Once I'm finished adding the 3D elements and designs, it is time to add the paint.
I mix up some acrylic to match the paint swatch the client gave me. Acrylic will dry fast and give me an opportunity to do more underpainting in the same day. If I used the oil paint that will be used for much of the process, I will have to wait a couple days for the oil to dry.
I place items under one end of each panel and allow the watery paint mixture to drip down the surface and settle in the crevasses and valleys I made in the gesso applications. With many layers of varying colors, I will be building depth while capturing the freshness of the drips to bring the viewer the feeling that when they are viewing the final piece, it still looks as though it were wet and in movement.
Depending on the look I'm trying to achieve, I can pour the paint on, brush it on, or drip it. Then I tip the panel to the desired degree to get the paint to flow how I want it. Once I get the effect I want, I lay the panels flat to dry before the next layer.
