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ONLINE: Acrylic Basics: First Steps

  • Absolute Beginners
  • Painting

This ONLINE course offers an introduction to an extremely versatile and forgiving paint. Students will learn how to mix acrylic pigments with basic acrylic mediums and gels. Mediums and gels offer the artist a world of control in changing acrylic colours, extending paint, increasing drying time, building texture and altering surface finishes. We will examine ways to start a painting, blending techniques to create depth and basic colour mixing. We will work on small canvases no larger than 9” x 12” or 12” x 12” to facilitate completion of these introductory projects. Extensive instructor demonstrations will help students to understand the ABC’s of manipulating acrylic paint.

A choice of images for each class will be emailed to participants a day before class begins.

Winter 2021: 6 Weeks: Tuition: $275

TSA will deliver this course using ZOOM. Prior to the course session, you will receive an invitation for the session(s) via email. You'll need a laptop, desktop or tablet, internet connection with good bandwidth and headset (either wired or wireless). We recommend that you set up a free ZOOM account and be familiar with ZOOM prior to the class beginning.  Here is a link to help you get started: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/200101697

Notes: Tina Poplawski has been an instructor at the Toronto School of Art since 1993. Poplawski has exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in Ontario, Quebec and New York. Two galleries in Toronto, the V. MacDonnell Gallery and Lehmann Leskiw Fine Art, have represented Poplawski. Her work is found in North American and European collections both corporate and private. She is the recipient of many awards, including numerous Ontario Art Council Grants. Her work focuses on textured paintings, sculptural objects and paper works arranged into multi-faceted installations. She has been negotiating the cultural residue of war through her art practice for many years, leading her to a fascination with “debris” found in the botanical world.
* This course is not currently open for registration

What you will learn

  • Students will be introduced to the exciting new properties of slow-drying GOLDEN OPEN Acrylic Medium. This medium increases the working time of acrylics, making traditional techniques available once possible with only oils.
  • Introduction to Basic Acrylic Materials.
  • Demonstrations of ways to start a painting, blend and mix paint.
  • Learn how to create depth using transparent coloured layers called “Glazes”
  • Using simple subject matter introduce ways to start a painting, blending techniques, and emulating the look of oil paint.

Materials to Bring

Please keep your receipts in case you need to return items you have purchased.

FOR FIRST CLASS PLEASE HAVE:

  • Sketch Pad:  Aquabee Super Deluxe 808 Sketch Book  9" x 12”. Available at Toose Art Supplies (if purchasing another brand make sure paper is 90lb).    
  • Hogs Bristle Brushes: Filberts #'s 2, 8 & 12 or larger (basically: sm., med., & lg.) (Brands: Raphael, Winsor & Newton, Winton, Royal Langnickel Soft Grip Bristle)
  • Paint: GOLDEN PAINT: Carbon Black & Titanium White (or other brand if you already have paint)
  • Palette: If you don’t already have a palette you can use a white produce tray.

ACRYLIC COLOUR LIST 

Recommended Brand: Regular HEAVY BODY Golden Acrylic Paints, 2oz tubes

  • Titanium White 4oz jar or tube (1st Class List) • Carbon Black (1st Class List)
  •  Hansa Yellow Opaque • Diarylide Yellow • Quinacridone Nickel Azo Gold  
  • Pyrrole Red Light or Napthol Red Light • Quinacridone Red
  • Ultramarine Blue • Phthalo Blue (G. S.) • Burnt Umber

PALETTE OPTIONS 

  • "Masterson Stay-Wet Palette" Yellow Top (Med) OR Red Top (Lg) - keeps acrylics wet longer

BRUSHES

  • Raphael Hogs Bristle Brushes: Filberts #'s 2, 8 & 12 or larger (basically sm., med., & lg.) (1st Class List)
  • Hake 1” (this is a Watercolour Brush.)
  • #1 Round – (watercolour synthetic brush is fine)
  • Metal palette knife: small with an angle in the arm

PAINTING SURFACES

  •  Canson Canvas Paper Pad 9” x 12” OR Strathmore Canvas Paper Pad 9” x 12”

OTHER

  • Masking tape - 3m Brand is Best   • Old Towel   • Cellulose Sponges   • Small Water Spritzer 
  • Water Container • Masters Brush Cleaner

ACRYLIC MEDIUMS:

  • GOLDEN Gesso 16 oz
  • GOLDEN Open Gel Medium 8 oz

 

Save all receipts and packaging if you are in doubt about something you have purchased!