5 Ways to Use Acrylic Painting Swipe Techniques
(Source)
Acrylic swipe techniques make use of paint density and additives to create cells of different colours in stunning contrasts, patterns, and formations. The swiping motion moves one acrylic paint colour over others, adding variety to the patterns. Learn how to use these acrylic painting swipe techniques when paint pouring, to make five different paint effects for your artworks. Read on to get inspired!
Overview:
- Before you start
- 5 acrylic painting swipe techniques
- Centre swipe technique
- Stripy swipe technique
- Fantasy spiral swipe
- Swirl and spin swipe technique
- Flower swipe
Before you start
Gather up your materials and find a suitable spot where you can get creative, and a little messy. You will need:
- Acrylic paints
- Paint mixing sticks
- Spatulas or plastic putty knives of different sizes for swiping paint
- Acrylic pouring medium
- Distilled water
- Silicone oil
- Pre-mixed pouring paints
- Palette knife
- Piece of cardboard, plastic wrap, or acetate sheet for swiping
- Clear cups for pouring paint
- Butane torch or hairdryer
- Canvas or wood board
- A pottery wheel or lazy susan
5 acrylic painting swipe techniques for pouring
1. Centre swipe technique
(Source)
The centre swipe acrylic paint pour technique results in large cells of colour appearing in the centre of the canvas surrounded by the underlying colour. This creates a super unique effect for your artworks. Find out how we do it below.
How to do it:
- Prepare your paints. Your acrylic swipe recipe is one part paint, one part pouring medium, and one half part water. You will need more of your base colour than the other colours. Optional: Using a few drops of silicone oil in your accent colour or colours will result in larger cells coming through the base.
- Prime the canvas with pouring medium or prepared pouring paint. You can do this by pouring the paint onto the canvas and spreading it with a palette knife to cover every surface.
- Pour your accent colours onto the centre of the canvas.
- While the accent is settling onto the canvas, use your palette knife to add the base colour to the sides and edges to keep the accent centred.
- Pour your base colour gently over the accent colour.
- Using a flat edge from a sheet of plastic, paper towel, or piece of cardboard, lightly swipe from left to right over the base colour you just poured.
- The accent-coloured cells will slowly begin to rise up through the base colour. You can apply more base colour to the edges to keep the accent colour centred during this process.
- Holding your butane torch or hairdryer, aim it parallel to your paint surface so that the flame isn’t in direct contact with the paint. Begin moving the torch over the paint to release any bubbles.
- Set your painting somewhere safe to dry.
2. Stripy swipe technique
(Source)
This stunning paint swipe technique allows you to incorporate all your favourite colours in one work of art. Find out how we do it below!
How to do it:
- Prepare your acrylic colours with pouring medium or use premixed colours.
- Add a few drops of silicone oil to all the colours. However, make sure to leave this out for your base colour.
- Pour the paint in stripes next to each other over the canvas. You can repeat colours if you like. Just make sure to leave one edge, an inch or two, of the canvas bare.
- Cover the bare edge of the canvas with your swipe colour.
- Use a straight firm edge like cardboard or plastic, and start at the edge with your swipe colour. Begin moving the straight edge across the length of the swipe painting on canvas.
- Carefully apply heat to the surface of the paint with a butane torch or hair dryer to release bubbles and help with cell creation.
- Leave the painting in a safe place to dry. It will continue to develop as it dries.
3. Fantasy spiral swipe and swirl technique
(Source)
This swipe and swirl technique uses a homemade improvisation on a palette knife to create an array of cells moving outward from the centre of the canvas in all directions. Find out how we do this unique technique below.
How to do it:
- Make your homemade swiping tool using a palette knife and a flat quarter-round section of plastic. Attach the rounded triangle to your palette knife with the round edge facing down and the point facing the handle. It should resemble a fan when you are done.
- Prepare your paint by mixing it with a pouring medium or using premixed pouring paint. Put the paint into cups so that it is ready to pour on the canvas. You will need several colours to make up the spirals and one colour to swipe.
- Pour your first colour. Start with a small puddle in the middle of the canvas and then pour in a spiral outward until you reach the edges. Repeat this process for all your colours.
- Pick up the canvas and tilt it slightly back and forth to cover the entire surface with paint. Make sure that you keep the general spiral pattern of the paint as you do this.
- Make a cross in the middle of the canvas with your swiping colour. The lines of the cross should be as long as about one-third of the length of the canvas.
- Now it’s time to swipe! Using your homemade fan-shaped swiping tool, start at the centre of the cross and swipe toward the edge of the canvas. Wipe off the tool after each swipe before swiping again. Work your way around the entire canvas.
- Lightly and carefully apply heat from the butane torch, moving quickly over the surface of the painting to encourage cells to emerge.
- Allow the painting to continue to develop and dry.
4. Swirl and spin swipe technique
(Source)
This technique adds movement to the acrylic painting swipe technique, creating interest and variation. Read how we do it below.
How to do it:
- Prepare your paint using a pouring medium or use premixed pouring paint. Pour your paint into cups.
- Put your canvas on a covered pottery wheel, lazy susan, or any other spinning surface.
- Pour an even coating of base colour on your canvas.
- Use several colours for this next step. Use a spoon or mixing stick or pour carefully to apply thin swirls of colour in a circular shape. The circle of colour should eventually reach the edges of the canvas.
- Apply your swiping colour to a spatula. Cover about two inches of the end of the spatula with paint.
- With your spatula facing paint-side down toward the canvas, start in the middle and drag toward the edge of the painting as you spin the canvas. This should create a spiral.
- Spin the painting vigorously to move the paint toward the edges of the canvas and expand the developing cells.
- Allow the painting to dry in a safe place.
5. Flower swipe
(Source)
The flower swipe technique uses radiating swiping to make a flower pattern on the canvas. This is a great acrylic swipe for beginners because the swiping technique is simple and can be changed to suit your tastes and skill.
How to do it:
- Prepare your acrylic paint with pouring medium or use premixed paint. Pour your paint into cups.
- Cover a canvas with your background colour.
- Make a small puddle of paint in the centre of the canvas.
- Make circles around that puddle with your other colours, without overlapping them.
- Using a small spatula, about one inch wide, swipe from the centre puddle of colour quickly and lightly outward without going all the way to the edge of the canvas. Repeat this process to make as many “petals” as you like.
- For more colour, you can pour another puddle in the middle, or even multiple colours, and swipe those outward to create more petals.
- Use a butane torch or hairdryer to carefully apply heat to the painting without letting the flame touch the surface. Run the torch over the coloured parts of the canvas.
- Use a mixing stick or other implement to put small drops of colour in the centre of the flower.
- Apply the torch again to the centre of the flower.
- Let the painting dry in a safe place.
Discover your creativity with Art to Art
Find everything you need to make use of these fun acrylic painting swipe techniques at Art to Art. Find exciting new acrylic, oil paint, and watercolour paint colors, mediums, and paintbrushes. Orders are shipped the same day when placed before 11 AM. Get free shipping when you spend over $100 Australia-wide. Join the Rewards Club to earn points toward free items or discounts.
