Best Canvas Painting Advice For Beginners

Have you got a brand new and blank canvas which you find yourself staring at blankly without an idea how to proceed? Let’s get you set up properly and try to jumpstart the creative parts of your brain and most importantly do not forget to relax and have fun!

Getting The Canvas Set Up

The Right Tools For The Job

Brushes are of course your most important tool to get right. What kind of painting style are you going to be doing? Whether it’s acrylic, watercolor, oil based or anything thing else you must have the proper brushes so plan ahead. Some brushes are soft, some are stiff and they of course come in different shapes, sizes and handle lengths. Do your due diligence in this step and prepare accordingly with the right brush for the job. Also, now is a good time to investigate any additives you may want to use in your paint. Adding different mediums can help you to adjust the characteristics of the paint such as it’s thickness, hugh, brightness and even it’s drying time.

Best Canvas For Beginners

It is highly recommended that you begin with an already stretched canvas on a frame. You can buy these at your local craft store or online at sites like Amazon who have many types of canvases available.

Is Your Canvas Grounded?

Grounding your canvas simply means preparing the surface and getting it ready for paint. You need a product like gesso or other primer substances. Using a wide brush is easiest for this step and you want to completely coat the surface of the canvas to seal the fibers in order to get the best out of your paint application. This will cause your painting to be smoother, more even and will cause it to last a lot longer in the long run.

Another step you may want to consider in the prep is to paint a background on your canvas, one solid color to act as a base or ground. Leave it white if your going to use light colors or want to establish a brighter mood. In contrast, use a dark gray to set up a moody tone. If you don’t know what you will be painting then you could hardly go wrong with a neutral light gray background color.

Decide On A Topic And Paint The Bones

Once you have picked out what you want to paint you should consider painting the bones and what I mean is to basically sketch the foundational structure of your painting. Most professional canvas painters suggest using a monochrome color as your “underpainting”. Especially a pallette choice that is in solid contrast to your background tone. Have you seen or read any of those articles on the discovery of “abandoned paintings” beneath masterpieces of for example Leonardo Da Vinci? Most great painters will sketch an outline of their intended scene or subject and then use it as a guide to paint over. Sometimes this can help immensely if you discover an aspect you want to change and it will be much easier to alter the earlier in the painting process it is.

Last Step For Painting On Canvas For Beginners

Last and most importantly you need to plan ahead and have a safe space for your canvas to sit and dry without disturbance or contamination from dirt, dust or whatever else could get on the surface. You can lay it flat on a clean surface or you can just leave it on the easel. Think about this ahead of time before you start painting and pick out a resting spot for your work.

That’s it for this time and now you should be prepared and armed with the knowledge you will need to get the most out of your new hobby or passion. Just because you are a beginner at canvas painting doesn’t mean you can’t prepare like the masters.

Have fun and start painting!