Acrylics

In October I took an art workshop with Jerry Varnell. He was at the Dumas Art Center. Jerry paints a lot of wildlife which is not my choice of subject matter, but he paints with acrylics. Acrylics are the greatest art media on the planet(my blog, my opinion). I am positive that if the "old masters" would have had acrylics they would have painted with them exclusively. The colors are wonderful and the paint is so versatile; acrylics can be thinned with water and used like watercolor or applied thickly like oils. And they will probably never crack or discolor(we'll have to wait and see on that point). Jerry demonstrated some great dry brushing techniques that produce impressionistic effects. And one of Jerry's "tricks of his trade" is to replace white with gesso. Of course Jerry preaches, "Don't piddle, play, or putter"; get serious and paint! Good advise from an artist that has been making a living at it for 25 + years.