Abstract Art Technique for Craft Projects

I started doing this art technique when I was taking art classes in college. I was in love with the way paint acted when you transferred it from one surface to another. It's like a temporary paint stamp.

Materials needed:

• acrylic paint in whatever colors you choose
• a piece of plastic or a sheet of transparency. I have used plastic wrap, but I wanted a more rigid surface. You can really use any smooth, non-permeable surface. Tip- you can buy individual sheets of transparencies for about ten cents at FedEx Kinkos. 
• Paper- I use card stock or thicker drawing paper, 60lb or heavier in weight. 
• Paint brush(es)- depending on the texture you want. You can even use your fingers, sticks, or anything else you feel like using. 
• Water
• pens (optional) I like black fine liner pens. Sharpie or Micron are good. Don't used water based pens if you plan on using this for glass tile projects. The glue/glaze can make water based ink run and blur. 

I start by putting a few blobs of paint on the transparency. You can see in the picture that I have the transparency sitting on top of my paper. This helps me see the textures I am creating a bit more easily. I start to fiddle with the colors. Mix them together, put a little water on to get a smoother consistency. You want to work fast or keep the paint moist by adding water. You could even get a spray bottle of water and spritz the surface if you are working in a dry environment. 

Once you get the textures you want, flip the transparency over onto your paper and smooth the paint down with your hands. Don't rub too hard in isolated spots because it might change the shapes you created. If your paint is thick in certain spots, it will ripple when you pull the transparency off. It looks kind of cool when it does that. It looks sort of like veins. 

I like to work with the transparency a couple of times. Once I pull the film off, I lay it back down and moisten the surface with my brush while creating new textures and patters. You can put more paint down if you need it. 

Once I am satisfied with the results, I wipe the transparency with a wet paper towel or rinse if off in my kitchen sink so that I can use it again. After the paint dries you can take a black pen and start 'pulling' out shapes from chaos. 

There are so many possibilities with color, shape and texture using this technique. I hope you have fun with it and please share any questions or comments you may have. If you want to put this technique to good use, try making magnets like these!