#art materials

11 articles tagged with "art materials"

Color Mixing Basics: How to Get the Color You Actually Want
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Color Mixing Basics: How to Get the Color You Actually Want

Learn how paint colors actually mix, why subtractive color differs from light, and how to avoid muddy mixtures. Practical color mixing guidance using a limited palette, with insights from Titian, Rembrandt, and the Impressionists.

Monotype Printing: The Printmaking Technique That Only Works Once
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Monotype Printing: The Printmaking Technique That Only Works Once

Learn how monotype printing creates unique, one-of-a-kind prints through additive and reductive techniques. Discover how Degas used monotype to create some of his most experimental work and how to try it yourself.

Mixed Media Art: How to Combine Materials Without It Looking Messy
Art Techniques
·8 min read

Mixed Media Art: How to Combine Materials Without It Looking Messy

Learn how to combine painting, drawing, collage, and other materials into unified mixed media artwork. Discover the principles behind Rauschenberg, Schwitters, and Anselm Kiefer that make multi-material work succeed.

Encaustic Painting: Wax, Heat, and Ancient Technique
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Encaustic Painting: Wax, Heat, and Ancient Technique

Discover encaustic painting, the ancient wax-based medium used in Fayum mummy portraits and revived by Jasper Johns. Learn how molten pigmented wax creates luminous, layered surfaces unlike any other painting medium.

Charcoal Drawing: Smudging, Layering, and Getting Dark Values Right
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Charcoal Drawing: Smudging, Layering, and Getting Dark Values Right

Learn how to draw with charcoal using smudging, layering, and value control. Discover the techniques behind Käthe Kollwitz and Georges Seurat's charcoal work and build a serious drawing practice from the ground up.

Gouache Explained: The Opaque Watercolor Most People Have Not Tried
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Gouache Explained: The Opaque Watercolor Most People Have Not Tried

Discover gouache, the opaque painting medium used by illustrators, designers, and fine artists from medieval manuscript painters to Mary Blair. Learn how it works, how it differs from watercolor, and how to get started.

Pastel Drawing: Soft, Oil, and How to Work With Either
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Pastel Drawing: Soft, Oil, and How to Work With Either

Learn the difference between soft pastels, oil pastels, and pastel pencils. Discover how Degas and Mary Cassatt mastered the medium and get practical techniques for layering, blending, and building rich color.

Acrylic Painting for Beginners: Why It Is the Ideal Starting Medium
Art Techniques
·11 min read

Acrylic Painting for Beginners: Why It Is the Ideal Starting Medium

Discover why acrylic paint is the best medium for beginner artists. Learn essential techniques, materials, and tips from artists like David Hockney and Mark Rothko who built careers on this versatile medium.

Sculpture Materials: Clay, Bronze, Marble, and Found Objects
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Sculpture Materials: Clay, Bronze, Marble, and Found Objects

Explore the major materials of sculpture, from ancient marble and bronze casting to modern found objects and industrial materials. Learn how material choice shapes meaning, technique, and the viewer's experience.

Oil Painting Explained: Glazing, Impasto, and Why It Takes Months to Dry
Art Techniques
·10 min read

Oil Painting Explained: Glazing, Impasto, and Why It Takes Months to Dry

Understand the art of oil painting, from Van Eyck's luminous glazes to Van Gogh's thick impasto. Learn why oil paint has been the dominant medium for five centuries and how its unique properties work.

Watercolor Basics: Transparency, Wet-on-Wet, and Layering
Art Techniques
·9 min read

Watercolor Basics: Transparency, Wet-on-Wet, and Layering

Learn the essential techniques of watercolor painting, from wet-on-wet washes to glazing and lifting. Discover why watercolor is both the most accessible and the most demanding painting medium.