Max Mallie's Blog: Don’t Be Rusty | Here’s How to Paint Realistic Textures

Romanced by Rust

Acrylic artist Randy Van Dyck marries old cars—often exhibiting rust and failing paint—with birds. For Van Dyck, the allure of rust is in its character and the challenge it presents to the artist.

“The reason I’m drawn to rusty old relics is multi-layered, much like the items themselves,” say Van Dyck. “They remind us of our past, and as they age they display the ravages of time. Each spot of rust tells a small story all its own that’s ever changing, just like us. Artistically, the colors and textures created when metal ages are amazing and unlike anything else. And, aside from the nostalgia, it’s just plain fun to paint.”

How to Paint Rust Textures in Acrylic | Acrylic Artist | ArtistsNetwork

Dear in the Headlight by Randy Van Dyck

5 Tips for Painting Rust Textures

I use different techniques for each situation, but I’ve found that some really great rust is created by simply watering the acrylic down when applying it and letting the paint pool or drip in the desired areas.

Another great trick I used when painting Deer in the Headlight was using rubber cement:

First, I primed the entire surface a rusty orange color.
Then, I put rubber cement over all the areas where I wanted the rust to be, scumbling the edges slightly to get the random, rough quality.
Next, I applied the green paint of the tractor with an airbrush.
I easily removed the rubber cement to reveal the orange underneath that forms the base pattern of the rust.
Finally, I added other details using ultra round brushes Nos. 2 and 6.

The Allure of the Ancient — Steve Wilda

Drawn to aged things in distress or decline—such as old dolls, broken teacups and abandoned cars—acrylic artist Steve Wilda has painted an impressive catalog of rust over the years. When you’re drawn to what’s old, painting rusted items will be part of your artistic repertoire.

“Mother Nature does a great job of aging metal to give it character,” says Wilda. “We easily recognize rust by its color alone. With additional characteristics of pitting, holes and raised oxidized surfaces, these variations of interest allow us to paint something out of the ordinary. Rust can take over a continuous surface, like an old vehicle’s body, or it can be sculpture-like, appearing in clump formations. The approach to painting rust is no different than any other object.”

Wilda offers these three tips for painting a rusting object:

Observe its color(s).
Take note of its form—including how light falls on it and how the rust casts shadows.
Give yourself time! More effort is required to paint a decayed surface than a smooth, pristine one.

The Last Supper by Steve Wilda

Tools of the Trade

Ready to get started? Here are four key tools Wilda keeps handy when painting realistic rust textures.

Brushes: Wilda’s subjects are often heavily corroded, so he uses a variety of small, round brushes to build up the raised areas, as well as replicate their shadows.

Colors: Yellow iron oxide, raw and burnt sienna and Sennelier brown are good base colors to mix for rust. Because colors vary between manufacturers, be sure to study the color charts.

Glazing: With thin, final glazes, Wilda use additional earthen colors to give the subject its aged look. When painting a more heavily corroded subject, he will often paint more opaquely to try and replicate its three-dimensional quality.

Mark-Making Items: Colour Shapers or palette knives are great for adding an element of roughness to the canvas that a brush doesn’t provide.

Wilda goes on to explain, “I worked in graphite for years and it was always most pleasurable to draw something of mass, such as an abandoned and rusted train car or vehicle, without the use of color. With pencil, it’s important to observe basic values, and how light and shadow are affected on the object’s surface. Layering in pencil or with paint adds density and represents more clearly that the subject has bulk, that it’s 3D.”

*Artist tips featured in this article first appeared in past issues of Acrylic Artist magazine.

Want to learn more about texture?

Here’s a quick tip from artist Maureen Killaby on how to draw fur texture with depth and dimension using carbon, graphite and a cut eraser. This tip is great for drawing hair, too!