Water colour technicalities
Curt Sampson
ce...@lysator.liu.se (Ceci Henningsson/Klussmann) writes:
> Do you test your colours for light resistance? If so, how? I
> usually test mine, but have, so far, never found any that weren't
> light resistant. This is how I do it: I paint a scrap of aquarell
> paper with the colours I want to test. The scrap is inserted halfway
> into a book and then I let it lie on the windowsill for a couple of
> weeks.
This is not likely the best way to test for light resistance. The
glass in the window will cut out a fair amount of ultra-violet
light. This is one of the reasons that pastels and water-colours
are often framed behind glass, I belive. I would try testing it
outside, if you can.
Of course, I welcome corrections if I am wrong.
cjs
--
Curt Sampson | "Probably Imposture is of sanative, anodyne nature,
cu...@cynic.uucp | and man's Gullibility not his worst blessing."
cu...@cynic.wimsey.bc.ca | --Thomas Carlyle, _Sartor resartus_ (1831)
marcie
>In article <11...@lysator.liu.se>
> ce...@lysator.liu.se (Ceci Henningsson/Klussmann) writes:
>
>> Do you test your colours for light resistance? If so, how? I
>> usually test mine, but have, so far, never found any that weren't
>> light resistant. This is how I do it: I paint a scrap of aquarell
>> paper with the colours I want to test. The scrap is inserted halfway
>> into a book and then I let it lie on the windowsill for a couple of
>> weeks.
>
>This is not likely the best way to test for light resistance. The
>glass in the window will cut out a fair amount of ultra-violet
>light. This is one of the reasons that pastels and water-colours
>are often framed behind glass, I belive. I would try testing it
>outside, if you can.
>
>Of course, I welcome corrections if I am wrong.
pigments. Special UV inhibiting glass will, to a certain extent cut down on
fading, but it's new and therefore dubious. W/C's are framed under glass
for other reasons: they don't inherently have a support (ie. frame) and they
soil easily. Mats are used to keep the paper away from the glass to inhibit
damage from condensation, etc. The backs are sealed w/ paper to keep out
(hopefully) bugs.
Light resistance depends on the chemical properties of the
pigment, not on the
quality of the paint. The number of stars is an indication of the permanence.
Many beautiful colors are fugitive wrt light, but this shouldn't necessarily
mean you can't ethically use them.... only be cautious! Most people are
savvy enuf to not hang paintings in direct light. Most museums don't
display watercolors on the walls but rathre you must request to view them in
a special area where they are kept in the dark in drawers or in boxes with
black felt lids.
I never bother to test my paints because the permanence is well documented
with hundreds of years of research! Winsor-Newton publishes a very nice
pamphlet re the properties of pigments and the Artists Handbook documents the
same very well.
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Marcie
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Margot Flowers
> Do you test your colours for light resistance? If so, how? I
>usually test mine, but have, so far, never found any that weren't
In a local art store, I've seen manufacturer's watercolor samples fade
under the florescent lights. It is also not too hard to find
watercolors that are a few years old and not too well taken care of
lose their brilliancy. A few weeks testing might not be long enough.
> How about brands? I have tested Winsor&Newton, Rowney,
>Schminke, Lukas and a French brand called JM Paillard. ...
>The quality seems to vary a lot from colour to colour and from cup to cup...
>I made a colour sample of ultramarine from W&N, Lukas and JM Paillard.
>You couldn't have told that they were the same colour! The W&N was
>worst, it was dull, like Prussian blue without the green tinge. Have
>you tried this?
I've found the W&N ultramarine among the brightest of the ones I've
tested. It sounds like your sample was a completely different pigment.
To anyone who finds themselves getting involved (shall we say
obsessed?) in picking out watercolor pigments, I'd like to strongly
recommend the following book:
The Wilcox Guide to the Best Watercolor Paints, by Michael Wilcox.
Artways, 1991. ISBN 0 89134 409 8. (285 pages, 8-1/2x11 inches paperback)
This book is a comprehensive survey of the entire watercolor lines of
seventeen different manufacturers (listed below), along with chapters
on each group of artists pigments. Each individual paint is given an
overall quality rating from * to ****, and briefly reviewed as to
qualities such as workability, gumminess, transparency, brilliance,
how well it washes out, and so forth, and includes a carefully printed
sample of each individual paint. He very frankly identifies bad
qualities along with the good, and, based on his own and ASTM testing
results, recommends not using certain traditional colors like Alizarin
Crimson.
In going through this book, I have found things like better brands of
particular pigments that I want to try, old pigments I should retire
due to lack of permanence, and new pigments I want to look at. It is
also useful for finding **** quality paints at student prices (e.g.
Winsor Newton's Cotman line has many **** paints, and most of the Da
Vinci line is well rated, but quite cheap, at least in the US). Since
he lists pigment ingredients of each product (something that some
manufacturers do not, and most don't do on the tube itself), it is
easy to know when something is a redundant sample under a new name, or
a blend of easily available ingredients, or when something is misnamed
(e.g. Sennelier 907 Cobolt Violet Pale Genuine is actually PV16
Manganese Violet !).
The printed samples are carefully done enough to see differences in
qualities between different products. In a few cases where I've
compared to actual samples that I've painted, the reproduction is
pretty close. The printed samples are grouped by color variety so
that one can compare the samples all together for features such as
brilliance or clumpiness, etc.
The manufacturers included are Da Vinci (USA), Grumbacher (USA), Weber
(USA), Talens (Holland), Blockx (Belgium), Lefranc & Bourgeois
(France), Binney & Smith [Liquitex] (USA), Lukas (Germany), Holbein
(Japan), Pebeo (France), Schimcke (Germany), Winsor & Newton (UK),
Sennelier (France), Old Holland (Holland), Maimeri (Italy), Daler
Rowney (England), Reeves (UK).
Here is distribution info listed at the end of the book:
- published by Artways, P.O. Box 350, Cloverdale, Perth, Western Australia.
another address give is 7 Turner Ave., Technology Park, BEntley
6102, Perth, Western Australia. tel (09) 362 2288, fax (09) 362 2573
- distributed in the US by Artways USA, P.O. Box 396, Rockport, MA
01966, USA. tel 1 800 554-2247, fax (508) 546 7141. cost about $25
- in the UK: Artways UK, P.O. Box 2115, London E163JW, England.
tel 0 71 511 1105.
[It is also distributed in the US by North Light Books, if you belong to
their bookclub you can get it for about $20.]
From the back of the book:
This is a landmark book for artists. It contains a surprising
amount of information that is not available elsewhere. Equally
important, the information is presented in a handsome, easily
referenced format. No matter how knowledgeable you are as an
artist, you are going to be surprised by some of the facts in this
book. It is the first publication to cover the wide range of
prigments currently used in artists' watercolors, many of them
almost unknown in the art community. In fact, it is the first to
completely document the pigments used in any artists' medium.
The major watercolor manufacturers around the world are covered.
No matter where you live some of the brands described in the book
will be available. Color reproductions of each watercolor, coupled
with a description of its handling qualities, add another
essential piece of information. The guidance on color mixing is a
bonus.
Ceci Henningsson/Klussmann
>I never bother to test my paints because the permanence is well documented
>with hundreds of years of research! Winsor-Newton publishes a very nice
>pamphlet re the properties of pigments and the Artists Handbook documents the
>same very well.
Could you post an address (preferrably directly to Winsor&Newton in
England) where I could order the pamphlet about properties of pigments
from?
The Artists Handbook you are referring to, what is it and by whom is
it published? I think that this is of interest to more than just me,
so please post it to this group.
I joined alt.artcom yesterday, but it seems dead. Does anyone know if
it is or if my site is missing postings?
--Ceci
--
=====ce...@lysator.liu.se===========================================
"Vad bryr vi oss om tsaren, se staren, se staren! EA Karlfeldt
(What do we care about the tsar, se the starling, the starling!)
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marcie
>marcie writes:
>>I never bother to test my paints because the permanence is well documented
>>with hundreds of years of research! Winsor-Newton publishes a very nice
>>pamphlet re the properties of pigments and the Artists Handbook documents the
>>same very well.
>
>Could you post an address (preferrably directly to Winsor&Newton in
>England) where I could order the pamphlet about properties of pigments
>from?
>
>The Artists Handbook you are referring to, what is it and by whom is
>it published? I think that this is of interest to more than just me,
>so please post it to this group.
by Ralph Meyer
Viking Press
This is the absolute old chesnut of these types of books.
I'll dig around at home and see if I can find the W/n booklet and post it
tomorrow.
>
>I joined alt.artcom yesterday, but it seems dead. Does anyone know if
>it is or if my site is missing postings?
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Marcie
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