Glazing with acrylics

[Mike]

I predominately paint with oils; however, I wanted to work with a minimal pigment load and still have a finished surface that wouldn’t crinkle or peal off the canvas. Other than egg tempera, acrylics proved to be my best option. What I like best is the almost 3-D effect created with multiple thin layers. If we switch the conversation sideways and over to oils, sure, we can thin our pigments with any number of oils, but the chance of thin film layer failure also increases. I’m not willing to entertain that failure route, so unless my longevity result can be guaranteed, I’ll have to increase my skill as an oil painter. This skill increase seems to be a life long activity. However, if anyone wants to dive into acrylic glazing, let’s get to it.😉

[Al]

Mike, use a quick drying alkyd like liquin or galkyd, they form a strong elastic film when dry. Alkyds solve many issues of painting. I started out painting with acrylics and I did a lot of glazing with them ( I didn’t know I was doing it) and some of my work was photographic in appearance. When I switched to oils I learned how to glaze with liquin and it still works for me to this day.