You could also paint a subject or landscape. Keep in mind which area you’d like to add a dripping effect to. For example, you might paint a large window with panes so you can spray and create raindrops on it.
Work in a well-ventilated space or outdoors to minimize breathing in the fumes. If you get turpentine on your hands, wash them thoroughly with soap and water. If you prefer, work outside against a fence or shed. Then, you can spread drop cloths on the ground to absorb the mess.
Experiment with spraying your painting until you get the effect you’re looking for.
If you painted inside a studio, keep the window open for ventilation.
Applying a dripping glaze to a portrait gives it a modern or contemporary feel. It’s also great for landscapes where you want a wet or blurred effect, such as a rainy street.
Light drying oil that contains purified linseed oil and turpentine is a great medium for this method. [7] X Expert Source Rebecca SchweigerProfessional Artist & Art School Founder Expert Interview. 19 November 2021. The turpentine thins the pigments in the oil paint so your thinned paint drips on the canvas easier. Remember that oil and water don’t mix. So, don’t use an acrylic paint medium with oil paint. [8] X Expert Source Rebecca SchweigerProfessional Artist & Art School Founder Expert Interview. 19 November 2021.
Let your oil painting dry completely before you hang or varnish it. If you’d like to make just 1 area of the painting look like it’s dripping, use a smaller brush and paint along the top of that space. Paint just along the bottom edge of storm clouds if you want to create a rain-like effect below them, for instance.
The primer prevents the acidic paint from destroying the surface of the canvas. You can use oil-based or acrylic gesso depending on what you have in your studio. Keep in mind that oil-based gesso will last longer than acrylic gesso.
Liquin is a medium that helps the oil paint dry faster. Use turpentine or odorless mineral spirits for your paint thinner, since both of these make the paint drip easier.
You could stir the mixture with your paintbrush bristles, but this can clog the bristles with paint.
For example, if you want to make a background for an ocean, use different shades of blue. If you want to make just a portion of the canvas look like it’s dripping, pour a tiny amount of the oil paint on that space.
You can try this effect on any side of the canvas. If you’re making an abstract oil painting, play around with tilting all of the sides so the paint drips and runs in all directions.
Experiment by layering more oil paint on your canvas. [20] X Expert Source Rebecca SchweigerProfessional Artist & Art School Founder Expert Interview. 19 November 2021. You could paint a setting sun onto your background of waves, for instance.
You might find that you’ll use certain drip effects for different parts of your paintings. For example, you could pour and tilt paint to create a background. Then, you can drip thinned oil-paint over it for an expressive painting.
Don’t limit yourself to using paintbrushes! Experiment with squirting thinned paint out of a turkey baster or use a stick to flick the paint. Pollock also poured and drizzled paint on his flat canvases. Play around with lots of techniques to create your own abstract design.
To make a fun abstract painting, just keep turning and tilting the canvas without trying to make a recognizable image.
The artist George Oommen frequently uses this technique to make sunlight on water or tropical settings in his paintings.
