Question For Acrylic Painters

I think the 'best' retardant will be a bit subjective depending on your climate and painting environment, so you might get a more relevant suggestion if you mention where you live climate wise, and how you paint - alla prima, glazing, plein air etc and how long you wnat the paint to remain open for.

Something that suits me here in the dry hot heat of an Australian summer will be different than what is suitable in a very humid or very cold environment. As a general rule of thumb, sticking to the brand of mediums designed for your brand of paints is a good way to go, if you use a mix of brands any of the top art brands that extend the open time for acrylics will do the job.

I personally changed to using Aterlier Interactives as I find they work for me (with the aterlier mediums) exactly like oil paints. The end results look like my oils as well - to point now that I have a number of small paintings that I did last year that I cannot tell if they were done in oils or acrylics.

I use Liquitex slow-dry blending medium.

I use blending medium and gesso.

However, it really requires fast painting. Even with mediums added acrylics dry way faster than oil.

I've used a couple, but find they have the effect of watered down on darker colours, so now I just use water in a spray. Atelier Impasto Gel has a slowish drying time and a lovely oil look finish

I was forced to switch to acrylics when I was in college in the 60's and they were new on the market...the reason? I painted too fast for oils.
I live in a dry climate...I simply use a spray bottle of water....that said, it's more about being a fast painter.....
Judging from your work, I'm curious as to why you ant to switch to acrylics...your oils are beautiful.

Why do you want to switch to acrylic. I'm old time oil painter and have decided that there is no additive I can put in acrylic to last long enough to paint with. However, have been very successful at speeding up the drying time or tackiness on oils with spray matte finish.

I use acrylic on substrates that won't take oils very well (glass, plastics, etc) but whenever possible I use oils. I've never expected acrylic to be better than oils except in drying time, so this is a better solution for me.
-- mary ellen anderson

Liquitex is a great brand I think Ill try that one, thank you for that info Susan. I absolutely love oils as I have been painting with them since I was a teenager. I just became allergic to the linseed oil (massive headaches and hives) even when used outside and had to switch to the walnut oil based paints. If I also become allergic to the walnut oil that I want to know how to manipulate acrylics. Oil will always be my first love.

I do both oils and acrylics and can honestly say that living in a hot climate - like above 40C in summer - that spray bottle Marlene mentions keeps my acrylics open long enough to work on them.

If I want longer time - say for a portrait, I use a gel retarder medium along with the spray bottle and that in hot weather can give me up to 3 hours open time of wet paint, or paint that will become wet again when sprayed.

Thank you Zeana..Thats exactly what Im going to do..

Boy, Melissa that would suck. Of all the things you expect to have to overcome, you'd never expect allergies.

You're work is wonderful. All my best.
-- mary ellen anderson

Yeah, it would really break me if I developed an allergy to my walnut oils..talk about scared..with no children or sig other..painting is my life.

No doubt you will find acrylics a bit different but I will bet you will be surprised at how quickly you adapt. After all you are a paint first, before your medium.

When I paint skin I use a Golden brand retarder, it will keep it good to work for awhile (hours) and if I cover my paint on the palette it will stay workable for a day or two.

When I paint in acrylics I use it straight from the tube with a little water. The quick drying quality of acrylics is a part of its character, the opposite to oils long drying character. I adapt a style of working depending of what media I'm using. The subject matter can dictate the media as well.

Martin is right in that you do quickly adapt a different methodology with acrylics. I think of it as my paint-by-number method - lol. Because basically you just use the paint straight out of the tube, everywhere it's needed, one at a time.

What about the oil sticks and marker products available now. Would any of these be contained and non-contact enough to be viable?
-- mary ellen anderson

I was also thinking of the water soluble oil. But Ive gotten mixed feedback from that. I wish I had a fine art store around me that I could try these things out before I actually have the spend the money to buy them.

Hi Melissa.

Like Marlene, I first started using acrylics in the late 60's when I worked in the art department of a magazine and was called upon to do full color illustrations. My present acrylic paintings are often mistaken for oil. In fact there is a YouTube video of a gallery owner interviewing me and starting out by referring to my works in oil. Embarrassing for her, but I just had to laugh, because she's not the first gallery owner who exhibited my work and made the same booboo. My point is that there are many acrylic artists today who's work looks just like oil and has fooled me too. As for the fast drying time being a problem....what problem? I did plein air acrylic paintings in the Sonoran Desert (Phoenix) for 12 years. The spray bottle is indespensable! Make sure it has a very fine spray setting otherwise you'll end up with too much water on your painting and it will run like crazy unless you want that effect. I painted with Liquitex for over 25 years but am slowly transitioning to Golden as I use up my supply of Liquitex. There is a relatively new acrylic out called Golden Open which is supposed to give you about 20 hours + to work them. Might want to check them out.

I use stay wet palette and do mixing gently but very fast like a ninja. Or yes like Bill said, OPEN acrylics.

This info helped me:

http://willkempartschool.com/golden-heavy-body-vs-open-acrylics-paints-review-which-is-best/

One more point on acrylics... fast drying is one of the BEST qualities of acylics, in my opinion. I can usually layer over paint I have just put down almost immediately and paint out mistakes (and I make a lot of them) almost as they happen instead of having to scrape off my canvas and start over as I've seen plein air oil painters do. Just a thought, :) All mediums have their pros and cons and some cons are pros for some painters and some pros are cons for others. Boy, if that isn't confusing!

Golden Open? 20+ hours is perfect for me. Im going to check those out and see if they are online yet. Thanks Bill and Argie

Melissa,

Don't hold me to the "20+ hours" as it pobably varies according to circumstances like humidity etc. I picked up a box of 6 Open acrylics and on the back Golden states "Golden Open Acrylics remain wet far longer than other acrylics...". I have yet to do anything with them so I can't speak from experience yet. Maybe some other FAA member has worked with Open acrylics.

Ill just grab one and see how long they stay wet. Looks like Jerrysartsorama has them :)

Melissa

FYI Just picked up the lastest issue of acrylicartist magazine (www.acrylicartistmagazine.com) If you aren't already aware of it, thought you'd find lots of good info.

Melissa I use the Weber w/oil water solubles. They are artist grade and very buttery. If I need a medium, I use grahams walnut alkaloid medium, nice for fluidity and speeding up drying time. I found best prices for them on dickblick and stock up on the larger sizes. water is only medium for your grounds and under paintings or sometimes I will use acrylics for this. The winsor and newton water solubles are okay but a little sticky with water, they really push their artisan thinner with this but with weber water works fine and they clean up with soap and water like acrylics.

Thought you and other acrylic painters might find the following of interest:


Arizona Plein Air Painters
September 23 · .

"Interested in painting in acrylics on plastic? Here's some fantastic info (including a great chart) on the viability and preparation needed to paint in acrylics on different substrates, from Golden Paints: http://www.justpaint.org/jp31/jp31article5.php"