How to compose abstract art

I think you have to have an understanding of what abstract art is before you can make it. There are a lot of great abstract artists out there that one can draw some inspiration from. For me I get a lot of inspiration from Marcel Duchamp, Francis Bacon, Robert Rauschenberg and many other modern artists.

First you have to find a meduim that you’re comfortable working in. I usually work with acrylic paint, but lately I’ve been experimenting with oil paint. Oil paint give you a great texture that you don’t get with acrylic paint. Some of the drawbacks I find with oil paint are, it smeels bad and takes a long time to dry. But these are minor drawbacks to deal with.

I also use collage in my paintings. I tend to paint no representational things in my paintings. Which works well with abstract painting. I don’t always have a set plan on what I’m going to add to a blank canvas. I just usually let the brush goes where it wants to, and in the process things will begin to take shape. As for colours, I choose what ever i feel like using at that moment in time. Some of my canvases just have paint on them but like I said before I also like to incorporate collage, or mixed media if you will to the painting. The state of the painting dictates whether or not collage should be added.

To create abstract art you really have to have a wild and vivid imagination and to be able to suspend your belief in anything representational. Abstract art isn’t going to be something that’s readily recognized by the general public. And it will give cause for people to question if it’s art.

Collage can be a really fun medium to work in. It will make you a packrat and you will find you’re saving anything that you find of interest and usefullness to use in your art. It will also make you aware of the things that are a part of your daily life and you will in turn have a new outlook on items that you would normally think of as trash.

One of the easiest types of abstract art that I like to make are called “scrapes.” The best thing to use in making these are illustration board. It holds the paint better than reagular mat board would. Although you can use mat board, you will just get a different look. It won’t be as glossy. And the best paint to use in making “scrapes” is acrylic.

To make a “scrape” pick out 3-4 different colours that you would like to use. Squirt a line of paint across the top of the board, this will be you background colour. Then take the other colours and squirt them around the board. You can do this any way you want, and the way you squirt it on the board will maintina the shape when you scrape it. After you have all the paint on the board, take a scraper and and scrape down on the board and then you will have a wonderful piece of abstract art. The more you make them the more you will be willing to experiment with them and add collage to them or what ever else takes your fancy. You can make these with oil paint but they don’t come out as nice.

So however you choose to make an absttract piece of art just remember to bring to the table and imagination and a desire to make something that is unique. Take a look at other artists work and see if it ccan help spark some drive in you, just don’t copy someone elses work. Always put your own spin to it.