For the introductory project of this book, you will

be painting a very simple scene using only Titanium

Materials White and Mars Black. If you have never painted in
acrylics before, now is the perfect time to explore
• White paper, canvas, or gessoed panel
the consistency and mixing properties of the medium.
• #8 round brush
Practice mixing different quantities of the colors on
• Palette
your palette and see how they influence one another.
• Water
Experiment with the amount of pressure you exert on
• Acrylic painting medium
the brush when you apply the paint. Also, pay attention
to how quickly the paint dries and observe the basic
working qualities of the medium.

Color palette
• Titanium White
• Mars Black

Try these

I On your palette, practice mixing Titanium

2 Wait 5 minutes for the initial layer to dry
White and Mars Black to create a gray color.
Meanwhile, clean and dry your brush. Now use
Mars Black 1s slightly more opaque than Titanium
I Mars Black to paint the silhouette of a mountain
White so mixing equal amounts of the colors
in the distance Make this layer as opaque as
will result in a gray that is dark. When you have
possible and do your best to paint sharp, crisp
mixed a dark gray, cover the entire paper, canvas,
edges along the bottom and top of the silhouette.
or panel with this mixture.
 5 Mix a gray that 1s as close as possible to the
color you applied 1n step I. Use this to fill rn
the sky and water wrth an opaque layer of
paint. Use this same color to clean up any stray
brushstrokes that remain around the moon and
the mountain.

3 To paint the moon, apply a small ci,·cle of If you feel as if you need more practice mixing and applying paint
Titanium White just above the mountain. You try painting another version of this scene with the moon m a different
may need to apply two or three layers before part of the sky.
the paint becomes completely opaque. Allow
a few minutes between each layer for the paint
to dry before adding the next layer.

4 Next, paint the reflection of the moon on the

water using Titanium White. Be sure to place
the reflection directly beneath the moon.To
create the illusion of ripples on the water; apply
the paint using short, horizontal strokes.