Trying Out That Alexis Boyce Technique
Alright, so I kept seeing stuff pop up online about this artist, Alexis Boyce. Not the person specifically, but this way they had of layering paint, looked kinda cool, almost like stained glass but fuzzier, if that makes sense. Seemed interesting, so I thought, why not give it a shot myself? You know, get my hands dirty.
First thing, I had to figure out what was actually involved. Watched a couple of blurry videos, read some bits here and there. Looked like the trick was using really thin washes of color, letting each one dry completely, and then building them up. Patience seemed key, which, let’s be honest, isn’t always my strong suit.
So, I gathered my stuff:
- Some cheap acrylic paints I had lying around.
- A couple of canvases, nothing fancy.
- Brushes, water, mixing tray – the usual suspects.
- Paper towels. Lots of paper towels. Figured it might get messy.
Started off simple. Mixed up a really watery blue. Like, really watery. Brushed it onto the canvas. It looked pathetic, honestly. Just a pale blue stain. Okay, step one done. Now the waiting part. Left it by the window to dry. Fiddled around, made some coffee, checked back. Still damp.
This was the cycle. Mix a thin color, apply it, wait. Mix another thin color, maybe overlapping the first one a bit, apply it, wait again. It was slow going. Seriously slow. First couple of layers looked like a mess. Colors were bleeding where I didn’t want them to, looked more like a coffee stain than art.
I almost gave up after the third layer. Thought, maybe this Alexis Boyce person just has some magic touch I don’t. But I had the paints out, canvas was already ruined, might as well keep going, right? Started getting a bit more deliberate. Tried controlling the wateriness better. Focused on where the colors overlapped.
Then something started to click. After maybe the fifth or sixth layer, letting each one fully dry, the colors started interacting in that way I saw online. The overlaps created these new, deeper shades. It started getting that fuzzy, layered look. Not exactly like the examples I saw, obviously, I’m not Alexis Boyce, but it was something.
Kept at it for a couple more hours, layer after layer. Yellow over blue, red over yellow, letting bits of the underneath colors peek through. It actually became kinda relaxing once I got into the rhythm of it. Mix, paint, wait, repeat.
What I Ended Up With
So, the final piece? It’s… okay. It definitely shows the layers. Got some interesting color blending going on. It’s not gonna win any awards, and it’s probably not something Alexis Boyce would hang on their wall. But I did it. I tried the technique, wrestled with it, and actually got a result that showed the idea behind it.
Main takeaway? It takes way more patience than it looks. And you gotta trust the process, even when the first few steps look like garbage. Glad I stuck with it, learned a thing or two about controlling thin paints. Might even try it again, now that I sort of know what I’m doing. Or maybe not. We’ll see.
