There are different types of brand colors and other variations of acrylic paints. This makes buying the ideal one daunting, especially for inexperienced people. Today many artists prefer acrylic paints more than watercolors or oils. One of the reasons acrylic paint is becoming the best choice for many artists is because of its fast drying characteristic. Acrylic paints can be used right from tube-like oil or can be thinned with water similar to watercolor. The other advantage of using acrylic paints is that they are extremely versatile and vibrant. Therefore, they provide the artist with a wide range of textures, colors, and consistencies. Thus, it is imperative to find acrylic paint that best meet your desires.
It is important to recognize first that choosing the paint to use is a personal thing as its dependent on the technique of art one prefers and it is explicit to the painting style an individual chooses. However, the article outlines various things you can consider when choosing acrylic paint to assist you in making an educated decision as you continue to gain more experience. Nonetheless, one thing is for sure, one amasses experience one becomes aware of the acrylic brands and selections one like the most.
The quality of acrylic is among the many things you need to pay attention to when buying paints. There are two main grades of acrylics, students and artist’s quality paint. The artist often called professional-quality paint comes in a plethora of colors, is highly concentrated with finely grounded pigment, and has high permanence. The student-quality acrylic is cheaper. Unlike the artist’s quality, it has few color selections, low pigment levels, and weak color strength hence affecting its permanence. The major difference between the two is that the professional acrylic paint is more vibrant and smooth making it easy to blend and layer.
Permanence sometimes called lightfastness this is about how the pigment components in the paint refuse to fade once the gallery is exposed to light. Fugitive colors refer to the pigments that fade over sometimes. One good thing about acrylic paints is that they have a high permanence than watercolors or oils. However, there are lightfastness standards you need to pay attention to when selecting the paint. ASTM international classifies professional colors using a test that imitates the artwork exposure for 20 years. The major classifications include, ASTM I, ASTM II, and the lowest in the category is the ATSM III.
Viscosity is another factor you should consider when buying acrylic paints. The thickness or consistency of the paint is vital in determining the quality of the artwork. The heavy body acrylics have qualities almost similar to oil paints, thick, heavy consistency which maintains brushstrokes while promoting mixing of colors as well as blending. The alternative is the fluid acrylics which are thin. These acrylic paints are excellent when doing a detailed art, staining, and outstanding for dry-brush painting techniques. However, there are other acrylics one can apply or blend into the paint to acquire the consistency one desires. Those are a few considerations you should make when buying acrylic paint.