ART SUPPLIES -WATER AND OIL PAINT
holly....@support.com
> In article <1993Aug25....@ncsu.edu> ak...@unity.ncsu.edu
> (Ashwini NMI Kumar) writes:
> >Hello there:
> >
> >My wife wants to start her hobby again of oil and water paiting...
> We went
> >to Michaels Art Supplies and other stores... Things are expensive
> and
> >no one is there to explain it properly.... Could a kind soul help
> us out ?
> >She came from india last year to join me here...
> >
> >Any mail order companies with reasonable prices..
> >
> >reply to : ashwin...@ncscu.edu
>
> ----------------------------------------
> Please post! (or reply to me as well: ma...@csli.stanford.edu)
> ----------------------------------------
>
> >
> >thanks
> >
> >
These are my beginnerÕs tips for newcomers to the
dazzling world of art supply. Sorry, I donÕt know
anything about mail-order. Generally I prefer to
examine in-person the merchandise I buy (see BRUSHES).
This may just be a Los Angeles phenomenon, but here
many small art stores cater to professionals. They
can be clique-ish, keep everything locked away in
drawers where you canÕt see them, and can be hostile
to beginners or people they perceive as dilettantes.
If you find an art store intimidating, it deserves to
lose your business. I frequent my local university
bookstore, where art supplies are regularly offered at
a significant discount for the benefit of students.
Sometimes you can also find good deals in advertised
sales.
PAINTS: Paints may seem expensive, but remember that
a little goes a long way (especially with water
color). At first, you may want to only stock primary
colors (red, blue, yellow), as well as black and white
to adjust lightness. From these, you can
theoretically mix up any color you want
(red+blue=purple, blue+yellow=green, etc). This way
you can get started with a minimum of cost, although
later you will find it more convenient to add weird
colors like raw sienna to your collection. These are
not essential, however, so you need not buy them now.
I have recently begun using Grumbacher MAX oil colors;
these behave like regular oil paint except that they
can be thinned with water. (Regular oil paint must be
thinned with turpentine or other bought media, and can
only be cleaned from brushes with these mediaÑ
sometimes smelly business, and more expensive than
water.) So far I am pleased with the results, and the
prices for the Grumbacher paints are roughly
equivalent to regular paints.
BRUSHES: Lots of inexpensive brushes are cheaply
made. Make sure the brushes you buy donÕt have loose
hairs that will come out and make your painting look
like a cat slept on it. The larger the brush and the
longer the hairs, the more paint it will hold and the
harder it will be to do details. To start, get a big
brush and a little brush. Here are some options
(incomplete list): For oils, you can use White
Bristlette (plastic) with pointy ends for detail, and
White Bristle (Chinese, coarse hair) with flat ends or
angle cut for more paint. Brown or black full hair
brushes (the hairs bulge slightly like a broom) work
well for water colors, to cover large areas. Red
Sable (fine hair) with pointy end works fine for oils
and water color. If using water-soluble paint, clean
brushes with a bar of white soap, rubbing the brush on
the bar and rinsing until the suds are clean and
clear. Before using brushes the next time, rinse well
to get all the soap out.
CANVAS AND PAPER: Buy paper labeled "water color
paper" for water colors. It has a nice rippled
texture and is thick enough to avoid curling from the
water. A lot of serious people prefer to stretch and
prime their own canvases, but for the hobbyist this is
a lot of work without much benefit. You can produce a
perfectly decent product using ready-prepared canvases
you can buy at large art supply stores. They should
say they have been primed for use with oil paints, if
that is what you are using. Canvas boards (canvas
pasted over thick cardboard) are sometimes awkward to
hang and display. Many people feel paintings on
canvas boards donÕt really look authentic; I suppose
there is something more permanent and somehow real
about a canvas with a wood frame.
VARNISHES: Just read the labels; theyÕre pretty self-
explanatory. But try not to breathe the fumes, which
in some cases may be carcinogenic.
COMMENTS: Hope this is enough to get you started on a
more informed level. If youÕre still confused, flip
through some how-to books on oil or water color
painting. The above is what works for me, but donÕt
be afraid to experiment for yourself. Have fun!