Painters across borders love painting in colorful strokes and try to communicate their perception of the world through skilful use of color, texture etc. Acrylic is one such medium that helps a painter to communicate his vision of the world in the most appealing manner. Acrylic paint is fast-drying paint containing pigment suspended in an acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylic paints can be diluted with water, but become water-resistant when dry. There are brilliant colors available in acrylics that often lure the painters from other mediums to switch over to acrylics. Acrylics were first made commercially available in the 1950s.Today, in the market, there are different 'grades' of acrylic paints available. These grades are primarily to categorize paints in such a way that they are compatible with the user applying them. The grades of acrylic paints available are:
Artist grade - artist acrylics are designed for painting on canvas, boards, paper, panels, and other prepared surfaces. Highly pigmented, they are generally of consistency similar to oil paint, preserving brush strokes. They can be used with a variety of painting techniques, including impasto and knife painting.
Professional grade - professional grade acrylics focus on achieving the maximum pigment load and highest performance from each color. They require knowledge of mediums, in order to even out the colors. Painters who work on smaller-scale works, in the style of oil painters, often prefer tubes because it is easier to prevent skimming and oxidation of unused paint while they work.
Value, evenness, and consistency - these artist grade paints are the most suitable for adult learners because they even out the performance of pigments to achieve a more uniform surface (matte vs. Gloss) as well as more even mixing characteristics and drying times. Higher pigment concentration is sometimes sacrificed for ease-of-use. These very same properties make them suitable for collaborative works, such as murals.
Extended drying time - these paints have longer open time, but they require special techniques and mediums.
High viscosity - designed with high bulk solids, they are exceptional for knife painting and impasto. They preserve brush strokes and textures well.
Using acrylic as a medium to paint makes the ardent task of translating imagination on a canvas much, much easier! the beauty and wonder of acrylic paints lets one discover the true joy of painting!
