33 Creative and Easy Painting Ideas for Beginners in 2024

Looking for great easy painting ideas? Painting can be a wonderful way to learn to see the world with an artist's eye, be it through color, texture, perspective or light. While picking up a brush for the first time may feel like a formidable task if you never have painted before, there are a number of great easy painting ideas for beginners that can help you dip your toes (or paintbrush) into this fun creative medium.

What is the easiest thing to paint as a beginner? How do you paint on a canvas for beginners? You can find acrylic painting ideas for beginners and watercolor painting ideas that are as fun as they are easy. We've rounded up a few of our favorite ideas for artists of any age and experience. Most involve simple acrylic paints, watercolor or other non-toxic materials as well as easy application tools that range from brushes to plastic straws. 

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• Easy Painting Ideas for Adults
• Easy Painting Ideas for Kids

Easy Painting Ideas for Adults

1. Art Classes

A perfect way to find easy painting ideas and brainstorm projects is to enroll in a local art class. You can learn everything from novice to advanced techniques from established and professional artists like how to start oil painting and watercolor painting for beginners.

You can also learn the limitations and benefits of mediums, like acrylic vs oil paint. Find your favorite by checking out art classes near you, including art classes in Chicago, art classes in Nashville or art classes in San Diego.

2. Paint & Sip

A more laid back approach to painting than a formal class, paint and sips give you a chance to pick up new skills and be creative in a relaxed environment while kicking back cocktails with others.

They are great for beginning painters since everyone winds up taking on the same subject matter in unique ways, making it easy to learn painting techniques and painting tips for beginners. Find paint and sips near you, including paint and sips in Austin, paint and sips in Cincinnati or paint and sips in Temecula.

3. Thrift Store Paintings

A great easy painting idea is to work with an existing piece of artwork. Pick up a framed canvas, photo or print from a thrift store or garage sale, then add your own elements.

This is an especially fun activity for Halloween in particular, since you can fill canvases like landscapes and street scenes with all manner of spooky details like bats, ghosts and monsters. 

4. Ombre Painting

Ombre painting uses gradients and blending of color to achieve a beautiful effect. Start with a lighter shade of a single color at the bottom of a paper or canvas, then begin adding more white (if working with acrylics) or water (if working with watercolors), moving toward a lighter version at the top. You can also blend different shades together for a beautiful painting of an evening sky.

5. Abstract Landscapes

Simple landscapes make a great easy painting idea for adults since the lines of any landscape usually orient to horizontal washes of color and texture, especially in more abstract pieces.

Begin by creating a horizon line with a single darker color then paint the sky above, adding abstract details like trees and far off structures without having to worry about rendering them with photographic accuracy.

6. Paint by Numbers

One way to get a feel for painting on a canvas is to invest in a paint-by-numbers kit. This easy painting idea tells you exactly which colors go where and can help you begin to see certain scenes and subject matter with the eye of an artist.

7. Color Block Paintings

How to paint on a canvas for beginners? For a fun and easy painting idea, use some painter’s tape to block off different geometric shapes on canvas, then fill each area with a different color.

When you remove the tape, you will have a cool and colorful patchwork piece of art. This is a great approach for filling large canvases if you're looking for a distinctive piece of art to hang above a sofa or large piece of furniture.

8. Japanese Woodblock Style Painting

What to paint with acrylic paint for beginners? Many artists throughout the last couple of centuries have been smitten with replicating Japanese woodblock prints with paint, which use two dimensional blocks of color to create images.

Since it works with swathes of color without having to worry too much about shading and shadows, the style makes a great easy painting idea. Use it to create beautiful pictures of wildlife and landscapes.

9. Watercolor Drip Paintings

For an easy painting idea that doesn’t even require a brush, use some watercolors and a sheet of thick watercolor paper to make paintings simply by manipulating the surface.

Create a wash of thick wet watercolor at the top, then allow it to drip down the page in interesting ways. You can even control the spread by applying water droplets to the paper that will fill with color as the watercolor moves down the page. 

10. Famous Reproductions

Imitations are the biggest form of flattery, so why not start out with a well-known artist and see if you can reproduce their work. You can learn so much by employing the techniques and materials used by master artists like Claude Monet, Vincent van Gogh and Pablo Picasso.

Try making your own version of their most famous paintings from worldwide art museums as a perfect painting idea for adults. 

11. Abstract Still Life

Another easy painting idea that defies representational art is to create a still life on a shelf or table, then use acrylic or oil paint to capture the shapes and geometries of the objects without exact photographic details.

Focus on use of color, perspective and developing your own style of still life painting.

12. Mandala Painting

Mandalas are simple circular pieces that are often associated with meditation and decorative beauty. Create a center on paper or canvas and work outward to the edges of a circle, using colors, patterns and decoration to create a distinctive and unique meditative piece of art.

13. Flowers

Flowers, in all their lush varieties, make an excellent easy painting idea. You can paint from samples picked right for your garden for representational art or get creative with abstract shapes and organic lines that evoke flowers and greenery.

14. Gold Leaf Painting

For an easy painting idea for adults that looks much more difficult than it is, use gold leaf foil on any painting to give it an elevated and luxe look. Even the simplest landscape or still life can benefit from the classic and antiqued look of gold foil in segments. Apply it with an adhesive and a brush then flake away the extra debris.

15. Ink Painting

Like watercolor, ink is a great medium to mix with water to achieve washes of color. Use a brush to create a design in water on a sheet of thick paper, then add a few drops of black or colored ink.

The ink will splay out in the pool of water, which can be manipulated to look like any number of things, including trees, flowers and animals. 

16. Glow in the Dark Painting

Glow in the dark paints are a fun easy painting idea and material for beginning artists. Use them on canvas or paper or buy fabric pants to deck out your clothes or shoes  in glow in the dark designs.

For a fun and trippy painting idea, use a piece black velvet fabric or black flocked paper to create a cool poster that lights up with black lights.

17. Pour Painting

For an easy acrylic painting idea, use acrylic paint in cups to create unique and distinctive designs on canvas. Mix and blend colors, then apply it to the canvas and manipulate the surface until you get the results you desire.

You can also add patience to an old plastic dustpan in layers and drag the edge across the canvas for a fun and colorful abstract design.

18. Squeegee Painting

For another easy acrylic painting idea for beginners that doesn’t require a brush, use small cups to apply acrylic paints to a canvas or paper in stripes, then drag a squeegee across the paint. It will look as if the colors are melting down the canvas.

19. Pointillism

One of the most popular methods during the late 19th century’s Post-Impressionist era was pointillism, the practice of creating images with small pinpricks of paint. Use a narrow brush to create a series of dots that capture your image, making sure to pay attention to shading and light.

20. Monoprints

Monoprints use paint of ink and a press or roller to form an image on the page. You can work with a wood plate or lino block carved with a design and covered in paint, pressing down on the paper to get an impression.

Or make monoprints using flowers, leaves and other organic matter that you apply paint to and press between sheets of paper.

Easy Painting Ideas for Kids

21. Mixed Media Art

Mixed media art can be one of the most fun and easy painting ideas for kids since you can use just about anything as as supply, including ribbons, thread organic materials, rocks, beads and other kinds of paper.

Use Mod Podge or Elmer’s glue mixed with acrylic paint to add three-dimensional texture.

22. Bubble Wrap Painting

Add paint to a sheet of bubble wrap and let your kids apply it to a canvas or sheet of paper and create their own unique patterns and designs. Thicker acrylic paints work best for this, but you can also use water with a little bit of food coloring added to it for easy cleanup with younger artists.

23. Pumpkin Painting

A great seasonal cute and easy painting idea for kids is to apply a brush to that famous standard Halloween staple, the pumpkin. Instead of messily carving out a design, paint your pumpkins, either with traditional funny and scary faces.

Or create creepy Halloween scenes and decorative designs like spiders, bats and black cats using acrylics or paint markers.

24. Shaving Cream Painting

A fun activity for preschoolers and young children is filling a tray with shaving cream, then adding non-toxic acrylic paints. Give your little one a straw or wooden stick and let them swirl the colors together for a fun rainbow technique that will help them build motor and perception skills.

25. Chalk Painting

Sidewalk chalk comes in a variety of cool colors and formats, including large sticks that are easy for little hands to hold and control. Turn kids loose with a selection of colored chalk on the driveway or sidewalk and let them create images that will easily wash away with a hose or the next rain. 

26. Ice Painting

For another great easy to clean up easy painting ideas for kids, freeze some ice trays with water colored with ordinary food coloring and allow kids to use these bits of ice to paint with their hands.

As the ice melts, it creates a watercolor-like effect on paper or paper towels that is removable with soap and water.

27. Bubble Painting

Another cute and easy painting idea is to add some food coloring to an ordinary bottle of soap bubbles. Use the applicator to blow bubbles to splatter on a paper towel or sheet of paper, creating a fun and unique design. 

28. Flower Painting

Employ flowers and leaves as brushes themselves to create pretty floral paintings. Use a brush to apply paint or dip the whole thing into acrylic paint then use the flower petals to stamp the paper, creating an impression of the flowers.

29. Splatter Paint

Wondering what to make with acrylic paint? This easy painting idea demands you make a mess. Use a stick or a brush to fling droplets of paint on a canvas or sheet of paper, using a variety of colors and free form patterns.

Make sure to put down some plastic underneath to prevent wayward splatters.

30. Sponge Painting

Cut up a large sponge into different shapes to make an easy way to apply paint for little hands. They can stamp or brush the surface with the sponges, which allow you to apply paint quite liberally. This technique works with acrylic, watercolors or a food coloring and water solutions.

31. Rubber Stamps

Rubber stamps are a great way to create images if you lack drawing skills. While they can be used with a number of colored inks to create beautiful scenes and decorative details, you can also use acrylic paints to dip stamps into before pressing them down  on canvas or paper. 

32. Straw Painting

Straw painting can be a fun way to create splatters and starbursts..Use a thinner paint like watercolors or watered down acrylics. Dip a plastic straw inside the paint then blow through it to create designs on the paper.

33. Stencils

One of the best ways to get perfect images every time, use stencils to help guide kids for an easy painting idea. Tape down your stencil to the canvas or paper and fill in the open spaces to create your design, removing it afterwards, leaving you with clean straight lines.

These fun and easy painting ideas are perfect even for beginners of all ages to express creativity and create fun and unique painted pieces of art. Most can be created with simple supplies and things you may already have at home.

For even more fun painting ideas, check out other experiences happening on Classpop!