Reviewed by annieb123 on
The Art of Paint Pouring is a tutorial instruction guide to creating art with poured acrylic paints and inks. Author Amanda VanEver has become something of an internet phenomenon with a very popular youtube channel and facebook following. Due out 19th May 2019, from Quarto on their Walter Foster imprint, it's 128 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.
There is an unparalleled freedom and spontaneity in actually pouring media onto a prepared substrate. It reminds me a lot of finger painting (in fact, fingers -are- used in some techniques) but with much more aesthetically appealing results.
The book begins with an introduction and background including materials and tools, a little bit of color theory, some specifics on creating texture ("cells") with resist media, finishing techniques, and saving unused materials. The introductory chapters represent roughly half of the page content. These chapters are followed by 17 (by my count) individual tutorials on techniques, surfaces, and decorative projects.
Many of the results pictured in the book remind me a lot of the surfaces of polished agate slices and geodes. Really pretty. I have been fascinated by marbling on fabrics and handmade papers before and this fits into the same sort of artistic niche in my mind. The photography is not superlative, but it is clear and easy to follow. I found it appealing that the artist's hands and fingers in a lot of the tutorial photos are stained and full of paint and ink (like real life). They're not staged and pristine with a well manicured hand model as a stand-in for the process photos.
There is no index, bibliography, or resource lists (but the supplies are very easily sourced in person or online). The electronic version of the book includes an interactive table of contents.
Four stars
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes
Reading updates
- Started reading
- Finished reading
- 1 May, 2019: Reviewed