Acrylic Painting Techniques: How to Master the Medium of Our Age

By Stephen Quiller

Book Overview

Who would have thought that synthetic acrylic paint, a still-young medium with a plastic polymer base, would become the most versatile and exciting painting medium in the twenty-five years since it appeared? Today, acrylics are being used by more painters--and with more dazzling results--than any other medium. Acrylic Painting Techniques shows you why, as it explores the full range of what you can achieve with these durable, inexpensive, easy-to-use, and fast-drying paints. Author Stephen Quiller has researched the most up-to-date materials available, the many and varied paints and mediums, and he gives good counsel concerning the brushes, palettes, and painting surfaces the acrylic painter ought to have. To prepare the reader to exploit the richness and vibrancy of acrylics, he also offers a lesson on basic color relationships, illustrated with a color wheel he has devised for acrylics. From there he thoroughly explores all the painting techniques that unleash the power of acrylics. In the creation of images, the same acrylic paints can be utilized transparently, translucently, or opaquely. The author shows not only how the techniques of painting in watercolor and oil can be applied using acrylics, but also how their versatility is greatly extended with gels, acrylic gouaches, metallic colors, and gessos. The important differences between the other media and acrylics are carefully explained, and the demonstrations of how different media-including charcoal, Conte crayon, and casein--can be integrated into one composition will spark any painter's creativity. Throughout, Quiller 's full-color studies and finished paintings illuminate his text. The reader gains a greater understanding of the use of acrylics by examining the step-by-step development of numerous beautiful works, and then by applying the techniques in a series of exercises at the end of each lesson. Always in search of the ways to communicate in his art a love for the natural landscape, the author shows how he has explored the potential of acrylic painting to achieve the most exciting and satisfying results. His deeper message is that by learning to master this brilliant medium, you will expand upon your own powers of artistic self-expression. - Teaches the tips and techniques used by professional artists in clear, easy-to-follow exercises - Fully illustrated with hundreds of dazzling color reproductions of finished paintings

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0823001067
• ISBN13: 9780823001064
• Release Date: April 2002
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 1.49 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 8.3" x 11.0"

Customer Reviews

Quiller - Acrylic Painting Techniques

Acrylic Painting Techniques This book is an excellent source of ideas and inspiration for artists looking to expand their understanding of acrylics and mixed media. It is thoughtfully and thoroughly written by someone with great reverence for the nature from which he takes his inspiration.

A wonderful informative book

This book is a must for all acrylic painters who want to explore different techniques. It contains many different ideas that can be used with acrylic paints together with other mediums. I highly recommend it.

A master at work

This is a great book by Stephen Quiller who is a master artist in acrylic. His books explains all about how he accomplishes that with ease. For me, the impressionistic paintings are a beauty to behold and I've admired Quiller's work for years and now I know how he does it.

Delivers what it promises

Despite what other reviewers apparently think, this is a book about techniques: applying watercolor techniques or oil techniques to acrylics, making use of gels, using metallics, painting transparently or opaquely, and so on. And as such, the book succeeds quite well. Quiller's style has nothing at all to do with the techniques themselves; he isn't saying "paint like me!" He is simply showing his own examples -- lots of great examples -- of the techniques he presents. If you want a book that tells you how to paint in a particular style, this isn't the book for you. But if you want a good source of techniques that can be applied to acrylics -- using your own style of painting -- this book delivers.

Acrylic painting techniques/ how to master medium

This is aa very inspirational book worth every penny I paid for it. I am very happy with the paintings I've produced, after reviewing the techniques in this book. Very refreshing!