Acrylic Paint - The Spirit of Matter - Orbach and Galkin, 1997
- nonaorbach
- Jun 7
- 5 min read
Updated: Oct 8
Medium Characteristics
Acrylic paint is a new painting medium that became commercial in the 1950s. It comes in many shades in tubes or jars. This convenient matter is soft, pasty, and easily dilutable with water. When dried, it is water-resistant. The paint can easily be thickened by adding various substances and applied to almost any surface: paper, cardboard, wood, fabric, or metal.
The different shades of acrylic do not necessarily blend harmoniously with one another. The resins that form the different shades do not have the same chemical formula, unlike oil paints, in which the only single adhesive is oil. Thus, it is necessary to purchase the different shades, rather than trying to produce them from other colors. In addition, the shade of the wet paint changes when it dries, and each manufacturer produces a slightly different result. Mixing colors from different companies will lead to inconsistencies and surprises.
Third - fifth graders, l'association l'éclat, France , Naama shapira art educator
Therapeutic and Spiritual Significance
Acrylic is uncomplicated to work with. It involves colorfulness through an abundance of tempting and vibrant shades, providing an experience of control and easy success. There is a very wide range, from transparency to opaqueness. Thus, it provides an experience of the inner self, ranging from softness to roughness, and detailed drawing as opposed to throwing paint. Thickening and diluting the paint is very simple, and it is easy to ensure that the color does not leak, scrape, or cover up. It provides an experience of powerfulness, magnitude, and taking over space, as opposed to reflective, detailed, and decorative work.
Third - fifth graders, l'association l'éclat, France , Naama shapira art educator
Acrylic covers areas easily. It can conceal the previous surface with a new layer of paint. Because the paint dries quickly, it is easy to hide or repair. Therefore, this medium suits those who have difficulty delaying gratification or enduring a lack of success while creating. Additionally, this medium often allows the expression of "suppression" and burying secrets in paint, and starting afresh on top of this hiding place. It is processing, transformation, a new beginning, and change, or alternatively, a process of denial and repression.
Offering a client a large plate loaded with a wide range of colors is a metaphor for abundance, like a huge playground that gives a sense of "having" and "plenty" to play with and explore. This is a very empowering experience of the world's generosity towards me.
Acrylic can be used on cardboard, paper, large wood, or canvas, with huge brushes, rollers, spatulas, and all the tools that a studio can offer. For this reason, it provides a sense of competence and management of a large territory. It seems that acrylic often raises the client’s self-esteem. Alternatively, using soft, thin brushes, one can apply acrylic in transparent layers, like aquarelle, which creates miniature, delicate work.
Acrylic, as a chemical-based medium, also characterizes the present era as fast and frantic and is related to fast-producing industries - no need for delay of gratification. It is associated with creating products that are quick to satisfy but sometimes shallow.
Surfaces and Tools
Surfaces: fabric, cardboard, paper, wood.
Paintbrushes of any size and shape, spatulas, rollers, sponges, and rags.
Working with Acrylic
Acrylic can be used sitting at a table, on an easel, or on a painting wall. Sizes range from miniature to enormous. The colors are better placed on broad, flat plates or on a palette. We tend to place each family of colors on a separate plate, but the distribution can be adjusted according to need. Usually, we are the ones who put the paint on the palette, not the client. If there is paint left by the end of the meeting, the palette can be covered with plastic wrap, and the paint will stay wet and ready for use for a few days.
Third - fifth graders, l'association l'éclat, France , Naama shapira art educator
Initial Encounters
Working with two of the three primary colors (red, blue, yellow) and mixing them. Creating many shades.
Adding white to the two colors.
Adding black to the two colors.
Working with only black and white, creating at least twelve shades of gray.
Choosing a specific shade of color and using a few brushes, from the thinnest to the thickest. Experimenting with different brush movements and the brush’s possibilities on paper. What do different hand movements create? Work on a 35x50 cm. canvas or paper with the widest brush. When the color dries, switch to a smaller-sized brush, then to a smaller one yet, and so on.
Working with a dry brush, with very little color and no water. Working in layers on a 35x50 or 35x25 cm sheet of paper or canvas.
Different dilutions of color with water will result in colors ranging from transparent to opaque.
Stained clothing may incite anxiety and guilt; thus, the therapist should offer an apron or work shirt to protect the client.
The therapist can illustrate a thorough brushing and rinsing between each color. It is advisable to mix colors on the palette rather than the work itself. Mixing on the palette will ensure clean and uniform colors, while mixing on paper creates muddy shades.
A beginner in painting can choose a pair of primary colors and add white, black, or a "cousin" color to one of them. For example, if choosing yellow and blue, a "cousin" can be turquoise, purple, ochre, and so on. In other words, there are two main players, and the additional one implies the missing third primary color. After gaining skills of basic color blending and control over the quantities of paint used for mixing, it is time to practice and create shades of color using the entire palette. For example, mixing green and red in amounts ensures that the color remains green, but yet with a slight shade of brown in it. In this final phase, the “takeoff” of painting begins. The painter has a good controlled technique and an understanding of color and how to create shades.
A proposal to create multiple shades. The client covers three sheets of brown paper and develops three different works from each of them.
Various mediators link the paint with the surface. Sponges and rags evoke tactile and sensual sensations. Paintbrushes and spatulas create greater physical distance from the wet paint and sometimes less emotional involvement. Systematic work creates an accumulation of knowledge, experience and deepening, as well as the ability to delay gratification and multifaceted
emotional and technical flexibility. All these reflect the breadth of acrylics as a medium and the creator's abilities.
A significant point in the work process is the closing, completing the work, and cleaning of the work area: changing the water, washing the brushes, and taking the work clothes off. The closing process has great therapeutic and educational value. It involves taking responsibility and separating from the creative process. The creator goes back to his own clothes and is prepared to return to the outside world.
The text is based on The Spirit of Matter / A Database Handbook for Therapists, Artists, and Educators, Nona Orbach and Lilach Galkin, 1997
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