Easy abstract painting tutorial: Create this layered blue artwork step by step

If you're staring at your blank canvas wondering where on earth to start, start here.

This abstract painting looks layered, atmospheric and almost like a hazy mountain landscape when it's finished. But the actual painting process couldn't be much simpler.

We used one main acrylic paint colour, plenty of water and three layers. That's it. No perfect brushstrokes or complicated composition to map out beforehand. You don't even need to know exactly what the finished painting is going to look like when you begin.

For this piece, we used the Rich Navy acrylic paint from our Monochrome Cotton Art Kit, adding just a tiny amount of black to the final layer. The natural raw cotton canvas was deliberately left visible at the top, and we finished the artwork with an oak edge frame.

Here's exactly how we made it.

 

Before you start: add water

The thing that really makes this painting work is water. Rather than using the acrylic paint thickly straight from the tube, we mixed it with water to create a much looser, more fluid consistency.

Adding water creates an acrylic wash, making the paint thinner and more transparent so some of the canvas and previous layers can show through. That's what gives this artwork its soft, hazy depth rather than three heavy blocks of colour.

We didn't measure exact ratios. We simply added water gradually until the paint became loose enough to spread easily across the canvas. Start with less and keep adding until you like how it moves.

 

Step 1: Make the first light layer

We started with Rich Navy mixed with plenty of water to create our lightest blue.

Using the brush, we loosely worked the watery acrylic paint across the lower part of the canvas, leaving plenty of the natural cotton exposed above it. Don't worry about creating a perfectly straight edge. The rough, uneven top edge is what starts giving the painting its organic, landscape-like shape.

We moved the paint with the brush, let it spread into the raw canvas and used our hands in places to push and soften it further. Brush it, move it, spread it and see what the paint does. Once you're happy with the general shape, leave that first layer to dry.

 

Step 2: Add a richer second layer

For the second layer, we used the same Rich Navy again, just with less water so the colour became deeper.

This time, we started lower down the canvas, leaving part of the lighter wash visible above it. Again, the edge doesn't need to be precise. Let it rise, dip and move naturally across the canvas. You can use the brush to establish the shape, pour a little watered paint directly onto the canvas and use your hand to spread it across larger areas.

As soon as the darker colour sits against the first wash, the painting starts to develop depth. You're simply layering shapes and tones, and the landscape feeling happens almost by itself.

Let the second layer dry before moving onto the final one.

 

Step 3: Make the final layer dark

For the third and final layer, we used the same Rich Navy mixed with a small amount of black and water.

We added it across the bottom section of the canvas, once again leaving some of the previous blue layer visible above. Ours dips and rises slightly across the canvas, and that imperfect edge became one of our favourite parts of the finished piece.

Spread the paint out, let the layer feel solid and rich, and stop when it feels balanced. That's it. Three layers.

 

Why such a simple painting works

What makes this piece interesting isn't complicated technique. It's the contrast between light and dark, transparency and opacity, raw canvas and painted canvas.

• The first watery layer is soft and faded
• The second introduces more colour
• The final dark navy grounds everything underneath it

Those changes in tone create depth, which is why the finished artwork can start to feel like distant hills, mountains, sea or a horizon even though we never actually set out to paint any of those things.

And because each layer is created loosely, your version won't look exactly like ours. That's a good thing. Yours will always be uniquely yours.

 

You don't have to copy every edge

If you're recreating this painting, you don't need the layers to rise, dip or finish in exactly the same places as ours. Just use the idea: light wash → deeper wash → dark final layer.

Let the paint create the rest.

You're following enough of a structure to know what to do next, without trying to reproduce somebody else's artwork perfectly.

 

If you make a mark you don't like... Keep going

This kind of layered acrylic painting is especially forgiving. If the first layer spreads further than expected, make that part of the shape. If one edge looks strange, let the next layer overlap it. If an area becomes darker than planned, balance it somewhere else.

You're building the painting as you go, rather than working toward one perfect result.

 

Let some of the raw canvas show

We intentionally kept a large area of the natural cotton canvas completely unpainted. The warm, slightly textured surface becomes part of the artwork, and against the different shades of navy it stops the blues from feeling too heavy.

There is absolutely no rule saying you need to fill every inch of a canvas. Sometimes leaving something alone is what makes the rest of the painting work.

 

Finish it with the edge frame

Once the artwork was completely dry, we added an oak edge frame. The warm oak works beautifully against the cool blues and the natural cotton.

An easy painting doesn't have to look basic

There's sometimes an assumption that if you're new to painting, you need to start by making something that looks obviously “beginner”. You absolutely don't.

• Simple can look incredibly good
• One colour can be enough
• Three layers can be enough
• You can use your hands
• You can add plenty of water
• You can leave half the canvas untouched

So if you've been looking for an easy abstract painting idea, an acrylic painting tutorial for beginners or simply something to get you past that first intimidating blank canvas, try this one.

Start with the lightest layer, make the next one darker, and then darker again. You'll probably be surprised how quickly it starts looking like an artwork.

 

Create your own

This piece was made using our Monochrome Cotton Art Kit, with Rich Navy, a touch of black and an oak edge frame.

Everything you need to build your framed canvas, paint your artwork, frame it and hang it comes together in one kit, plus access to our Digital Art Guide if you'd like more help and inspiration along the way.

It doesn't need to look exactly like ours. Use other colours from your Monochrome palette, or explore a completely different colour palette for your piece.

I hope this has inspired you, and would love to see your piece if you give it a go.

 

Emmi
Co-founder of Plan