Teach me to Paint!
 

Help!!

I am looking for website, or a good book to study/practice acrylic painting.

I am very excited about some expressinsit and abstract themes.

I will really need to learn basic brush strokes, how to choose colours, and how to make backgrounds interesting, vibrant, fluid, textured etc....

This guy on ebay has several flowers/hilly terrain that i really enjoy.

abstractus

I want to try this myself. I have canvas, paints, brushes, a colour wheel, but i don't know of a book i can buy or a website to help me practise.

Do any of you kind noble artists have any ideas for me?

I can not take a class, as i am still nursing my baby and my 2 kids are never really away from me.

I will be very indebted to anyone who can help!!!!

I’ve never been taught how to paint but if I can find anything decent I’ll be sure to tell you.

basic brush strokes, textures, etc. - you can learn

the rest... has to come from a place inside you ( i don't think you can learn this kind of thing )

yay for bob ross! actually, that is a good way to learn how to paint. the paint he uses can be instantly painted over, so if you do something wrong, you don't have to wait hours till it's dry.

You know it would be best to keep in mind that you are doing this for yourself and just have fun at it. If it gets frustrating when your trying really hard to make something just perfect, remember that when others look at your work they will see it as incredible and admire you drive to put it all together. I still cant look at my paintings without pointing out the imperfections of my work, but still get a boost from people telling me how much they like it. The neat thing about painting is you can keep adding more paint. Start off by being experimental to get the feeling of the paint and tools. (ie: not just brushes - use knives, fingers, combs, back or brushes, Sponges -my favorite- scrunched up rags, intersting shaped objects that you can use as a stamp) you will have more fun and find inspiration to use some techniques with ideas that come to you that you really want to put together. That is how I came up with the idea for this painting. I used a sponge alot in this painting cause I notice how it look like bubbles. Just go to town and have fun and dont worry about being wastefull, but always try to keep your tools clean.

i dont think you can be taught. if its truly art, it comes from inside you. i dont believe in learning art.

I gotta agree. Do what comes from inside. Freestyle is best!

surf: that second one, the one with the bird. I've seen it before when you posted a link, but always assumed it was a photograph!

that picture is amazing!

That is, unless you're a hack. Some hacks belive that what they do is an art. :p

art is really hard to define

there are a lot of things that i don't like and they are still art. i think real art is a reflection of something. if it's empty or made for a purpose other than the satisfaction of the creator, it's not art anymore.

There was that old hippie guy who painted on PBs. Maybe they have his videos for rent somewhere?

"Now we will get some cadmium white, and with our pallette knife, smear on some nice, fluffly clouds... Fluffy, fluffy, fluffy. See? How pretty. I like clouds. They make me happy."

yes yes yes! i remember that guy!!!

THAT's bob ross?? LOL

oh! so thats who he was!