Learning objectives
■ Practise mark making using painting knives
■ Find a practical set-up for knife painting
■ Follow a step-by-step process
If you have ever desired to experiment more or wanted to take your painting style in a new direction, then palette knives may be the tools to try. It can be liberating to put away the brushes and try applying paint in great swathes oi colour and texture. Combining knives with acrylics takes advantage of what is normally a fast-drying medium, to create wonderful textures and marbling effects.
The era when knives started to be used frequently with oil paints stems from a period in the 17th century, when it became fashionable to start with a palette containing a wide range of colours and hues. This led to the development of a knife-like tool for premixing colours. It was then only a short step for the artist to use the same tool to apply paint directly to
