Something New: Acrylic Painting

I’m not a painter.  I think I’ve proved that a couple times, first when I tried encaustic painting and then when I tried aboriginal painting.  But, I’m not giving up.  I’ve seen plenty of Groupons and Living Social deals for wine/paint nights, so finally I gave in and signed up.  I chose Paint Nite.  Once I got my redemption code from Groupon, I went to Paint NIte’s website and found a painting I liked and a date/time that worked for me.  I also convinced my friend, Barb, to come along.

The instructor, Ian, seemed quiet as the painters started arriving and as the volume level grew I wondered if he’d have the personality to take control of the situation.  He did.

Ian started with an explanation about “how it works” and then we were off.  While we were painting, Ian walked around offered advice and enthusiasm.  He was also careful with critiques.  I heard him tell one gal “wow…every time I come by your painting looks completely different” even though her painting didn’t look even remotely close to the sample we were painting.  He told another person “you might want to take a break for a minute and when we get to the next step, I’ll stop by and help you out”.  He was so patient and encouraging.  I chuckled a bit when he told me “my, you have quite a bit of yellow there…you might want to move some of it to the sky” and then he explained how to do that.

Best piece of advice all night…”be careful not to confuse your cup of water to clean the brushes with your drink”.  Honestly I picked up the wrong cup once, but luckily caught myself before taking a big gulp.

Ian Kloster’s Painting

This is the painting we were attempting to recreate.  Ian’s is obviously much better than mine (scroll down to see my final product).

Pro Sample

We started with a blank canvas and I snapped a photo of it to post on Facebook with the comment “A shot before I ruin the painting”.  Just as we started each new step, I felt like I was ruining my painting but eventually it would work out.

Blank Canvas

The first step was to start getting the sky painted.

Starting the Sky

Then the water.

Finished Sky and Water

Then the mountains and the sun.

With Mountains and Sun

And then, the details of the tree and birds.

Finished Product

I won’t be selling paintings any time soon…or ever…but it was so much fun that my friend and I have signed up for another Paint Nite on May 4th.

For me, painting is a great escape.  I have a very analytical mind and since painting is so far out of my comfort zone I have to concentrate thoroughly.  To do this, everything else has to be put “out of my mind”.  I didn’t think about anything, other than my painting, for the full two hours.  No chores, projects that need to be completed, work…nothing.  This alone is probably the biggest factor in continuing to paint.

What About You?

Have you done something similar?  What did you think?  Share your works of art in the comments section.

2 Replies to “Something New: Acrylic Painting”

  1. Hey, not bad. Wish we had something like that around here. Not that I would be brave enough to step out of the box, as you say. Your photographs show that you have a good eye though, which I don’t have. Keep up the good work but enjoy. Not sure I could ever clear my mind enought to do that!

    • Thanks Sheila. You’d do fine. It would be so much fun to go with you!