How to Create Abstract Art

Abstract art is an art style that represents individual flair, creativity, personality and is not held back by any boundaries or associated with one particular style as with other art categories. For this reason abstract art can be quite easy to pick up from the beginning of learning the style, whilst also being forgiving in that there are no rules.

This may sound quite simple however artists such as Picasso, Kandinski, Van Gogh and others famous name from the abstract art have become globally renowned names for creating their own unique style of abstract by using lines, colours and forms to create their masterpieces.

The question of how to create abstract art and create your own style can be mastered with lots of patience, determination and practice, as with any form of art, however this article covers some guidance factors to follow that should help you on your way to mastering how to create abstract art.

Starting off with cheap paint, possibly acrylic, with paper is the best way to start. Paper and cheaper paints will save you money in the short terms compared to canvas and finer paints, it is always best to hone your skills with cost in mind before making the step up to canvas. Acrylic paint will dry to paper quickly and allow you to paint over any mistakes without ruining the proposed finished piece of work.

Letting your imagination and the paint brush take control are key factors when creating abstract art, being spontaneous and not being afraid to make mistakes will assist you and help you to relax about how your artwork may look when it is completed. Planning is also key, just picking up a brush and painting away, although great fun, will more than likely result in a blur of many colours and not be a painting of any substance. Deciding on what you are going to paint from the start helps, it could be people, objects, building or faces, it doesn't matter, decide and stick with your choice.

Once you have decided on the type of abstract artwork you are going to create you need to think about what style your painting will take, presuming you are starting off with a simpler drawing such as a face, do you want to exaggerate facial features, expressions or the background, again making this decision will help you to stick within some limits.

It could be that you want to take inspiration from famous faces, landmarks or your own images and create your own version of how you feel they should be portrayed through abstract art, whatever you choose stick with your choice to increase your skill set, change if you find it does not fit with your personality.

Using a pencil or fine charcoal to sketch your paintings outline as a guide may help although as with all abstract art the paintbrush will dictate the style, finish and reflect the passion of you and your inner artistic flair. Pencils or charcoal will help as you increase your confidence and get more practice.

To help make your style stand out, you may have chosen to go for an expressive portrait style painting, you will need to take a smaller brush and start to create and define expressions, it could be a broad smile, frown or over exaggerated stares from glaring eyes. Whichever you choose make sure that it stands out and signifies what you set out to do in the beginning. This will help you to realise your own skill set and bring out your own potential.

You may not be happy with your first attempt, this is not uncommon with even the most famous abstract artists who sometimes take days, weeks,months or even years to finally be happy with their abstract art. As we said at the beginning abstract art is not about rules and boundaries so nobody is going to judge you on what you create. Having the confidence to take colour, shape and texture of a painting without worrying about visual perfection that traditional art demands will define your role as a creator of abstract art.

It is almost impossible to answer how to create abstract art as a rule of thumb, ensuring that your work is unique, has some sort of style and portrays your personality generally cover what you need to know. As you practice more try upgrading your material to canvas and oil based paints that are harder to work with but will allow for a stunning finished result.

Lots of abstract artists have turned to using other materials such as textiles, metal and plastic, again this defines what abstract art is all about, individual choice, passion and the ability to visualise your creation without having visual perfection.

Being in the modern day and having technology to assist you could mean that you choose to alter or even create your abstract art on a computer with one of the many paint or photo related programmes available such as adobe photo shop, again going off the same rules, ensuring you know the programmes features will work.

Remember, abstract art is about individuality, for this reason how to create abstract art becomes a question only you can answer.