ELEVEN ART STUDIO
The Art of Unpredictability
​Over the past three years, I have immersed myself in the captivating and dynamic world of Fluid Art.
This medium, where pigments move with a will of their own, perfectly mirrors the journey of life - a process that is beautifully unpredictable, surprisingly simple, yet consistently challenging.
Edith Kincses
What is Fluid Art?
'Accidental Painting' was discovered by Mexican painter David Alfaro Siqueiros in the 1930s.
Siqueiros poured different colours of paint onto a panel, allowing the different colours to spread out, merge, and seep into each other. The simplicity of the process, coupled with its elaborate results stunned not just the artist but also his admirers. The chaotically mixed paints produced amazing results and their aesthetics and complexity were unparalleled.
Today, ‘accidental painting’ is a separate branch of art that is closely related to fluid dynamics.
Using Siqueiros’ technique is in fact using what is called a density-driven fluid instability. These patterns will only appear when a denser paint is poured on top of a lighter one. They’re the result of a Rayleigh-Taylor instability – the same scientific event that makes beautiful swirls of cream in coffee and the finger-like protrusions seen in supernovae.
Many modern artists use this technique. By pouring thin layers of different colours of paint on top of each other, artists are able to generate wonderful spontaneous patterns, like those shown above.
​
Besides paint density, other factors like the paint layer’s thickness and viscosity also affect the final pattern that can be manipulated by the fluid artist using various mediums.
​
So, sure, this is art. But it also is science. And an understanding of the science behind this helps to properly craft the art.
