What Should I Paint as a Beginner?
When you’re thinking about what to paint, especially when you’re new to this type of art, it can be really easy to get swept up in big dreams and visions. You can find so many cool things to paint in everyday life, but your skills might not be quite ready for that yet.
Instead, think about how you can work with those scenes or objects in their simplest form. Maybe instead of trying to paint the whole fruit bowl, you can start with just an orange or apple. Keep practicing until you feel confident enough to add in new elements, like shading.
It’s also good to remember this when you’re shopping for your first art supplies. You don’t need to buy 20 different paintbrushes to get you going. Start small as you work on easy things to paint, and slowly build your supplies as you work on more complex pieces. Trust us, your wallet will thank you!
Watercolors are a great tool for beginners looking for cool things to paint, and these watermelons are the perfect starting point. The natural color gradient in the fruit gives you plenty of practice in using the fluidity in the paint to give different finishes. Teacups can be as ornate or simple as you’d like them to be, which makes them a good project for beginners when you’re asking yourself “what should I paint today?” Even once you feel comfortable with the basics of painting, you can start to incorporate different skills like perspective or texture into work like this. Who would have ever thought that you can paint with coffee? In fact, it works similarly to watercolors. Just like your morning brew, you can easily adjust the strength of your “paint” by adding more or less water as you go. You’ll often see that new artists start learning how to paint with botanical work, like flowers or leaves. Since they’re made up of only a few colors, these simple paintings will help you get comfortable with the paints you’re using and build your observational skills when working from either a real plant or a reference picture.
If drawing people feels a little too complicated, fashion illustrations are the perfect place to start. The focus of these paintings is on the clothes, rather than the physical body, so they can be as detailed (or not) as you feel comfortable with. They’re also a great chance to mix mediums, like adding textured finishing touches with glitter or fabric. Pop art or cartoons are a great choice when you’re looking for easy things to paint on a canvas. They can be any shape or style that you like, so it’s easy to hide any mistakes that you don’t feel confident in painting over. Try recreating some of your favorite characters, or be bold and invent one of your own. Painting landscapes is a great excuse for grabbing your shiny new sketchbook and heading out into nature. If you’re stuck for paint ideas, there will be a million different things around you that you can choose from—just pick a spot and sketch what you see on the horizon! Or, challenge yourself with a limited color palette, find something outside that matches your hues, and go from there. When you’re looking for easy things to paint for beginners, the night sky is one of the simplest that you can find. You’ll usually only need three to five different paint colors, so you can really spend time focusing on details and learning to blend light and dark paints together.
You must be logged in to post a comment.