Acrylic Transfers

Project Goal:  Combine acrylic paint and transfered black & white printed images onto a canvas panel. 

Directions:

1. Explore the internet for a variety of visual information to be used as transfers within your painting study. 
2. If needed, use Photoshop to scale information to size and/or apply filters to achieve specific visual effects.
3. Apply a skim coat of acrylic gel medium directly on the canvas.  Apply a skim coat of gel medium onto the face of the printed image (be careful not to get any acrylic gel on the back side of the paper). Place the printed imaged face down onto the acrylic gel surface. Take a clean sheet of paper and place it directly over the top of the printed paper surface and firmly rub the surface flat.  There should be no bubbles or elevated surfaces between the canvas and the printed image.
4. Once dried, dip a textured cloth such as burlap in water.  Apply this over the top of the dried paper surface.  Gently rub away at the damp paper until all of the paper remnants are rubbed off.
5. Once you have applied the transfers, incorporate paint into and around the printed
6. forms.
7. These steps are interchangeable.  For example, you can start with an underpainting, then transfer images, paint, more transfers, etc...
8. Once project is completed, apply a final varnish over the surface of the painting. 
   

Glossary of terms for Acrylic Painting
Painting Class with Mr. Dressler

1. Underpainting: In art, an underpainting is an initial layer of paint applied to a ground, which serves as a base for subsequent layers of paint. Underpaintings are often monochromatic and help to define color values for later painting.
   
2. Hue: a color or shade that is independent of intensity or lightness.
   
3. Saturation: refers to the intensity of color in an image.
   
4. Tinting and Shading Color: In color theory, a tint is the mixture of a color with white, which increases lightness, and a shade is the mixture of a color with black, which reduces lightness. A tone is produced either by the mixture of a color with grey, or by both tinting and shading.
   
5. Complimentary Color: colors directly opposite each other in the color spectrum, such as red and green or blue and orange, that when combined in the right proportions, produce white light or neutralized tones.
   
6. Analogous Colors: are groups of three colors that are next to each other on the color wheel, sharing a common color, with one being the dominant color, which tends to be a primary or secondary color, and a tertiary. Red, orange, and red-orange are examples. ... An analogous color scheme creates a rich, monochromatic look.
   
7. Glazing: A GLAZE is a thin TRANSPARENT color used over another dry color to create a third color.
   
8. Opacity vs Transparency: Transparency in 2D design is simply the quality of being able to see through (or partially see through) one or more layers in an artwork. Opacity is a similar term but refers to the inability to see through a layer.
   
9. Acrylic Transfer: Apply the acrylic gel or paint to the surface receiving the image. While it is still wet, place the image face down into the wet medium and allow to dry thoroughly. When the application is completely dry, dampen the paper with a wet sponge. Give it a few minutes to allow the water to penetrate the paper pulp.
   
10. Acrylic Varnish: Non-removable. Gloss Varnish — This water-resistant varnish delivers permanent, highly-durable protection that is flexible and non-yellowing when dry. A 100% acrylic polymer varnish, Liquitex Gloss Varnish is water-soluble when wet and can be thinned.
    Acrylic Gel Medium: Acrylic Gel medium is acrylic polymer minus the pigment.  It is used as an extender to make acrylic paint translucent.  Acrylic gel medium comes in a range of thicknesses, sheens and textures. 
    

Rubrics:

1. Utilize a variety of transfers.  Consider size variety, variety of visual subject matter, variety of textures, etc
2. Demonstrate tinting and shading with color.
3. Demonstrate use of analogous colors.
4. Demonstrate use of glazing.

In Progress.  By Dan Dressler

By Watertown Art Student

By Watertown Art Student