Chantel Barber is among the faculty who’ll be demoing their techniques at the inaugural Acrylic Live event happening online March 25-28, 2025.
Join Chantel at Acrylic Live as she creates a dynamic portrait sketch by building over a previous painting, using its subtle color nuances as a foundation for new inspiration. Explore her techniques with heavy body and open acrylics, acrylic inks, and expressive mark-making to layer thick and thin, opaque and transparent elements for a richly textured result.
Chantel Barber’s (“Painting From Photos”) passion for making pictures of people began about the same time her interest in art started flourishing, at the age of 11. Local San Diego artists took her under their wing, and she continued to study art, largely self-taught, while her family moved between Newport, Rhode Island; Keflavik, Iceland; and, finally, El Paso, Texas.
While enrolled in a college art course, a fellow student introduced her to acrylic paints, and she instantly fell in love with the medium — but found the field to be dominated by abstract art.
She wanted to use them for portraiture, but in an art department dominated by abstraction and postmodernism, she found little encouragement or advice. Later, after college, still determined to perfect her skills as an acrylic portrait artist, Chantel continued to learn from professional oil painters and translated their teachings into acrylic techniques.
Chantel Lynn Barber, “Feeling Like Jane Eyre, acrylic on panel, 8 x 6 in.
Inside Art: What does working in acrylics allow you to do as an artist?
Acrylic dries quickly, and that is a big plus for me!
Working in acrylics allows me to eliminate what I call the “fear factor” from the painting process. Perhaps other artists haven’t had to deal with this, but I suspect most have. It often surprises me when I meet master artists who share that they still wrestle with the inner negative voice.
Fear of failure has a way of either freezing us in place with brush in hand, or it keeps us muddling in an area of the painting that feels safe, making us avoid areas that actually need to be addressed. Basic questions can become intimidating: “How do I keep the painting feeling fresh and vibrant?” or “The painting looks good right now, but what if this effect or that brushstroke ruins it?”
Acrylics’ fast drying time means that if a paint stroke doesn’t work, I am able to easily wipe it off without hurting the painting’s integrity, since the existing paint is already dry. For me, working in acrylics has removed the fear factor and has given me the freedom to experiment, and experimentation is how I always find techniques that excite me to keep creating!
Chantel Lynn Barber, “Miracles,” 10 x 10 in, acrylic on panel
Inside Art: What kind of acrylics do you use in your process? Why?
My favorite staple acrylics are professional-grade heavy-body. They give high pigment load, which means more intense color, and have a thick consistency for the techniques I employ using brushes and knives.
I use an open acrylic in the initial drawing stage because it allows for things to stay flexible as they are moved around. Acrylic inks have become a new favorite. Because they are ultra-fluid and highly pigmented, they allow for a variety of effects like transparent washes and splattering.
Chantel Lynn Barber, “Wish,” 8 x 6 in, acrylic on panel
Inside Art: Could you walk us through your process? What do you need to have figured out at each stage?
Block-in: In the block-in stage, I start with an open and flexible drawing that avoids hard lines in order to visualize and establish the composition. I take my time in the initial stage because here it is easiest to make changes that keep the painting from being overworked. Throughout this formative stage, I am thinking about lights, darks, shapes, and using limited color.
Color mixing: I start mixing pools of color on my palette, experimenting with what I think would be a good fit for the painting. I want to have a nice selection of light, middle, and dark value choices on the palette. I start with middle values and work into the light and dark. The acrylic I work with typically dries one value darker, so I mix the color pools keeping them one value lighter (some brands may not work like this).
Building the painting: I avoid hard edges until I know where I definitely want them. Refining the drawing with each brushstroke ensures the painting continues to get stronger. Keeping fresh eyes, and being ever observant, I continue to look for ways to truly see how the painting is developing. Like a photo that is blurry and comes into focus bit by bit, editing along the way brings out the finished piece.
Bringing the painting to a finish: I want the finished piece to have rhythm and movement. I make sure there is a good contrast between thick and thin passages of paint. I check values and color temperature to ensure a correct reading. I want to maintain an accurate drawing with lost and found edges. The painting needs to look good up close and from a distance.
Chantel Lynn Barber, “Some Things Don’t Change,” 10 x 8 in, acrylic on panel
Inside Art: Why is planning important? What does it give you in the painting process that you wouldn’t have without it?
Planning is important because every stroke I lay down is dependent on the stroke that went before it. It is also important to control how and when the paint builds up. For example, I don’t want to apply paint too heavily in the dark passages, but rather allow them to retain translucency. I like achieving a nice contrast between thick and thin passages of paint, which means I have learned when a heavy or a light touch is required. Too much paint in the wrong place can ruin a work.
Inside Art: For your reference: What do you take more or less directly and what do you translate? Why?
The reference I use, whether from life or a photo, is a guide. I say guide because unless I am doing a portrait commission, where the likeness is essential, I am primarily interested in creating a compelling painting.
In pursuing this, I am more sensitive to responding to what is happening on the surface I’m using instead of what is happening in the reference. It becomes more about what the painting needs according to creative freedom. I may be translating most of the reference in the majority of my work, versus commissioned works where I stay fairly true to the reference.
Chantel Lynn Barber, “Unspoken Joy,” 7 x7 in. acrylic on panel
Inside Art: You photograph your own models. What’s important to remember when working with models to get good reference photos?
I pose and photograph my own models because it gives a greater connection with the creative process, and it allows for taking accurate color and value notes in the moment on location. In order to get good reference photos, an excellent light source is needed. Most often, this is going to be natural indirect light, which provides beautiful shadow/light patterns and color. Light that overpowers and washes out color, especially in the light passages, or leaves shadows dark and lifeless, is the kind of light to avoid.
I think it is important the model’s personality shines through so that real emotion is captured in the photographs. Take a variety of closeup and distance shots. Avoid directing every photo. Some of the best reference photos I have taken came about when allowing the model to honestly interact with their surroundings.
For your work, what do you need to get accurate, and then where can you loosen up and play? Why?
I want my work to have both spontaneity and academic adeptness. If the drawing is correct, if edges are accurately placed, then I can play with dynamic brush marks. I have always felt that the power of the suggestive carries a greater impact and allows for mystery and a chance for the viewer to dream. Suggestion, not reality, paradoxically makes painting come alive.
Learn more about how Chantel Barber works by checking out her video, “Painting from Photos.”
And don’t forget to register for Acrylic Live! It’s three days of professional-level instruction in acrylic painting. Billed as “The Only Place To See 24+ Of The World’s Top Artists Teach Their Signature Techniques & Style!” it will run March 25-28, 2025. Check out the premium faculty here.
