Yesterday’s post was quite long, so I will keep today’s post short. Continuing with the abstraction theme, today’s topic is abstract texture. The work I am discussing here is ‘Texture Study in Blue and Green ‘. Many of my abstract works are colour studies, texture studies or both.

Creating Abstract Texture in Acrylic Paint

To build up abstract texture on a painting, I use a combination of layers, colours and tools. Each layer I construct differently. In ‘Texture Study in Green and Blue’ I limited the colours to a few shades of blue. I added the green as a highlight here and there. The longer strokes give a sense of something in the foreground. As I write this, I think of Sidney Nolan’s paintings of Ned Kelly. As explained in this post by the National Gallery of Australia, the landscape was highly important to Nolan. The Kelly story was to give context to the landscape in the background.

Constructing ‘Texture Study in Blue and Green’

Often, I start a painting with colour choices. I’m seeking a sensation of the colours adding to each other or bouncing off each other. To achieve the textured effect, I begin applying the blues randomly. Mostly, I apply more than one colour with each stroke or dab. I use sponges with different textures and palette knives with different shaped blades to apply the paint. Silicone tools are great for smoothing paint surfaces. I also use them to draw indented lines in the paint. Remember childhood finger painting? My fingers come in handy to bring out details or subtly blend paint. Where an indented line has been drawn, it exposes the colour beneath. The raised edges can also be used to build shading or tonal changes. Running my finger along these raised lines can create interesting effects.

Preferences I discover in these studies I can apply in larger works., where I am trying to achieve something specific.

If you want to try this style of painting, the best way of learning is to experiment. Each of us has our own likes, dislikes and mark making preferences. There are no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ ways of doing this. Just play and observe. Step back once in a while and think about what the painting needs. You may want to give it balance, an aesthetic look, or to allow colours to shine. These decisions are yours to make.

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