As the interest in non-representational art grows and artists become more adventurous, this important book helps the reader make the move towards abstract art through the use of colour – the hallmark of Claire Harrigan's work in mixed media. Fantastically illustrated throughout and with sound technical advice, the book includes stunning finished pieces and step-by-step demonstrations. The book covers: How to Make the move towards abstract art and semi-abstract art; How to use colour to shape your abstract art; Analysis and selection for abstract art with guidance on simplification, distortion and exaggeration; How to emphasize elements such as line and shape as well as colour; The application of abstraction to a range of subject areas, including still life, flowers, buildings, figures and landscape, and how they evolved from the original inspiration; Choosing and working with different media – acrylic, gouache, watercolour, oil, pastel and collage – and how to combine media. Hardback edition 9780713490558.

Would you love to take your art in a new direction? In Abstract Art Painting, you will enter a realm of tactile, intuitive excitement, combining pastel and acrylic to achieve results as unique as you are. You'll learn how to explore the use of color theory in abstraction and to use underpainting to bring structure and depth to your art. In addition you'll begin to understand how to work in a series and how this can help you develop your own personal style. A sampling of what you'll add to your creative toolbox: • Pastel and acrylic techniques to use to complete your own paintings • The benefits of expressing your ideas abstractly • How to loosen up by using your nondominant hand and drawing to music • Ways to express emotions through mark-making • Using color and symbolism for expression • Working with photos for inspiration • Tips for using color studies Step into your own abstract frame of mind today!

A guide to drawing and painting abstract art. It explains the techniques needed for creative expressionism through to fully abstract paintings. It reveals unusual colour and texture techniques to create with watercolours, acrylics and oil paints. It presents ten projects that highlight the progression from initial inspiration to a finished work. This is an innovative, practical guide to drawing and painting dynamic abstract art. It explains the techniques needed for creative expressionism through to fully abstract paintings. It explores subjects using colour, texture and composition, as well as the moods and emotions they invoke. It reveals unusual colour and texture techniques to create with watercolours, acrylics and oil paints. It presents ten step-by-step projects that highlight the progression from initial inspiration to a finished work.

Painting Accessible Abstracts is an inspirational but practical book that will help artists to paint in a less figurative way. Laura Reiter demonstrates different ways to approach an abstract painting from ‘just a little bit abstract’ to ‘completely abstract’. She does this by focussing on ideas and themes as starting points, looking at the creative processes involved and more unusual techniques. Laura Reiter also covers how to use materials creatively – watercolour, acrylics, mixed media and collage – and how to experiment with colour and composition. Several projects are included, and, in addition to Laura’s vibrant, colourful paintings, the work of several other contemporary abstract artists is featured.

Create 20 beautiful abstract works of art in acrylic and mixed media using exciting new techniques and materials. Petra Thölken's practical and inspiring book includes 20 beautiful abstract works of art explained step by step, including variations and tips for readers' own designs. For some of the projects, there are links to her popular video instructions, showing readers how she created the individual painting. All the basics for the perfect introduction to painting with acrylic and mixed media are here, with colour theory, techniques and materials presented in an understandable and concise manner. Petra uses exciting new techniques and materials and encourages readers to familiarize themselves with getting to know the paints and the mixing of shades. Get your ideas flowing with Petra's inspirational advice and find out how to approach your paintings in different ways.

Discover abstract painting with acrylics! "If you approach your art with a playful attitude you will be more apt to keep making art, and the more art you make, the better your art will be." --pg. 10 Like a diving board for creativity, Abstract Explorations in Acrylic Painting will help you plunge joyfully into artmaking. With the belief that an attitude of playfulness is key to artistic growth, award-winning acrylic artist Jo Toye leads you on an engaging workshop-style adventure filled with innovative techniques, inventive approaches and breakthrough results. • Work Small. Start by discovering how working on a small canvas yields big payoffs. When you don't have anything to lose but a few minutes and a little piece of paper, you'll find that you paint more fearlessly, absorb new concepts faster and enjoy yourself more. • Step-by-Step Instruction. Learn what tools Toye finds most useful in making art, along with 17 step-by-step demonstrations showing how to use them to best effect. • Start-to-Finish Painting Projects. At the heart of the book, 8 start-to-finish painting projects put it all together. Discover fresh takes on stenciling, sponging, making and working with gesso. Use razor blades and applicator bottles to create distinctive linework. Achieve wonderfully original patterns using resist pens, mouth atomizers and India ink. Experiment with Clear Tar Gel, pour paint with pipettes, work over top a "failed" painting...all yielding brilliantly original results. Heavily illustrated and filled with exciting ideas you won't find anywhere else, Abstract Explorations in Acrylic Painting will inspire you to paint, experiment, play...and come away with some of your best work yet!

Because nature is so expansive and complex, so varied in its range of light, landscape painters often have to look further and more deeply to find form and structure, value patterns, and an organized arrangement of shapes. In Landscape Painting, Mitchell Albala shares his concepts and practices for translating nature's grandeur, complexity, and color dynamics into convincing representations of space and light. Concise, practical, and inspirational, Landscape Painting focuses on the greatest challenges for the landscape artist, such as: • Simplification and Massing: Learn to reduce nature's complexity by looking beneath the surface of a subject to discover the form's basic masses and shapes.• Color and Light: Explore color theory as it specifically applies to the landscape, and learn the various strategies painters use to capture the illusion of natural light.• Selection and Composition: Learn to select wisely from nature's vast panorama. Albala shows you the essential cues to look for and how to find the most promising subject from a world of possibilities. The lessons in Landscape Painting—based on observation rather than imitation and applicable to both plein air and studio practice—are accompanied by painting examples, demonstrations, photographs, and diagrams. Illustrations draw from the work of more than 40 contemporary artists and such masters of landscape painting as John Constable, Sanford Gifford, and Claude Monet. Based on Albala's 25 years of experience and the proven methods taught at his successful plein air workshops, this in-depth guide to all aspects of landscape painting is a must-have for anyone getting started in the genre, as well as more experienced practitioners who want to hone their skills or learn new perspectives.