At the beginning of the 20th century, the creative arsenal of artists was enriched with a new material: acrylic paints. Extremely bright colors, fast drying, the ability to apply to a variety of surfaces – all this quickly made acrylic popular among artists.
We often turn to the magic of acrylic paints: both in painting classes and at various workshops, such as for fantastic decorating Christmas tree balls and for abstract fluid art. Today it’s hard to imagine art without acrylic paints, but they have been around for less than a hundred years.
It all started when the German chemist Otto Röhm invented acrylic resins, and from there it was just a step to acrylic paint. The very first samples were produced in the 1930s for industrial use, but ten years later, the American artist and paint manufacturer Sam Golden, together with his uncle, the artist Leonard Bokur, developed acrylic paints based on whitespirit, which were used for painting. These paints were characterized by bright colors and became shiny after drying. In addition, although acrylic resembles oil paints, it dries much faster, which also became its advantage, because artists could work faster without waiting for the previous layer of paint to dry. In the 1950s, acrylic paints were invented that could be diluted with water, and since then acrylic has become a popular medium and its popularity has not faded to this day.
In the 1960s, artists were already using acrylic paints quite often, and some manufacturers took notice and began to produce such paints specifically for artists. They experimented with the consistency and began to pour paints into small tubes instead of large cans. Thus, acrylic paints became as affordable and convenient to use as other paints, which only increased their popularity.
Advantages of acrylic paints:
- They adhere perfectly to any material: paper, canvas, wood, glass, metal, plastic, etc;
- They dry quickly, leaving a durable film on the surface;
- They have high elasticity, so the color layer does not crack over time;
- A rich palette – there is a huge selection of shades of acrylic paints, from traditional to neon-bright and even fluorescent;
- They are well mixed, allowing you to create all the necessary colors and shades from a basic set;
- Moisture resistant. Fresh paint can be easily washed off the surface, hands, or even clothes, which is a significant plus in itself, but after drying, water cannot damage the paint layer, and you will need a solvent to wash it off;
- By adding more or less water, the artist can vary the consistency of the paint at his or her discretion: from thick to very thin. This, in turn, allows the use of various artistic techniques: from impasto to splashing;
- Perfectly combines with other techniques and art materials;
- Non-toxic, does not contain components harmful to humans;
- No unpleasant odor;
- Quite affordable and cheaper than oil paints.
Among the disadvantages of acrylic is that the paint applied to the ground darkens slightly over time and that, due to the rapid drying of the paint, it can be more difficult for the artist to make corrections to the work.
The drying time is the main difference between acrylic and oil. Oil paints dry slowly, so the artist has a lot of time to mix colors and make corrections. In some cases, this slow drying of oil can be an advantage, in others – a disadvantage. While oil paints can take days to dry, each layer of acrylic dries in 10-20 minutes. However, it depends on the brand of paint, the quality and level of humidity in the environment, so sometimes this time can be extended to an hour or more. Contemporary artists often strive for greater expression, so the ability to work quickly is more relevant for them, as well as the ability to adjust the consistency of acrylic paint, up to very liquid, when it can be literally poured onto the canvas or other surfaces. Nevertheless, if necessary, you can also use retarders – special additives that slow down the drying of acrylic paint, giving the artist the necessary time.
