Acrylic Painting Challenge

I hope you’ve all been having an amazing summer! 

Andrea and I have been hard at work on a few projects, but we’ve still managed to take time to see friends, go for walks in the woods, and go to the lake with family.

It’s in that spirit that I want to give you some easy painting inspiration in this week’s blog.

Since summer is a time for getting outdoors, I thought I would encourage you all to take inspiration from God’s creation and try painting your own landscapes from real life! 

I offer plenty of acrylic tutorials on my YouTube or in my masterclasses, but this time, I’d love to challenge you to try your own.

All you have to do is go experience a beautiful place in nature and either take a reference photo, bring an easel and paint on the spot, or paint from memory. 

As an additional challenge, try working from a limited color palette and really letting the colors of nature speak to you in fun ways instead of just painting a realistic version of what you see. Don’t be afraid to exaggerate or experiment! 

I’ve chosen three summer nature destinations below. 

For each location, I’ve included a palette of five colors from my 24 set of acrylic paints that would perfectly suit a painting of that location. 

But don’t let that limit you: I’d love to see how you paint anywhere you’ve been this summer, not just the places on my list. If you decide to take on this challenge, be sure to use #colorbyfeliks when you post to social media so I can re-share on our @colorbyfeliks.community page :)

Well then, let’s get to it!

A Hike in the Woods

Andrea and I love to get away from our place in the city when we can and get some exercise, fresh air, and quiet in the woods. Not only does it rejuvenate my soul to be in the woods, but there’s so much beauty to be seen at every turn. 

This is a perfect opportunity to play with yellowish greens where the sun hits the leaves and bluish greens in the mossy shadows of the forest floor. 

Recommended CBF Paints: Lemon Yellow Sap Green Veridian Pthalo Blue Lamp Black Titanium White

Water World

If you have a lake or river near you, it can be a great way to cool off this summer. 

That’s the first place Andrea and I headed when the heat wave hit the Northwest. We’ve had a great time paddle boarding with the family and spending a few long afternoons relaxing by the water. 

A day at the lake is a perfect time to bring a sketchbook and put down some ideas for a painting while you’re drying in the sun after a swim. I’m particularly inspired by a monochromatic approach that pairs the blue of the sky with the blue of the water. 

I did a similar color scheme in my most recent acrylic painting tutorial which you can view here. 

I’ve assembled a palette for you that will allow you to mix multiple hues of blues, with some red to get purple hues and some yellow for sunny accents on the clouds and water.

Recommended CBF Paints: Medium Yellow Crimson Red Cerulean Blue Ultramarine Blue Lamp Black Titanium White

The Magic Hour

If you know my work, you know how much I love a good acrylic sunset painting. 

Sunsets are one of the most vivid ways we encounter color in nature, and no two sunsets are alike. 

The possibilities really are endless. 

You don’t need to live by the ocean to experience a great sunset, but if you do, it certainly doesn’t hurt. 

I’ve assembled a special palette for you that will allow you to paint the sky in beautiful gradients of blue to purple to red to orange.

I hope you all have a wonderful summer and make some time to experience the magnificence of nature as well as the joy of making art; I love when those two things come together and that’s what this project idea is all about! 

Have fun with it; you’ll have a rejuvenating experience in nature and a new piece of wall art decor! 

All the paints I mentioned above are part of my 24 set of acrylic paints, which are the only paints I use. My community loves them too! You can read their reviews and get a set for yourself right here.

Remember, if you’d like to share any of your original work, please include a CBF product like my brushes or paint tubes in the photo and hashtag it #colorbyfeliks and tag the @colorbyfeliks.community page on Instagram so that I can repost some of them in my story, my community page, or my newsletter. 

Speaking of the newsletter, if you aren’t already subscribed you can do so here. 

I keep you up to date on all my latest free content, I share more of your work there, and most importantly I do newsletter-only discounts. Sign up here to get in on the action.

As always, thank you for your continued support and interest! 

Let me know what you thought of this activity challenge and if you’d like to see more blogs like this one. 

I can’t wait to see what you create, and even if you don’t share, I hope you have a beautiful summer full of nature and art!

Many blessings,

Feliks K.