Artistic Polar Bear Project: 100 Ways In 100 Days. #42 - Acrylic Ink

Hi all, I'm baaaaaaack.  We've returned from our all too brief sojourn to that magical island south of the border: Cozumel.

It's an island of: 

Stunningly azure waters.

Incredibly colorful coral reefs.

Abundant healthy marine life.

Amazingly beautiful sunsets.

And eye-poppingly large and tasty margaritas.

But enough of this lazing around, it's time to get back to the easel!

(Those storm clouds in the distance are the outskirts of tropical storm Alex.)

So anyway, back to the bear.  I debated trying out all of your wonderful salt ideas on more watercolor bears, but repeating the salt motif felt a bit like cheating on the '100 Ways' theme.  So I'll move on to something a bit different now, and use your ideas in more condiment-themed watercolors later.

I've wanted to give acrylic inks a try, and wanted to utilize a slicker surface than watercolor paper, so I opted for plate surface Bristol board.  I wanted the inks to be able to move and mingle at their leisure.

Acrylic Ink Bear

Acrylic ink on Bristol board

The inks were beautifully intense, and moved like watercolors when dropped on a wet surface (as evidenced by the brown blot on his otherwise white head).  I was surprised at the differences in consistency of the inks; most were the expected thin ink-ish consistency, but colors like Cerulean Blue and Azo Yellow were thicker and more opaque.  The Bristol board worked beautifully, and held up well to the wet-into-wet technique.  I can picture using the inks in conjunction with watercolors or with thicker acrylic paints.  The possibilities are brewing.....