Do your acrylics feel flat next to oils? You're not alone. Many painters struggle with that plastic sheen and quick-dry frustration. The good news? You don't need expensive oil paints to get museum-quality depth.
These five techniques transform your work. Master them and your acrylics will glow like traditional oils. No solvents required.
Why Do Acrylics Look "Flat" Compared To Oils?
Acrylics dry fast. This creates challenges that oil painters never face. The plastic binder leaves a dull surface once water evaporates. Your painting loses its glow.
The Drying Time Dilemma
Oil paint stays wet for days. This "open time" lets you blend transitions without rushing. Acrylics? You get minutes at best before tackiness sets in.
This speed difference changes everything. Oils allow you to push paint around the canvas for hours. You can soften edges and create gradual shifts in tone. Acrylics become unworkable almost immediately. Touch them too late and you'll lift the layer beneath.
The Matte Finish vs. The Oil Glow
Fresh acrylic looks vibrant and wet. Then it dries. The color shifts dramatically as water leaves the binder. What looked rich becomes chalky and lifeless.
Oil paint maintains its depth. The linseed oil stays glossy and refractive. Light bounces through the layers. Acrylics lose this quality because the water-based binder dries clear but flat.
Tip 1: Extend Your "Open Time" With Retarders and Misters
The solution starts with slowing everything down. You need more working time. Two tools make this possible.
How To Use Acrylic Retarders Or Slow-Dri Mediums
Retarders extend your blending window significantly. Mix a small amount into your paint on the palette. A little goes far—start with one drop per dollop of paint.
Golden's Slow-Dri medium works well for this purpose. So does Liquitex's blending gel. These products delay the evaporation process without thinning your paint too much. You'll gain precious minutes for smoother transitions.
Don't overdo it though. Too much retarder makes the paint tacky and weird. It can also reduce opacity. Start with a 1:10 ratio of medium to paint. Adjust based on your working speed.
A Pro Tip On Fine-Mist Sprayers
Here's a technique professionals swear by. Keep a fine-mist spray bottle filled with clean water nearby. Regular spray bottles won't work—the droplets are too large and uneven.
Lightly mist your canvas every few minutes. This rehydrates the surface without flooding it. Your paint stays workable longer. You can blend wet-into-wet just like oils.
The key word is "lightly." You want a barely visible sheen of moisture. Too much water will dilute your pigment and create runs. Practice your misting technique on scrap canvas first.
Tip 2: Master The "Imprimatura" (The Toned Canvas Technique)
Starting on white canvas works against you. Professional oil painters rarely do it. They use a colored ground layer first.
Why Starting With A Mid-Tone Base Adds Depth
A toned canvas gives you instant cohesion. Burnt Sienna works beautifully for portraits and warm subjects. Mix it thin with water or matte medium. Brush it over your entire canvas in a translucent wash.
This base unifies your painting immediately. When you apply subsequent layers, tiny gaps let the underpainting peek through. These flecks of color tie everything together. Your work looks professional from the start.
The mid-tone also helps with value judgment. Working from middle gray or brown makes it easier to see both lights and darks. White canvas tricks your eye. Everything looks too dark by comparison.
How The Base Layer Creates Professional Cohesion
Think of the toned ground as a secret ingredient. It appears in unexpected places throughout your finished piece. Between brushstrokes. In texture valleys. Around the edges of shapes.
This creates harmony that straight-from-white paintings lack. Old Masters understood this principle deeply. Their glowing paintings often started on warm ochre or cool gray grounds. The base color influenced every decision they made afterward.
Try different tones for different subjects. Warm browns work for portraits. Cool grays suit landscapes. Venetian Red creates drama. Experiment until you find your preference.
Tip 3: Create Texture With Heavy Body Paints & Gels
Oil paintings have physical presence. Brushstrokes catch the light. Ridges create shadows. This three-dimensional quality separates amateur work from professional art.
Mastering The Impasto Style
Heavy body acrylics give you similar texture potential. These paints have thick consistency straight from the tube. They hold their shape after application.
Golden Heavy Body acrylics work exceptionally well. So does Liquitex Professional Heavy Body line. These paints don't self-level like student-grade acrylics. Your brushstrokes stay visible and pronounced.
For even more dimension, mix in modeling paste or heavy gel medium. These additives increase body without changing color. You can build actual ridges and peaks. The paint becomes almost sculptural.
Load your brush generously. Apply with confidence and intention. Don't go back to fiddle with it. Let those marks stand proud. They'll catch light beautifully once dry.
The Palette Knife Advantage
Brushes have limits for texture creation. Palette knives open new possibilities. They spread paint differently and create unique surface qualities.
A painting knife (the small offset ones) gives you precision. A palette knife (the larger spatula types) covers area quickly. Both create marks that brushes can't duplicate.
Scrape paint across the canvas. Twist the knife as you lift. Drag it sideways for smooth planes. Each motion creates distinct texture. The variety keeps your surface interesting and dynamic.
Knives also prevent overworking. You can't blend endlessly with a knife like you can with a brush. This limitation actually improves your painting. It forces decisive mark-making. Your work becomes bolder and more confident.
RELATED: How To Choose Oil Painting Mediums (And Avoid Costly Mistakes)
Tip 4: Layering With Transparent Glazes
Oil painters have used glazing for centuries. This technique creates depth that direct painting can't match. Thin transparent layers over opaque foundations produce luminous results.
The "Fat Over Lean" Mimicry
In oil painting, fat over lean prevents cracking. Thin layers go down first. Thicker, more oil-rich layers go on top. Acrylics don't crack the same way, but the principle still applies.
Start with thin washes. Water down your paint or use matte medium. Establish your composition with these transparent layers. Build up gradually to thicker applications.
Gloss polymer medium makes excellent glazing liquid. Mix it with a tiny amount of paint. The consistency should resemble stained glass—color you can see through. Brush it over dry underlayers.
Each glaze subtly shifts the color beneath it. Three or four thin layers create richness that one thick layer never could. The light literally travels through the transparent films. It bounces back from lower layers. This creates that famous "inner glow" of oil paintings.
Enhancing Color Vibrancy
Glazing prevents muddy colors better than mixing. Want a rich purple? Don't mix red and blue together. Instead, glaze transparent blue over dried red. The result glows.
This optical mixing creates cleaner, more vibrant colors. Physical mixing on the palette combines pigments. This often dulls them. Glazing keeps pigments separate. Your eye mixes them instead.
Try glazing yellow over blue for brilliant greens. Glaze red over yellow for intense oranges. The colors maintain their purity. They sing instead of mumbling.
Build shadows with transparent glazes of complementary colors. Glaze thin blue over dried orange areas. The result looks complex and natural. Much better than adding black to darken things.
Tip 5: The Magic Of The Final Gloss Varnish
This step transforms everything. Acrylic paintings dry with uneven sheen. Some areas look glossy. Others appear flat and lifeless. Varnish fixes this instantly.
Bringing The "Wet Look" Back
High-gloss varnish makes dried acrylics look freshly painted. The color intensity returns. Depth appears as if by magic. This single step can make acrylics indistinguishable from oils.
Wait until your painting is completely dry. This takes at least 24 hours. Preferably a few days for thicker applications. Apply varnish in a dust-free area if possible.
Use a wide, soft brush. Work in even strokes across the surface. Don't overwork any area. Let the varnish self-level. Two thin coats work better than one thick coat.
The transformation is dramatic. Colors that looked dull suddenly pop. The surface becomes unified and professional. Every brushstroke gains prominence. The painting suddenly looks finished in a way it didn't before.
Protecting Your Masterpiece
Varnish does more than restore appearance. It protects your work from environmental damage. UV rays fade unprotected acrylics over time. Dust and dirt settle into the texture.
Quality varnish blocks harmful ultraviolet light. It creates a barrier against atmospheric pollutants. Your painting stays vibrant for decades instead of years. This matters for archival quality work.
Choose removable varnishes when possible. These allow future conservation if needed. Permanent varnishes can't be taken off without damaging the paint. Removable types give you options down the road.
Apply varnish to all finished acrylic work. It's professional practice. Galleries expect it. Collectors appreciate it. Most importantly, your painting deserves this protection and enhancement.
Best Easel Stand For Artists
Conclusion
These five techniques elevate acrylic painting significantly. Extended open time gives you control. Toned grounds add cohesion. Heavy body paints create dimension. Glazes build luminosity. Varnish brings everything together with that coveted oil-paint glow.
Start incorporating one technique at a time. Master it before adding another. Soon you'll wonder why acrylics ever felt limiting. The medium offers incredible versatility when you understand its potential. Your paintings will show depth, richness, and professional quality that rivals any oil work.