumble when dry. To avoid this, you should be patient and apply the paint in several layers.

Also suitable for impasto oil paints. However, unlike acrylic ones, they take a long time to dry, and this creates difficulties in working on the painting. Oil is also applied in layers, but since it takes time to dry, the work takes a lot of time and the result will not be enjoyed soon.

Brushes and palette knives can be used as impasto tools. Depending on their choice, different strokes are obtained. The paint must be applied with confidence. When working with a round brush, you can get speckled strokes if you quickly touch the canvas with the tip. Long curls are obtained by vigorously moving your entire hand. Obviously, in order to master these techniques, training is needed.

A palette knife is great for getting large, thick, bright spots of paint on a painting. With its help, you can achieve a very impressive texture by applying and smearing paint, leaving all kinds of imprints on it and drawing lines with the edge of the blade. Working with a palette knife is somewhat reminiscent of spreading butter on bread. It is necessary to scoop up the paint and distribute it, keeping the surface of the tool parallel to the canvas.

In painting

It is created by applying a thick layer of paint from a tube or diluted with a small amount of thinner using rough strokes with a brush or palette knife. This technique achieves greater relief of the picture, enhancing the light effect and texture. As a rule, it is used at the final stage of writing a work.

Strokes of thick paint may be different types: long and dotted, ridges, lines of different widths. By preserving traces of a brush or palette knife, these forms acquire expressiveness.

With the help of impasto, attention is drawn to the relief of the painting, as the strokes protrude above the surface of the canvas and a three-dimensional effect is created.

Paintings painted using the impasto technique are distinguished by their dynamics and expression.

One of famous artists who used the impasto technique - Vincent Van Gogh, who applied paint in a thick layer and then smeared it with his fingers.

In enameling

One of the methods of jewelry enameling is in the form of layer-by-layer application of fine-grained enamel directly onto a metal surface, thereby forming a three-dimensional relief.

In pottery art

Impasto was used as a term to designate, not entirely correctly, a variety of Italian ceramics made from poorly washed clay, fired to a brown, brown or black color. In the tradition of Villanovian pottery, impasto was decorated with incised lines and dots. They were made both by hand and on a potter's wheel.

Notes

Literature

• Demchenko, V. I. Technology of using artistic expressive means and techniques in oil painting by modern masters / V. I. Demchenko, G. A. Selikhova // Collection: Materials of the 65th scientific-practical conference teachers and students in 3 parts of Blagoveshchensk State Pedagogical University. - Blagoveshchensk State Pedagogical University, 2015. - pp. 10-14.
• Dichenko, E. Vincent Van Gogh. The artist in 100 paintings / rep. ed. M. Tereshina. - Moscow: Eksmo, 2015. -

IN fine arts The Italian word impasto (dough or paste) refers to a technique using undiluted paint that is applied thickly to the canvas. Initially, the method was used to mask defects or certain fragments of a painting - artists mixed pigments directly on the canvas to obtain the desired color or effect.

This technique can add a three-dimensional, almost sculptural quality or create unique textures. The technique uses thickened opaque layers - oil, acrylic, gouache and tempera. Thick brush strokes created relief surfaces on which traces of a brush or spatula are still clearly visible. Some artists applied the method to specific elements of the painting, others, like Vincent Van Gogh, executed entire canvases in impasto.

Properties of oil pastels

Features of the technology

The use of impasto evolved into a true exploration by artists of the properties of oil pigment, the standard medium in Western painting during the Renaissance. Oil paintings dry slowly, allowing artists to apply it in thick strokes or in multiple layers. To create particularly expressive effects, paint is applied with a palette knife instead of a brush.

• Unlike wet-on-wet mixing, the impasto technique actually creates a physical sense of volume in expressive, abstract works. To make strokes denser, artists sometimes add wax or other substances.
• Baroque painters, who practically pioneered the technique, mixed paints with varnish or zinc white for rough textures, combined with other techniques to create a wide range of textures and effects in a single work.
• The Impressionists, who prided themselves on spontaneous plein air works, took a completely different approach. Unlike more early artists, the Impressionists purchased ready-made mixtures and used paints straight from the tube. Thick, bright works oil preserves brush marks.
• Artists of the Post-Impressionist Expressionist era also used thick layers similar to the Impressionists, a practice continued by the Abstract Expressionists throughout the last century.

Sfumato painting technique

3D effect

Impasto creates a richly textured, three-dimensional surface that holds light on canvases or creates tiny areas of shadow, enhancing the perception of the painting. The impasto effect in a painting serves several purposes:

• adds surface relief, lighting, gives a sculptural quality to painting and accentuates forms;
• used to create areas of visual interest.

Early Baroque artists Rembrandt and Velázquez used impasto in part, for complex textures such as lace, hair, wrinkled skin or the effect of carved stone without copying precise details, folds of clothing, the shine of jewelry, and to enhance atmospheric effects.

Visual illusion

Impressionists and Expressionists used thick layers to create visual illusions, simulating broken texture, volume, and intense light. Expressionists used technology to convey feelings and emotions. Claude Monet used an architectural approach to impasto.

Painting technique A la prima

The impressionists used two methods when working in pastels.

• The first is based on the use of fixatives and adding the fixative by spraying or brushing. Edgar Degas worked layer by layer using this technique.
• The second method is based on the development of pastel acrylic bases that are able to hold texture on the canvas.

Texturing

Modern acrylic pastel primers are heavy enough to keep the thick layer flexible without cracking or peeling. This allows you to experiment with pastels and get a variety of textures. To highlight the textural properties of paint, early artists tried to eliminate brushstrokes, but times have changed and today many artists make the most of the properties of visible brushstrokes.

The oil is most suitable for the paste method due to its viscosity, density and slow drying, but is used in the paste technique acrylic paint or gouache. Tempera has too fine a texture, so the impasto technique is used with fillers.

Northern Renaissance painting

How to apply paint

Paint application methods:

• Paint can be applied with a brush or palette knife, used straight from the tube, or added fillers;
• Dense layers of pigment are left to dry, but slowly to avoid wrinkling or cracking;
• An overly oily medium is difficult for texturing and brushstrokes;
• A flat brush or synthetic brushes are ideal for impasto work;
• For viscosity, pigments are supplemented with sand, sawdust to create volume and texture;
• After the impasto has dried, you can protect the work with a thin film of glaze to prevent cracking.

Using oil-thick paints, you can create a wide variety of attractive textures.

Impasto is the application of paint in a thick layer using a palette knife or brush. In this case, the paint should be thick, like oil, with minimum quantity pinene or without it at all. Moreover, some artists mix paints with special thickening additives. Thus, the impasto technique allows you to maximize the rich textural capabilities of oil paints.
Impasto draws attention to the relief of the painting. Thick paint literally rises above the surface of the canvas, which is why the painting can no longer be called two-dimensional. Works written using the impasto technique are distinguished by incredible energy.
Thick paint can be given different shapes: apply it with long and dotted strokes, create ridges and draw all kinds of lines of different widths. A real wealth of relief effects opens up before you, which can radically change your painting.
Since the paint retains brush (or palette knife) marks, they also become expressive means. Artists know that one successful brushstroke often gives a painting a charming ease, and they like to use this property of impasto.

Impasto is often used in technology alla prima. In addition, you can paint a picture with thin layers of paint, and finally apply a thick relief layer. Some canvases are painted entirely with impasto, while on others this technique is used only on separate areas. General principle: dark to light or light over dark.

Painting palette knives (with curved handles) produce broad strokes, unlike brushes, which are more suitable for small surfaces. Depending on the angle at which you hold the tool - be it a palette knife or a brush - and what parts of it you work with, the results will be different. Experiment with brushes and palette knives to see what kind of reliefs you can create with them.
There are palette knives different sizes and shapes, and therefore the strokes applied by them, differ. As with a brush, a slight movement of the wrist causes the palette knife to leave a thin mark. And as a result of a wide wave of the hand, a large characteristic stroke usually appears.
Most palette knives are made of metal, but you may also like plastic ones - they are more flexible. These tools are suitable for quickly painting large surfaces. The combination of a brush and a palette knife allows you to paint with a variety of strokes.