TEXTURE & PATTERN

Texture is the way a surface feels or is perceived to feel. Tactile texture is the actual three-dimensional feel of a surface. Visual texture is the illusion of peaks and valleys on the surface.

Pattern is typically made up of repeated shapes so it crosses Elements, but sometimes Pattern can read as textural. I include it here with Texture as artists often use Pattern as a textural Element even though the meaning of each is quite different.

Texture can be a compelling contrast to the other four Elements as seen in the painting on the right by Danae Mattes. When used next to flat areas or shapes, Texture provides depth and interest often pulling people literally closer to the work. How often have you seen a painting that you must peer at closely to see the brushwork or other textural marks on the surface?

Sixteen Artists – Sixteen Approaches: A Slide Show of Texture and Pattern

Please Note: Each video in this course has its own unique password.

• VIDEO PASSWORD: Sixteen

• VIDEO LENGTH: 9:41 minutes

ARTISTS INCLUDED (in order of appearance):

Click on any artist name to see more of their work

[1] Brian Rutenberg [2] Joan Brown [3] Joshua Meyer [4] Jerry McLaughlin [5] Danae Mattes [6] Tracey Adams [7] Irene Zweig [8] Michael Buscemi [9] Matt Gonzalez [10] Jenifer Kent [11] Sam Messenger [12] Amber Brookman [13] Kim Frohsin [14] Mark Fox [15] Agnes Martin [16] Cordula Kagelmann

Some Ideas On Materials

As we’ve seen in the examples above, texture is often (but not always) created with more than just paint alone. Texture can involve three dimensions which is generally achieved by adding something to the paint. Below I list a few mediums for oil and acrylic that you might like to experiment with. Acrylic painters do have more options in terms of store bought mediums.

OIL PAINT

Oil painters do not have as many options in this category as acrylic painters. If you are willing to experiment with non-traditional materials, such as Danae Mattes does with clay, or McLaughlin with ash, sand, and dirt, the world is your oyster! 

Note: Many artists use acrylic textured mediums, such as those on the right, as their base layer for oil paints. Be sure to let this layer dry before applying oils. I do not work this way so I cannot attest to the permanence of this method. I would just caution you that your painting may not be archival (hold up) over time. However, it also could be just fine. 

ACRYLIC PAINT

Golden alone has a plethora of mediums for your exploration!  Here are just a few with links to descriptions:

Emotive Qualities of Texture

TEXTURE involves more than just our visual sense. Texture is tactile. Not only do we literally feel (touch) surfaces, but texture can additionally imply emotional feelings or responses. Think of how the following words make you feel:

Sharp · Pebbly · Smooth · Soft · Crackly · Silky · Rough · Spiky

We can use Texture in our artwork to imply, portray or emphasize a multitude of emotional qualities. Try creating texture with an emotional intent…

Paint as Texture

In this video I paint an abstracted landscape from my imagination based on the California hills that surround me. I obviously exaggerate colors and shapes. I am working with thick oil paint adding cold wax medium only some of the time. I have painted 100’s of landscapes like this without cold wax with the same result. The wax helps me with the demo, drying time and does give added stiffness to the paint.

Please Note: Each video in this course has its own unique password.

• VIDEO PASSWORD: Texture

• VIDEO LENGTH: 19:32 minutes

Palette Colors Clockwise: Quinacridone Red, Cadmium Red Light, Cadmium Orange, Gold Ochre (added), Cadmium Yellow Medium, Cadmium Yellow Lemon, Titanium White, Yellow-Green (Georgian), Green Gold, Ultramarine Blue, Van Dyke Brown, Cold Wax Medium.

More Texture Ideas in both Acrylic and Oil

Please Note: Each video in this course has its own unique password.

• VIDEO PASSWORD: Texture

• VIDEO LENGTH: 23:28 minutes

Materials Used:

ACRYLIC DEMO

• Medium: Golden Crackle Paste

• Dry Pigment: Gamblin Ultramarine Blue

• Paint: Transparent Red Oxide, Cadmium Red Light, Cobalt Blue, Yellow Ochre, Titanium White

OIL DEMO

• Medium: Cold Wax, Marble Powder

• Dry Pigment: Gamblin Titanium White

• Paint: Ultramarine Blue, Van Dyke Brown

• Pan Pastels: Red, Yellow

• Squeegee and Brayer by Squeegee Press

Click on any image below to visit the website for purchase

MORE TEXTURE PROJECT IDEAS

• Experiment with a new medium and see what it brings to your work.

• Use acrylic gel medium or an archival glue to collage paper or other materials onto your support (paper or panel supports are best) to create texture. Hint: these papers can also include pattern). If working with oil paint be sure to cover the paper layer with clear gesso before continuing with oil paint. 

• Use unusual mark making instruments to imprint texture into your work. Some ideas are whisk brooms, kitchen tools, burlap, bubble wrap, string, corrugated cardboard.

• Use only (or mostly) a palette knife to paint and intentionally use the thick paint as texture. Try to create different textures throughout the painting, smooth and flat vs rough and textural.

• Think about finishes as textural. Glossy vs flat. Use mediums to create more than one finish in your work.

Click on any image below to see artists’ websites for more inspiration

There are infinite ways to create Texture and Pattern. The artists above use a variety of materials. Dalton uses image transfer, Cutlip uses collage, and I used oil and cold wax on board scraping back into the wax to reveal layers beneath.

Using Stencils As Pattern

I have often used stencils for a textural pattern in my work. They can create interest and surprises. They can also simply give me something to react to on the canvas. I’ve used numbers and letters and all kinds of shapes. I have also made my own stencils.
In this video I create a painting digitally using ‘stencil’ patterns within Procreate. It is very much the same way that I work with oils, by trial and error.  At the end of the video I show several of my own finished paintings that include stencil work.

Please Note: Each video in this course has its own unique password.

• VIDEO PASSWORD: Stencil

• VIDEO LENGTH: 2:46 minutes

Pattern Project Ideas

I used several stencils in this painting “She Demanded Red”.

• Choose a Pattern and repeat it throughout the painting. Choose an emotion to go with it. Then create a second painting using the same Pattern, but focus on, and try to represent a contrasting emotion. See how the two works differ. (Think of Amber Brookman, Tracey Adams or Agnes Martin.)

• Use stencils to create patterns. Let them repeat and work in layers so that they become buried into the work. Some may be completely covered while others appear more ‘on top.’

• Use corrugated cardboard or another textured surface as a ‘stamp’ to apply patterns in your work.

• Use Emulsion transfer to lift patterns and transfer them to your work. Watch the YouTube below:

Click on any image to view larger

Rebecca Crowell works with oil and cold wax building up layers and layers of texture. She travels extensively and works to evoke a sense of place in her paintings, taking inspiration from nature, its colors, shapes, forms and…texture! The work appears patinated as though created centuries ago and gracefully aged over time. The cold wax provides a level of transparency that is hard to capture in photographs but creates a depth to the work that partially reveals the history beneath.