Making an abstract painting.

In this short article I would like to share with you my personal experience of creating an abstract painting using glazes, coloured impasto and dripping, as it is a very fun and creative experience.

Here is a step-by-step guide to help you do it:

Materials you will need:

- Canvas (can be any size you prefer)
- Brushes of different sizes
- Spatula for applying fillings
- Acrylic or oil paints
- Water (if you use acrylics)
- Medium for glazing (if you use acrylics) or oil (if you use oils)
- Color mixing containers, fine nozzle jars
- Absorbent paper or cloth
- Masking tape (optional, to create clean edges)

Steps to create your painting:

1. First spots on the canvas, if you wish, you can apply a base coat of color over the entire canvas, or just in some areas. This can be a neutral color or something that inspires you. You can let it dry or continue adding some colors while it is wet and they will blend better.

2. Create the base with glazes, mix paint with a glazing medium (or water if you use acrylics) to make a more transparent mixture and apply it to the canvas with a large brush, creating soft and subtle layers. You can also clean the brush a little on absorbent paper, that is, do not load it with paint and thus create ragged brushstrokes. You can superimpose different colors to achieve depth, in this case let dry between layers.

3. When dry, you can apply impasto colors, use a palette knife to apply thick paint (impasto) to certain areas of the canvas, using vibrant colors to create texture and relief, always keeping in mind the mixtures of primary and secondary colors, and their complementary colors. Experiment with different techniques, such as scraping or dragging the palette knife to create interesting patterns.

Then let it dry well.

4. Incorporate dripping, you can use fine-tipped bottles and prepare a more liquid paint mixture (you can dilute it with water or medium). With a brush or directly from the tube, let the paint drip onto the canvas. You can do it in a controlled manner or let the paint flow freely, play with the direction and amount of dripping to create a dynamic effect.

5. And now the final details, once everything is dry, you can add more details with fine brushes or a small spatula. Finally you can sign the artwork and varnish it if you wish as a method of protection.