Learn how to paint an adorable Easter Gnome in a truck with acrylics on an 11 x 14 canvas. Feel free to customize the colors and Easter decorations in this painting!
This painting tutorial utilizes a free traceable that you can download and print to transfer to the canvas.
Enjoy and happy painting!
Materials
Easter Gnome Truck Acrylic Painting Tutorial
Learn how to paint Easter Gnome in Truck acrylic painting tutorial for beginners.
Materials
- 11 x 14 Canvas
- Acrylic Paint
- Brushes
- Traceable Pattern
- Graphite Paper
- Pencil
- Palette
- Water Cup
- Black POSCA Paint Pen
Acrylic Paint Colors
- Titanium White
- Mars Black
- Unbleached Titanium
- Cadmium Orange Hue
- Primary Yellow
- Brilliant Yellow Green
- Cerulean Blue
- Dioxazine Purple
- Brilliant Purple
- Medium Magenta
- Bright Aqua Green
Brushes
- 3/4" Flat Wash Brush
- #4 Round Brush
- 3/8" Angle Brush
Color Palette
This painting was done using Liquitex BASICS acrylic paint. You can also customize your colors in this painting!
Using Craft Paints?
If you are using craft paints, such as the Apple Barrel Craft Paints, I would recommend subbing for these colors:
- Black
- Lite Mocha
- White
- Purple Iris
- Lavender
- Spring Green
- Bright Yellow
- Bimini Blue
- Bright Blue
- Jack O Lantern
- Bright Magenta
Traceable
Directions At A Glance:
Video
Step By Step Directions:
1. Paint Sky
Position your canvas in vertical mode. Measure three inches from the bottom of the canvas. Then draw a hill line with your pencil across the bottom of the canvas at that three inch mark.
Load your palette with the colors: bright aqua green and titanium white. Mix about equal amounts of the aqua and white together. Load your 3/4″ flat wash brush in water and pat it dry. Load it into the aqua and white. Paint curved strokes starting at the top of your canvas.
Keep going down with the curved strokes and gradually add more white into the aqua and blend it down. Paint a gradient of aqua that turns to a light aqua color as you approach your hill line.
2. Paint Grass
Load your palette with light green permanent and unbleached titanium. Mix about 1 part unbleached titanium into 3 parts light green permanent. Paint in curved strokes on the left and right side of the hill.
Wipe your brush off. Then add unbleached titanium to it and paint the beige color in the middle of the hill and blend it out into the green. Paint in curved strokes in the direction of the hill shape.
Let this dry before continuing to the next step.
3. Transfer Traceable To Canvas
Print out the 11 x 14 traceable on two sheets. You will need to cut along the dotted line and tape the two sheets together.
Position the template so the wheels are about 1″ to 3/4″ from the bottom edge of the canvas. Place a sheet of graphite paper below the traceable template. Firmly trace the design while the canvas is flat on the table.
4. Paint Truck
Load your palette with: titanium white, dioxazine purple and brilliant purple. Use your 3/8″ angle brush and double load it into the light and dark purple.
Use the angle brush to paint the truck around the gnome, window and eggs. Go in the direction of the shape and let the dark and light purple blend on the canvas to make “color variation”.
Add dark purple in some areas and white in others to create more color variation.
Create contrast in the back of the truck by adding more white to the border of the back of the truck tailgate.
Add a few strokes of just white to create highlight. Then add mars black to your palette. Use your 3/4″ flat wash brush to paint a very thin layer of titanium white across the window.
Mix about 1 part mars black and 3-4 parts titanium white to make a gray (but don’t mix it all the way). Use either your #4 round brush or the angle brush to paint the bumper this gray color.
Then use either your round brush or angle brush to paint the wheels a solid coat of mars black.
5. Paint Gnome Nose, Hands and Beard
Load your palette with: unbleached titanium. Use your #4 round brush to paint the nose of the gnome. Add a very tiny amount of black to your unbleached titanium to make a shade of that color. Paint the outer part of the gnome’s nose and blend it in.
Then paint the hands of the gnome (tip: it may be helpful to paint the beard first and then the hands).
Use your #4 round brush and titanium white and small bits of black to paint the beard. Paint in short curved strokes to create the texture of the beard. Go in the direction of the shape.
Vary your white and gray by adding different amounts of those colors to your brush when you go to reload.
6. Paint The Gnome Hat
Load your palette with cerulean blue and titanium white. Use your #4 round brush and the blue to paint the hat starting at the bottom. Then mix about 1 part white to 1 part cerulean blue to create a lighter blue. Outline the shape of the hat. Then paint it in with curved strokes going in a horizontal direction.
Next, paint the bunny ears using titanium white and a #4 round brush.
Paint the inside of the ears with medium magenta mixed with titanium white to make a lighter pink.
7. Paint Carrots And Eggs
Paint the carrot with cadmium orange hue.
Paint the top of the carrot with light green permanent.
Paint the right egg primary yellow. To make the light peach color, mix unbleached titanium with the primary yellow. You can also customize these egg colors and paint them differently.
Paint the other two carrots.
8. Paint Balloons
Use medium magenta and #4 round brush to paint the rabbit shaped balloon. Paint a white highlight curve line on the left side of the balloon.
Then paint the yellow balloon an equal mixture of primary yellow and titanium white.
9. Paint Grass And Ground Texture
Use a #4 round brush and light green permanent to paint grass texture. Paint grass on both sides of the tires.
Paint the white marks on the tires with the #4 round brush and titanium white. Paint diagonal strokes going one way and then diagonal strokes going the other way.
To do the shadow, slightly water down gray (about equal parts black and white). Paint loose, left and right strokes below the tires all the way down to the bottom edge of the canvas.
10. Add Details To Gnome , Eggs and Carrots
Paint circle polka dots on the gnome’s hat.
Paint little white flowers on some of the grass marks on the ground. Paint small, curved black lines on the carrots (you can also do that with the black paint pen).
Use your #4 round brush to paint the designs on the eggs.
Paint a small highlight on the gnome’s nose.
11. Use Paint Pen For Detail Work & Final Touches
Use the black POSCA paint pen to draw the lines for the balloon strings.
Loosely outline some areas that need to “pop”. You can do this on the gnomes hands, part of his nose and side of the beard.
Write “Happy Easter” on the back of the truck tailgate.
Paint a license plate by writing a word or words (such as “Hip-Hop”) then drawing a rectangular shape around it. Highlight it with titanium white and a #4 round brush.
Optional Details:
Paint the rear view mirrors using dioxazine purple and the black paint pen. Highlight the top curve of the gnome’s hat with titanium white. Paint spots on the yellow balloon. Outline part of the eggs and carrots.
Finished!
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