Dot Painting
In recent years, it has become very popular to use dot painting techniques to create beautiful, unique paintings. It is an easy technique to learn, and the end results are often very impressive. The technique uses a series of small dots that are painted onto the canvas in a repeated fashion, usually four or five. The small dots can be painted onto any surface, including wood, metal, paper, fabric, cardboard, and more.
The technique originated from the Indigenous Australian Aborigines and their art traditions, which focused on creating complex designs with a number of bold colors. Within the dot painting style, Indigenous artists will sometimes overlap or 'close' large dots together, or they might be closely connected to other large dots to create the look of stripes, and often, dot paintings can still be see as being flat, even though the painted area is in fact much deeper than they appear at first glance. Many famous Indigenous artists such as Bronagh Burgin, Jarrah Hunter, Michael Barkhouse, John Davis, Tom Root, Corbin Whicker, Mary Jackson, John James Clark, Renee Ward, and many others have created amazing works using this technique. They have used a combination of materials and mediums to create these amazing works.
Dots can also be painted onto a wide variety of other surfaces including metal, paper, canvas, wood, metal/stone, fabric, rubber, and more. Before you begin to paint with dot painting techniques, it is important to prepare your canvas, surface, or backing for the paint. This preparation depends on the type of paint you choose to use, but all artists should ensure that the canvas is clean, free of dirt, dust, and debris before beginning the painting process.
The actual dots themselves can be created using any medium that creates the illusion of depth and irregularity. Traditional aboriginal art styles are famous for the intricate nature of their dots. Artists in this tradition usually begin by drawing with thickened acrylic paints on a canvas to get the desired results. After which, the artist will add finer strokes using thinnerned paints until the final finish is obtained. These final effects are achieved by adding glaze to the top of the original drawing and dipping the ends into water to solidify it.
Because traditional aboriginal artwork is often highly complex, it is not surprising that the dot painting technique is often used in these pieces. When looking at paintings created by Aborigines in Australia, for example, you will notice that there are numerous objects dotting the canvas. Each one is unique in shape and size. In some cases, you might see an animal, bird, flower, or human figure dotting the page. Dots can be blended into the background to blend the area into the overall composition or they can be used to really emphasize certain features in the artwork.
The idea of dot painting as a form of art was developed by Indigenous artists in response to European techniques. They were often criticized for this and considered as “white” art styles by the mainstream artists of the time. In response, many Aborigines began to include other forms of imagery and embellishments to their art styles. Many of these other forms can be seen in dot painting. For example, Aborigine artists often drew webs or other decorative patterns onto their dot works because these added details and elements that weren't always evident in their traditional paintings.
Some Aborigine tribes are known for their artwork, such as the Tarawera, whose dots are highly detailed and highly colorful. Many Tarawera artworks contain sharp contrasting colors that stand out against the dark background of the artwork. However, other works don't have this sense of contrast or vibrant coloration. Instead, you'll more often than not see pure black or white spaces between the dots. If you look at some of the more elaborate works from the Tarawera tribe, you'll see that the dots aren't necessarily evenly distributed, but instead tend to break up and overlap in ways that mirror the layout of the tribal artwork itself.
While there isn't one strict definition for dot painting, this particular style is commonly referred to as “aboriginal dot painting”. In addition to being used for decorative purposes by First Nations artists, it is also commonly used as a tool for creating symbolic images. For example, Aborigine artists might dot together images of birds, bears, turtles, and other creatures to create symbolic representations. The exact purpose of each particular artist who uses this particular form of dot painting will likely vary depending on the context and the goals of the artist.
The technique originated from the Indigenous Australian Aborigines and their art traditions, which focused on creating complex designs with a number of bold colors. Within the dot painting style, Indigenous artists will sometimes overlap or 'close' large dots together, or they might be closely connected to other large dots to create the look of stripes, and often, dot paintings can still be see as being flat, even though the painted area is in fact much deeper than they appear at first glance. Many famous Indigenous artists such as Bronagh Burgin, Jarrah Hunter, Michael Barkhouse, John Davis, Tom Root, Corbin Whicker, Mary Jackson, John James Clark, Renee Ward, and many others have created amazing works using this technique. They have used a combination of materials and mediums to create these amazing works.
Dots can also be painted onto a wide variety of other surfaces including metal, paper, canvas, wood, metal/stone, fabric, rubber, and more. Before you begin to paint with dot painting techniques, it is important to prepare your canvas, surface, or backing for the paint. This preparation depends on the type of paint you choose to use, but all artists should ensure that the canvas is clean, free of dirt, dust, and debris before beginning the painting process.
The actual dots themselves can be created using any medium that creates the illusion of depth and irregularity. Traditional aboriginal art styles are famous for the intricate nature of their dots. Artists in this tradition usually begin by drawing with thickened acrylic paints on a canvas to get the desired results. After which, the artist will add finer strokes using thinnerned paints until the final finish is obtained. These final effects are achieved by adding glaze to the top of the original drawing and dipping the ends into water to solidify it.
Because traditional aboriginal artwork is often highly complex, it is not surprising that the dot painting technique is often used in these pieces. When looking at paintings created by Aborigines in Australia, for example, you will notice that there are numerous objects dotting the canvas. Each one is unique in shape and size. In some cases, you might see an animal, bird, flower, or human figure dotting the page. Dots can be blended into the background to blend the area into the overall composition or they can be used to really emphasize certain features in the artwork.
The idea of dot painting as a form of art was developed by Indigenous artists in response to European techniques. They were often criticized for this and considered as “white” art styles by the mainstream artists of the time. In response, many Aborigines began to include other forms of imagery and embellishments to their art styles. Many of these other forms can be seen in dot painting. For example, Aborigine artists often drew webs or other decorative patterns onto their dot works because these added details and elements that weren't always evident in their traditional paintings.
Some Aborigine tribes are known for their artwork, such as the Tarawera, whose dots are highly detailed and highly colorful. Many Tarawera artworks contain sharp contrasting colors that stand out against the dark background of the artwork. However, other works don't have this sense of contrast or vibrant coloration. Instead, you'll more often than not see pure black or white spaces between the dots. If you look at some of the more elaborate works from the Tarawera tribe, you'll see that the dots aren't necessarily evenly distributed, but instead tend to break up and overlap in ways that mirror the layout of the tribal artwork itself.
While there isn't one strict definition for dot painting, this particular style is commonly referred to as “aboriginal dot painting”. In addition to being used for decorative purposes by First Nations artists, it is also commonly used as a tool for creating symbolic images. For example, Aborigine artists might dot together images of birds, bears, turtles, and other creatures to create symbolic representations. The exact purpose of each particular artist who uses this particular form of dot painting will likely vary depending on the context and the goals of the artist.
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