Robert Joyner

Mixed Media

Use a Bad Painting as a Palette: How Accidents Become Art

I used a reject watercolor as a throwaway palette for acrylics, and the accident turned out better than the original. Here’s how mixing paint can become art.

Mixed Media

Chair Painting Exercise: A Loose Watercolor and Mixed Media Workout

Try this chair painting exercise to loosen up. Paint one simple subject several times, starting with watercolor and adding ink, crayon, graphite, and acrylic.

Mixed Media

Mixed Media Cup Collage: Torn Paper and Negative Space Painting

Make a mixed media cup collage with torn scrap paper and negative space painting. A fun, loose project that covers up a reject and turns scraps into art.

Watercolor

Loose Watercolor Isn’t Random: The Structure Underneath

Loose watercolor isn’t careless. Learn the design, value, and movement thinking that supports expressive painting, and why structure makes your work freer.

Watercolor

Watercolor Focal Point: Push One Thing, Let the Rest Fall Apart

Learn how to choose a focal point in watercolor. Find the one thing that excites you, push it, and combine wet-on-wet with dry brush so the rest can breathe.

Process

My Garage Art Studio: You Don’t Need a Perfect Space to Make Art

Garage art studio with a painting table, hanging rakes and shovels, and a red tool chest in the background.

Acrylic

How to Paint Over an Old Acrylic Painting (5-Minute Teacup Exercise)

Learn how to paint over an old acrylic painting and let the layers show through. A loose 5-minute teacup exercise that turns a reject into something new.

Watercolor

How to Find Your Own Art Style: Stop Copying and Start Interpreting

Want to find your own art style? Stop copying other artists and reference photos, build your fundamentals, and learn to interpret what you see.

Mixed Media

Cat Silhouette Painting: A Playful Mixed Media Collage Idea

Paint loose, quirky cat silhouettes over a collaged reject. A simple mixed media idea for beginners that works with any subject: food, birds, dogs, or tacos.

Watercolor

Loose Watercolor Barn: Start With Blocks of Color

Paint a loose watercolor barn by treating the first wash as blocks of color. Let them mingle and dry, then carve light and shadow into soft shapes.

Mixed Media

Loose Painting Progression: Paint One Subject From Tight to Loose

Try a loose painting progression. Paint one subject in acrylic, then push each version further from control with splashes, a palette knife, and new colors.

Mixed Media

Cut-Out Collage Technique: Paint on Scrap Paper, Cut It Jagged

Learn a simple cut-out collage technique. Paint a bottle on scrap paper, cut it out with jagged edges, and layer it over an old watercolor for a mixed media still life.