Are you confused by all the different bottles and tubes of GOLDEN paint at the paint store? Watch this short video on how to differentiate between fluids, hi-flow, heavy body, OPEN and So-flat paint. This is great if you are new to acrylic painting, especially the professional grade paints.

Elaine de Kooning was a pivotal, first-generation artist of the abstract expressionist movement. She was important not just because of her talented and famous husband, William De Kooning, but also for her skill, passion and deeply committed belief in the art movement that was changing art in America and across the western world.

Most of the abstract expressionists between 1929 and 1959 were incredibly impoverished. Today we joke about being a “starving artist” but most artists of that time were struggling to feed and house themselves.. They were sleeping and painting in unheated lofts and homes without running water. It wasn’t an easy life to choose but, for most, it wasn’t a choice because life was art and art was life. Eventually a few went on to make enough money to be comfortable. On top of money worries, many were in an existential crisis because of war and the economy. Still, even with the horrors of the day and the struggle to survive, most were fully engaged in intellectual discussion and debate with each other and this fueled their artistic drive and passion. One of these courageous artists was Lee Krasner.

Mitchell was an important visual voice in an extraordinary era of American art.

In my expressive abstract painting classes my students are instructed to paint on paper when we do exercises exploring principles of Value, Color, Composition, Shape and more. If it is the first time they are using paper, they are usually pleasantly surprised by how versatile and wonderful paper can be as a painting substrate.

One way to practice paying attention to value is to make drawings and paintings in just black and white including mid-tone grays. It is a great exercise in learning how to see and understand value. It can be a great way to loosen up and play while strengthening your value memory.

If you are an abstract painter or wonder how abstract artists find inspiration, you might also ask, does meaning and intention drive the painting and/or the title?

Early on in my progress as an abstract painter, and in my art journaling practice, I was inspired by handwriting as a mark making tool. The personal “hand” to create lines and texture feels raw and authentic. It provides a way to start a painting or to add a type of signature to a piece.