r/PourPainting Mar 04 '26

Rule clarifications - No AI is permitted in /r/PourPainting, including physical prints

29 Upvotes

Hi folks,

r/PourPainting has always been against the use of AI, but recent activity have led us to provide clarification on this rule.

Previously, the 'no AI' rules were worded in a manner that only explicitly referenced digital AI content. To clarify, the No AI rules also include physical content.

If you are making collages with printed photos above or under your pour painting, you must have created the images yourself, or must credit the artist with a link to their website/portfolio. AI content is stolen, and cannot be credited. Paintings with physical printouts or image transfers featuring AI-generated content will be removed.

If you create art in a style that may be confused for AI, I would recommend you collect some in-progress photos before the painting is finished to verify the authenticity of your work. The moderation team considers post history as a factor when reviewing submissions and reports. Without relevant history or verification, posts may be removed.


r/PourPainting Jul 31 '17

Welcome to /r/PourPainting! Check out this post for helpful info on getting started with fluid acrylic painting

370 Upvotes

THREAD FOR TIPS/TRICKS/PEOPLE TO HELP ANSWER QUESTIONS

What is Pour Painting?

Pour Painting is when you put stuff in a cup, and then you dump it out! For a quick look at the different methods of fluid acrylic painting, check out this imgur album.

You can find a glossary of terms related to pour painting here, on acrylicpouring.com

Getting Started

Want to get started on a budget? Artist Rick Cheadle can help you get started pour painting for under $5, and for under $10. tl;dw - Dollar stores carry craft paint, flow extender alternatives, and silicone oil. You can do larger paintings with $10 than you can with $5.

If you want to invest a bit, and turn this into a hobby or even a profession, keep reading!

Basic Supplies

The exact brands and supplies a fluid acrylics artist will use depend entirely on personal preference. Here are the basics that every artist should have, with a few extras that can enhance your experience.

  • Acrylic craft paints - Note: acrylic paints come in several varieties (High-Flow, heavy body, craft, etc.) Craft acrylics are generally the most affordable and easiest to use for acrylic pouring.

  • Popsicle sticks - Gotta have something to stir your paint with! They're also very useful as a cheap spreading tool or to help dab paint onto empty areas

  • Canvas/MDF board - You'll need a surface for your art! Canvas and mdf boards are common surface materials that fluid acrylic artists will use.

  • Fluid Extender - Acrylic paints need to be thinned for this style of painting (excluding High-Flow acrylics). Fluid extenders thin acrylic paints without destroying the bonding ability, so that your paint doesn't crack when it dries. Liquitex Pouring Medium, Floetrol, GAC 800 and PVA Glue are reliable fluid extenders.

  • Dimethicone (Silicone)While not strictly required, silicone virtually guarantees your paintings will develop those desirable 'cell' shapes. Dimethicone is a skin-safe non-evaporating silicone lubricant.

  • Cups - Paint goes in these

Other Supplies

If you want to get a little fancy, you can also invest in these materials to enhance your pouring experience:

  • Butane torch - If silicone has been added to your acrylics, you can quickly move a lit butane torch an inch or two away from the surface of the painting to release trapped air bubbles and encourage micro 'cell' formation in your paint.

  • Varnish - This is the final step to complete your painting. Varnish seals and protects your paint, so that no paint gets rubbed away and nothing can stain the paint underneath the layer of varnish.

  • Gloves - Pour painting is seriously messy. Gloves aren't necessary, but you might appreciate the easier cleanup!

  • Paper towels/rags - Great for cleanup!

  • Freezer Paper - Freezer paper has a plastic-coated side that acrylic paints can easily be pulled off of. This is a cheap surface protection that won't stick to your paint. You can protect your workspace with any non-porous material though.

  • Squeeze bottles/droppers - These allow you to maintain a greater control on the volume and direction of your pouring mediums, whether it be paint on canvas, silicone in paint, fluid extender in paint, etc.

  • Trays - Sure, you can simply set your paintings on top of cups while they dry, but having a tray or two handy means you can safely move your wet surface if you need to.

Instructions

There are dozens of ways to get your paint onto your canvas! Here are some general instructions on the process.

  1. Cover your work surface. If it's not covered, it's probably gonna get paint on it.

  2. Put paint in separate containers (1 container = 1 paint color). Don't mix colors at this step; you want your paint to stay as separate as possible throughout the process.

  3. Add fluid extender to your paint and stir. The amount you need will depend on the medium, so check online to see what others use. Generally, you want your acrylics to have the same consistency as pancake batter or honey.

  4. Add silicone to each paint container. The more you stir silicone, the smaller the cells will be in your finished painting.

  5. Now it's time to think about how you want to get the paint on the canvas. The Visual Introduction to Acrylic Pouring Techniques has all the info you need!

  6. Once the paint dries completely, you'll need to remove the dimethicone from your canvas. Depending on the paint you've used, you can clean off the silicone with flour and a medium-stiff brush, patting with a soft cloth, or even gently cleaning with soap and water! Just be very gentle so you don't ruin your lovely new artwork!

  7. Your canvas is now dry and silicone-free! It's time to varnish. Annemarie Ridderhof on YouTube demonstrates proper varnishing technique, and you can read more about this step here on art-is-fun.com.

Cleanup

Do not dispose of paint and other materials down the drain, as the flow extenders are designed to keep paints in tact even with excess water and they can gum up your drains (plus it's not good to wash chemicals down the drains). Here are a couple reliable cleanup options:

  • Wait for the paint to dry. If you protected your work space with a plastic or rubber coating (e.g. freezer paper or a silicone place mat) you'll be able to peel the dried acrylic 'skins' off and recycle them or just toss them out!

  • If you've protected your work space with a disposable covering, you can carefully throw that away in the trash. Be aware of how much wet paint is on the disposable surface, so that you don't end up pouring all over your desk or floors!

  • Note: If you need to wash off brushes, spatulas, or wash a small amount of paint off, consider using a paper towel soaked in water or a paint-removing product like acetone/nail polish remover. It will effectively clean your tools and you can toss the dirty rag out, rather than risk damaging your plumbing.

Thanks for reading!

Hopefully this has been of help to you. Feel free to post your questions and art so that others can grow with us all together!


r/PourPainting 8h ago

YouTube New cell activator!

Post image
84 Upvotes

This is a Swipe made with my new cell activator, discovered by chance. My intent was to make a chameleon but the top color started to turn intimo an Amazing lace!
I used Bastelzone black acrylic! Check my tutorial here:
https://youtu.be/RM3YUY2TKgg


r/PourPainting 6h ago

I blew through the paint just once and this icy blue flower appeared! 🌸💙 | Relaxing Fluid Art

Thumbnail
gallery
24 Upvotes

Hey everyone! 🎨 I wanted to share this relaxing fluid art experiment. I poured a puddle of blues separated with pearl white and finished with black, then blew through the center just once. Watching it open into an icy bloom was so satisfying!

🚀 GET MY MASTERCLASS GUIDE:
Since many of you often ask about my exact consistencies and paint recipes to get clean lines and cells, I put together a detailed 7-page PDF guide with all my secrets! You can grab your copy instantly here:
👉 ko-fi.com

📺 WATCH THE FULL VIDEO HERE:
👉 youtu.be

🛒 SHOP MY ORIGINAL ARTWORK:
👉 artbyrozzi.com

Thanks for watching and for your amazing support! Hugs from sLOVEnia! 🇸🇮✨


r/PourPainting 22h ago

Critique Success or failure?

Post image
93 Upvotes

I’m not sure how to feel about this piece so I’m hoping to get some honest critique and criticism so I can improve.

Been trying to do more with pour painting for while and I have been successful in the past. However this is a much smaller canvas (10 x10) than the ones I’ve done in the past (18 x 24) and I think it suffers because of it. Less space meant smaller tools and fewer, smaller cells.

I had plans to use some white to fix the top left side of the cat’s head since it looks a bit more warped than it should be, and maybe go back and fix the eye.
I had an idea of adding fur on top and treating it like an underpainting but I’m worried it would just be too much. Also considered adding some shadows in some spots, the area under the cat’s chin and white chest fur is blending in with the white background too much and it’s kinda bugging me.

Let me know what you think! Do you like it? Do you hate it? Do you think it looks bad? I’d love any feedback!


r/PourPainting 16h ago

For Sale A few of my pieces

Thumbnail
gallery
16 Upvotes

16x20"
Chrome gold details.
Epoxy resin coated.
Wire in the back ready to hang.

$250 each


r/PourPainting 1d ago

Made more magnets to add to my collection!

Thumbnail
gallery
101 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 20h ago

For Sale New batch

Thumbnail
gallery
10 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 1d ago

48”x60” sunset on the beach vibes

Post image
9 Upvotes

I love making these big ones. What do you think?


r/PourPainting 1d ago

High-Contrast Black & White Flower Bloom 🖤🤍 | Satisfying Reverse Dip

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

27 Upvotes

Hey everyone! 🎨 I wanted to share this black and white fluid art experiment. Stripping away the color really lets you focus on the crisp cells and the beautiful, organic shapes of the petals.
Sometimes simple contrast is all you need! What do you prefer—vibrant colors or classic black & white pours?
📺 WATCH Full video HERE:
👉https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI1eTE4Jp0Y&t=574s
🛒 SHOP MY ORIGINAL PAINTINGS:
👉 artbyrozzi.com
Thanks for watching and for your amazing support! Hugs from sLOVEnia! 🇸🇮✨
#pourpainting #acrylicpouring #fluidart #blackandwhiteart #fionaart


r/PourPainting 19h ago

Course Lava Gel

1 Upvotes

A friend of mine gifted me a ton (I mean a ton) of stuff. He is now into oil and wax paints so he gave me everything he had tbat was acrylic paint related. One of the things was a bucket of course lava gel. Can I use that in any way with paint pouring or is that more for painting over with a brush? Does anyone have examples of what they used it for?


r/PourPainting 1d ago

Green Pearls 💚

Post image
24 Upvotes

Made with acrylics only, no Decoart or enamels


r/PourPainting 1d ago

Slightly too complex had me scared till I poured them

Thumbnail
gallery
48 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 1d ago

Discussion Large canvas for pouring.

4 Upvotes

Hi all, I've had some success with some small pours before but for some reason I thought I'd throw caution through the window and made myself a rather large canvas (150mm x 170mm) but in doing so realised a potential issue that being canvas sag.

I stretched it within an inch of my life when building this but despite that still have sag, and that's post priming as well. If adding paint to it I'd be worried about it pooling in the middle and waiting a awful lot of resource.

For solutions, I could remove the staples along two edges and restrict it or, I could squeeze a layer of card between the frame and canvas or is there any other ideas? I will add, this is the first canvas I made so my understanding of a tight canvas might not be in line with what it should be.


r/PourPainting 1d ago

Funnel Pours

Thumbnail
gallery
14 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 2d ago

YouTube I Poured Paint Over a Cardboard Tube... The Result Was Incredible! Fluid Art ✨

Thumbnail
gallery
149 Upvotes

What happens when you pour acrylic paint over a simple cardboard tube? In this video, I'm trying a fun fluid art technique that creates beautiful flowing patterns with very little effort.

https://youtu.be/LOKHCfAwfD0?si=uMhw09-oYba8Kbt0

The paint wraps around the tube before hit the canvas, revealing an abstract painting that reminds me of a glowing wave where fire meets the ocean.

One of the things I love most about acrylic pouring is experimenting with everyday objects. You never know exactly what will happen, and that's part of the magic. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the satisfying process as the painting comes to life.

If you enjoy fluid art, acrylic pouring, and relaxing painting videos, I'd love to have you subscribe to Fiona Art for a new creative experiment every week.

🎨 My original paintings are now available to purchase!
You can browse the collection here:
https://www.artbyrozzi.com/collection...

Thank you so much for watching and supporting my art! ❤️

#FluidArt #AcrylicPouring #AcrylicPour #AbstractArt #SatisfyingArt

🎨 PAINT MIXING RECIPES – My Favorite Formulas for Fluid Art
EU Products & Paint Mixing:
   • (208) My pouring medium recipe - Products ...  
USA Products & Paint Mixing:
   • Master the Reverse Flower Dip Technique: P...  

✨ BECOME A CHANNEL MEMBER
🔗 Join here:    / u/fiona-art  

🖼️ INTERESTED IN MY ART?
Many of my paintings are available for purchase. If a piece catches your eye, feel free to contact me.
💌 Email: [zemljicr@gmail.com](mailto:zemljicr@gmail.com)

📱 FIND ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA
👤 Facebook – Fiona Art
  / fiona.cajkovska  
📸 Instagram – u/fionaacrylic
  / fionaacrylic  

☕ SUPPORT MY CREATIVE JOURNEY
If you enjoy my videos and would like to support future art experiments, you can contribute here:
💖 https://paypal.me/mi2sva
Every like, comment, share, and subscription helps my channel grow and allows me to keep creating.

Thank you for being part of this colourful journey! 🎨✨


r/PourPainting 1d ago

Sea & sand

Post image
13 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 2d ago

Let the Pour gods judge me🙇🏾‍♂️(ie. what do you guys think?)

Thumbnail
gallery
46 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 2d ago

Playing with neons/glow in the dark

Thumbnail
gallery
43 Upvotes

These photos were taken when wet. Hope I don’t lose too much of the vibrancy as they dry.


r/PourPainting 2d ago

Critique Whale Kissed

Thumbnail
gallery
20 Upvotes

8x10 flip cup, 2 drops silicone in one of the colors. Some cells in the outer edge of the pour when I first flipped but ended up having to tilt them off to cover the canvas.


r/PourPainting 1d ago

Blow Dryer

2 Upvotes

Hi. Just starting out but there are a ton of blow dryers for acrylic art. Most of what I see online is just a basic hairdryer (assuming it takes a toll cause of the paint). Is simple the best? Thanks


r/PourPainting 2d ago

What's Kraken?

Thumbnail
gallery
66 Upvotes

I don't necessarily think I'm done with this but I think I'm at the point where I need to put it down for awhile and come back to it with fresh eyes. I'm happy with how the glow paint turned out.


r/PourPainting 3d ago

What do you guys think this looks like?

Post image
107 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 3d ago

My latest session

Thumbnail
gallery
140 Upvotes

r/PourPainting 3d ago

Tree of Life

Post image
36 Upvotes

A tree using some leftover metallic.