Liquatex Acrylic Paint

Whether you are taking up painting as a new hobby or are a seasoned artist, Liquatex makes an acrylic paint to suit your needs. Liquatex Acrylic Paints come two ways: as Liquatex Basics series, or as Liquatex Artist Series. An art professor recommended this high quality acrylic paint to me seven years ago, and I haven't changed brands since. There are advantages and disadvantages to both the Liquatex Basics and Liquatex Artist Series Acrylics; the kind you choose for yourself will depend on what you want to get out of your acrylic paint.

Liquatex Basic Acrylic Paint is a good place to start if you've never painted with acrylics before. The boxed set with the standard colors is all you'll need because the colors are true, which means that the red comes out of the tube as actually red and not red-orange or purple-red. Liquatex Basic Acrylics mix easily to make other colors without losing vibrancy like some acrylic paints. The tubes of Liquatex Basic Acrylic Paint are bigger and cheaper than those in the Artist Series, and generally considered easier to work with. The drawback to using Liquatex Basics instead of the Artist Series is that the Basic Acrylics are thinner than the Artist Series.

Liquatex Artist Series Acrylic Paint is what you want to use for professional quality paintings. It does, however, require a little more effort to master the techniques particular to painting with them. The Artist Series requires a little more mixing than the Basics because not all the colors come out of the tube as true colors. Some of the Artist Series colors come out translucent and need to be mixed with an opaque color before spreading on a canvas.

On the other hand, the Liquatex Artist Series Acrylic Paint comes out of the tube much thicker than the Basics. This makes for greater potential in texture and layering on the canvas. To spread the Liquatex Artist Series Acrylic Paint across a large area, it helps to mix a little matte medium into the paint beforehand. Perhaps because the Liquatex Artist Series Acrylics are thicker than the Basics, the colors are even more vibrant, even when heavily mixed.

While Liquatex Artist Series Acrylic Paint is available in boxed sets like the Basics, you might be better off buying individual tubes for specific projects. The Artist Series Acrylic tubes vary widely in price depending on the color, because certain pigments cost more than others. The cadmium red and certain yellows are particularly pricey. You also want to pay attention to the viscosity of certain tubes of paint. High viscosity indicates a thicker paint, while low viscosity indicates a thinner paint.