How to Do Acrylic Pour Art

How to Do Basic Mixed Pour Painting

1. Prep Your Paint

   Mix each paint color. 

   This is a rough recipe, and you can alter the proportions a little. No need to precisely measure everything!

   In a small cup, mix one part paint, one part water (distilled, if possible), and two parts Floetrol latex paint additive. 

   The mixture should be runny, but not watery. If it's too thick, it won't flow and can create areas that crack when the paint dries, but if it's watery, you won't get the beautiful swirled effects.

   To create the "cells" or little dots of color in the paint, add a few drops or a small spray of silicone lubricant, such as Liquid Wrench, to one or two colors. 

2. Mix in Separate Cups Then Combine

   Mix all the colors you want to use in separate cups. 

   For this sample, the colors are orange, metallic bronze, red, purple, and hot pink. We added a tiny bit of silicone into the hot pink only.

   Next, carefully pour each of the colors into one larger cup. Adding these gently reduces color mixing. Some colors will sink, while others will stay near the top.

3. Place Your Medium in a Tray

   To keep this from getting too messy, place your stretched canvas or another surface in a disposable metal pan or tray. You can use it again and again, but you won't risk ruining another tray or pan. Keeping the item elevated from the bottom of the tray gives the paint a place to go, but it's not required.

   Covering your work surface is also a good idea.

   Begin pouring the paint onto the canvas. You can pour it in one big puddle, drizzle it around the surface, or slowly pour it in a line down the middle.

4. Move Your Object Around

   Next, tilt the pan around so that the paint runs to the edges and covers the entire surface.

   Leave your painting to dry. Depending on the thickness of the paint, it can take 24 hours or more.

How to Flip Paint Pour

1. Add Paint to the Cup

   Another way to do an acrylic pour is to flip the cup instead of pouring it. Start by adding paint to the cup just like in the first method. If the canvas is small enough, you can place it face down on top of the cup as you see here. If you're brave and not afraid of the potential mess, you can also quickly flip the cup onto a face-up canvas.

2. Flip Your Cup Onto the Canvas

   Hold the canvas and cup and flip them so the cup of paint is now upside down on the canvas.

   Lift the cup straight up (you may need to hold the canvas down until you break the suction). The paint will start to flow out in a circular shape.

   For this sample, the cup included orange, yellow, light lime green (with a bit of silicone), and a bit more orange.

3. Tilt and Move Your Painting

   Tilt your painting around to cover the canvas. You can also move it around to change the direction of the swirls.

4. Add More Paint If Needed

   If you need to, you can add a little more paint and continue tilting it around or touch up the edges later.

Other Methods of Paint Pouring

1. Prepare Your Frame

   To paint other items, like this simple wood frame, follow the same basic steps. Set your item in the metal tray.

   Mix your paint and add the colors to a cup. This one uses aqua, blue, gray, and purple. None of the colors have silicone, so it will only have swirls and none of the dots or cells.

2. Coat Your Picture Frame

   Pour the paint on the areas you want to cover. If you go back over an area with more paint, it will add to the marbling.

3. Fill in Blank Areas

   To fill in small areas, you can use your paint stirrer to coax the paint into those blank spots.

After your paintings dry completely, you can add a coat of sealer to preserve them. 

Remember, every time you do an acrylic pour, the results will be different. And because there are so many combinations and even ways to pour the paint, the possibilities are endless!