How to Glaze with Acrylics

Glazes are important features of oil painting but did you know you can use them even with acrylics one? In this post we’ll see how to glaze with acrylic colours to create  amazing artworks. Actually acrylic paint fits better with glazes because of its fast drying time. It allows artist to glaze without wait for too long. If you use in proper way glazes you can improve the final result of your artwork. Why do glazes can improve your artworks? Well they can give a outstanding depth to colours which can become brighter. Now let’s see what are glazes and how we can use them in a right way.

Glazes are nothing more than a veil of colour painted over a thick layer of colour. They can be used in every style of paint as long as you know some essential rules. What is the purpose of glazes? Well,main goal of glazes is to make painting deeper and brighter.They should be used just on shadows and NEVER on light spots indeed their goal is to darken not to lighten.Glazes were used by old master since Reinassance and even before by Flemish painters! All these ancient masters used glazes with oil colours of course,since acrylic ones had not been invented. Perhaps someone doesn’t know that even acrylics allow artists to glaze in order to make their artworks more attractive and shining. How can you glaze with acrylics? Is it the same procedure of oil colours? or is it different? Now let’s see how we can glaze with acrylic colours.

In order to glaze properly an acrylic painting you can’t use just water but you will need a specific medium called Glaze Medium, that allow you to get all glazes you want! Many brands provide this kind of medium so you are spoiled for choice indeed you can find brands like Liquitex ,Winsor and Newton, Maimeri, Lenfranc Bourgeois and many others. Actually it is really easy to glaze with acrylics also because you do not have wait for long time drying as happens in oil paint. You just have to choose the spot you want to glaze and then start to prepare the medium. Usually medium to glaze is dense and viscous just to don’t allow colour to pour on support. You should use a flat brush with soft bristles and in the meanwhile prepare little colour. Remember another important thing: NEVER use white with glazes because it will ruin glaze effect!

Yes you need so little colour to glaze indeed you have to mix 80% of medium and just 20% of colour. Make sure you glaze with colour darker than layer of paint you’re going to glaze. Once you applied the first layer of glaze you will notice right away an improvement of deepth and transparency. The good new is that you can make as many layers of glaze as you want! It’s up to you because you need to adapt glazes to your style of  painting and to your needs as well. Remember to be delicate and attentive when you glaze painting indeed it takes a light hand to glaze properly. Another great new is that with such “glaze medium” you do not need to wait for so long between one glaze and another therefore your work will be quickly and pleasant! 

Glaze Medium for acrylics will help you for sure to get amazing glazes which will make your paintings deeper and more brilliant so stop waste time and start to make your own masterpieces with glaze medium for acrylic colours!