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For Oil Painting Students Instructor: Nancy Blanchard Honea (770) 469-4616 nhoneastudio@aol.com
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Welcome. Your success in this workshop will depend upon having the correct materials. The 3 most important categories are: the correct paint colors, correct type/size brushes and toned canvases. Below is a list of these materials and others that will assist you in making your workshop experience a success. During my 35 years of teaching, I find that many people often are confused by all the choices, so I have described the materials in detail. I hope you will find it informative and helpful. I look forward to seeing you at the Clean Color Intensive for lots of fun and learning!!!!! MATERIALS FOR OIL PAINTERS: NOTEBOOK AND A COUPLE OF PENS: You will want to take notes. No video taping will be allowed, but cameras are permitted. OIL PAINT: We use these specific colors and brands because they have the most intense color, and provide the spectrum colors we will need. Get 37 ml. tubes of only these brands of oil paint: Gamblin, Winsor Newton, Grumbacher, or Rembrandt. For your convenience, I have arranged the colors by brand as a shopping list. Check the brands and color names. In case you may already have a particular brand/color, I have listed choices. You only need ONE tube of a color, not all the tubes listed below. In the past some students have mistakenly bought every tube on this color list. Please do not do this. GAMBLIN, GRUMBACHER OR REMBRANDT:
OR Crimson Lake Deep Extra (Old Holland brand). You will not need 3 tubes, pick one. Crimson Lake Deep Extra is the cleanest color of the three brands. It is actually a different pigment than the Gamblin or Winsor Newton.
· WINSOR NEWTON: Get these colors only in Winsor Newton 23. Indian Yellow (Winsor Newton) 24. Viridian (Green) Do not get “Viridian Hue” (Winsor Newton) · If you are new to oil painting, look carefully on EACH tube to make sure that you are buying OIL PAINT, not acrylic, watercolor or any other type of paint. · Please use only Artist Grade Paints = NO STUDENT GRADE PAINTS. They are diluted with filler, and are a lower grade pigment. You end up using much more to try to make an intense mixture, and rarely achieve it. (These are names of student grade paints: Winsor Newton: Winton; Grumbacher: Academy; or Rembrandt: Van Gough. Do not get these.) · Please do not get any color that has “Hue” in the name. It is diluted and a weaker pigment, so you will use 2-3 times as much paint and still not achieve the intensity needed, similar to using student grade. · Please do not bring any colors other than those listed above. OTHER NECESSARY MATERIALS: CANVAS: ONE (1) STRETCHED Cotton canvas, Size: 16"x 20” and, SIX (6) Stretched Cotton Canvases, or Gessoed Masonite Panels Size: 8”x 10” You may use gessoed, Masonite panels. If they are white, you will need to tone these. Please, NO CANVAS BOARD (i.e., canvas glued onto cardboard).
See below for toning instructions.
TONING YOUR CANVAS or MASONITE PANELS: (We work only on a gray toned canvas.) · Materials List: 1) Golden Acrylic paint, Color: N6 Neutral Gray. It comes in tubes or jars. Note that this is Acrylic paint, not Oil Paint. This is the only time we use acrylic paint. It dries fast for the canvas, and it sticks to the Plexiglas or glass palette. You will use this same paint to tone your Plexiglas or glass palette. You can tone them both at the same time. You prepare the Plexiglas or glass palette only once, then, it is good to go for your longtime use. 2) 1 ½” to 2” disposable, foam brush; 3) small, disposable, plastic plate; 4) spray bottle for water; 5) palette knife. (NOTE: The solvent used with Acrylic paint is water, the solvent for Oil Paint it is turpenoid.)
Instructions: How to Tone the Canvas or Masonite Panels: · It helps to use water in a spray bottle to spray the white canvas very lightly before you begin to mix the paint. This moistens the canvas and allows it to receive the paint more evenly. NOTE: If you are using Masonite gessoed panels, you will follow these instructions, but it is not necessary to spray before. · With your palette knife, place about a tablespoon of the paint on the small disposable, plastic plate. Add a little water (about ½ teaspoon), and using your palette knife mix this thoroughly. You can then add a little more water (about ½ teaspoon) and mix thoroughly again. The final consistency should be like a thin pudding. If it is not, add a little more water and mix again. Be careful not to get your mixture too thin. If it is too thin, it will be streaky. If it is too thick, when you try to paint on it later with oil paint, the paint will want to slide around. Also, do not put two coats on the canvas, only one coat. We have found that painting two coats or applied too thickly fills the surface too much, making the canvas or panel too slippery to receive oil paint. *Make sure you wash off your palette knife before the acrylic paint dries -- permanently. · Acrylic paint dries quickly, so it is difficult to tone the entire 16”x20” canvas evenly at one time. Plan to do half, then, move immediately onto the other half. · Using the foam brush, pick up some of the paint and spread it on one-half the canvas (8 inches) in one direction. Do not gather more paint on your foam brush, but brush out the paint that you just put on the canvas or panel in a direction that is 90 degrees opposite the first direction. This gives you the most even, but thin coverage. Immediately repeat this on the other half (8 inches) of the canvas. While the paint is wet, try to brush out any seams where the two sections of paint meet in the middle so you will not have a line. Let dry for an hour. · Since 8x10 is smaller, it can be toned in one go, rather than in halves.
TONING THE PLEXIGLAS or a GLASS PALETTE: You can tone your Plexiglas palette with these same materials. See below for instructions, under Plexiglas Palette.
BRUSHES: For this workshop, it is essential to have quite a number of different sized brushes. Filbert, hog bristle brushes: SIZE: #2: 6 brushes #4: 6-8-10 brushes #6: 5-6 brushes
During 35 years teaching painting, I find students will bring either the wrong type of brushes, or worn-out, stiff brushes and expect to do a beautiful painting. Most of the time students do not realize that their brushes are worn-out or too stiff from improper cleaning. In order to do good color work you will need clean, flexible, and relatively new hog bristle brushes. Below is some information on brushes. There are so many brushes available on the market, that it is sometimes difficult to understand just what they are designed to do. Improper brushes will handicap your learning. · Please bring only FILBERT style brushes made with Hog Bristle. (No synthetic or sable – the hairs are not strong enough to pick up and deposit oil paint.) Some explanation may help: The hairs that make up brushes are arranged at the tip in different ways for different type of brushes. There are basically four styles of hog bristle brushes: Filbert, Flat, or Bright, and Round. Each brush style serves a particular purpose. There is a big difference between the behavior and brush stroke with each style. FILBERT is the name of the brush hair formation that creates an oval shape at the tip, rather than a flat tip. The tip of the brush is not cut to a shape, rather, the hairs are laid in a pattern that conforms to the shape, and bundled into the ferrule. A Filbert brush is long and oval at the tip; a Flat is long and flat at the tip. A Bright has short bristles, with a flat tip and Rounds are, well, round with a flat or pointed tip. All hog bristle brushes are best used for oil painting. Generally, plein air painters prefer Brights or flats as they allow the paint strokes to show and are more choppy and energetic than filberts and, portrait painters prefer filberts. · Get FILBERT. Look on the handle of the brush to find “Filbert”, or ask a sales person to help you. Sometimes, the brush will only have an “F”. This could mean either Filbert or Flat. Look at the tip of the brush. If it is long, flat, and oval shaped, it is a Filbert. My favorite brush is Robert Simmons, Signet 42, Filbert, and it comes in different sizes. It is made by Daler-Rowney. This is not an expensive brush, and can be found at Hobby Lobby, Binders, and Pearl. Hobby Lobby often has their brushes at a 50% sale. Look for this sale and stock up. · Using the correct brush is very important to your success in this workshop. Do not bring any synthetic or sable brushes. Do not bring any round brushes. If you have other types of brushes used in other classes or while working at home, please leave them at home. Do not bring worn out brushes and expect to be able to pick up and lay down oil paint successfully. We use only Filbert, hog bristle brushes in good condition. SOLVENT: Weber ODORLESS TURPENOID in the blue & white can, pint size, or Gamsol by Gamblin. You will need a solvent to clean your oil brushes. Please use ONLY this solvent: Other solvents cause headaches. Bring this to class in the can that you buy it. You can pour it into the Brush Washer when you get to class. (See below: Brush Washer.) Try to find the metal Brush Washer (Binders, Pearl, Hobby Lobby). A glass container is too dangerous as it can be knocked over, and broken; however, a hard plastic container with a wide mouth and a lid will work (a small peanut butter jar.) It has to be hard plastic, as the solvent will often dissolve a soft plastic. DO NOT bring mineral spirits, turpentine, or any other type of solvent. All of these cause headaches in class. DO NOT get the Weber odorless turpenoid in the Green can, it is slippery and causes the oil paint to slide around on the canvas. You will not be happy.
BRUSH WASHER: There are good brush washers available at Binders, Pearl and Hobby Lobby. These hold only your solvent, not any medium, nor a mixture of medium and solvent. They should be stable and not easily tipped over when you are swishing your brush around. They should have a lid. The best ones snap on the lid with clips attached to the side of the can. Do not bring a glass jar, but a hard plastic or metal container is ok. Try to get something that has a lid so you can cap it in when not in use during the workshop and overnight. MEDIUM: We use NO medium in this workshop. You will not need Linseed oil or Liquin. PALETTE CUPS: We will not use a palette cup for this workshop, as we will not use any medium mixture. However, you will need something to hold your solvent (turpenoid). Your brush washer will do nicely. PALETTE BOX and PALETTE: The best system for bringing paint back and forth to class is the Masterson Paint Saver Box and a Plexiglas palette, which you paint on the underside with Golden Acrylic paint, color: N6 Neutral Grey. The Masterson Paint Saver Box has a white plastic bottom with a blue top; get Size 16 ½ " x 13 ½" and can be found at Hobby Lobby, Binders, and Pearl. Using this system also allows you to layout the paint on the palette before coming to an ongoing class, as it is easy to carry with the lid. In this workshop, we will be able to leave our materials in place each night. You can pop on the lid to cover overnight and keep your paint fresh. PALLETTE: The Plexiglas palette works the best, is easily cleaned, and lightweight to carry. If you prefer, you may use a glass or wooden palette. Just make sure if you are using the Masterson Box system that your palette fits inside the box. Both the Plexiglas and glass palette need to be painted on the underside with the Golden Acrylic paint: N6 Neutral Grey (see below). The wooden palette needs to be “oiled in” with linseed oil at least 4 times, allowing a day between each rubbing in of the oil. (If you do not “oil in” a new wooden palette, it will suck up all the oil in the paint, resulting in oil paint that is too thick to work with or to bond onto the canvas.) Because of the oiling in, it cannot be painted with acrylic paint. So. if you choose a wooden palette, you will not have the benefit of the grey, middle value on which to judge your mixtures. Thus, I prefer the Plexiglas palette painted grey on one side. ***** Do not bring disposable waxed paper Palettes. Disposable Palette pads are made of waxed papers, are white, and will not work. The wax dissolves and mixes with the paint. Preparing Your Plexiglas or glass Palette: You can get a piece of Plexiglas cut to fit inside the Masterson box at a frame shop or perhaps a hardware/home store. If you are using glass, you can get it cut to fit inside the Masterson box at a frame shop. Measure the inside carefully, or better yet, bring it with you when you have the palette cut. Have the Plexiglas or glass cut ¼" less than the inside measurement of the box. (This extra space will allow you to lift your palette out of the box for use in the classroom. When we use the palette, we take it out of the box.) TONING THE PLEXIGLAS OR GLASS PALETTE: At least one day before the workshop, paint only one side of your Plexiglas or glass palette with the Golden Acrylic paint, N6 Neutral Gray. (The same paint used to tone the canvas or panel. This is the only time we use acrylic paint.) You may have to paint this 2-3 times in order to achieve an even coat as seen from the unpainted side. (Try to make your first coat thick, and apply evenly, as it is the one you will see when you turn the palette over to use it.) Allow it to dry about 2 hours between coats. Make sure it is dry before painting the next coat or it will lift the acrylic paint. This N6 Neutral Grey provides a middle-value, neutral color upon which you will mix your colors, allowing you to compare values and colors more accurately than when you work on a white palette. Working on a white palette is not recommended. PALETTE LAYOUT (the sequence of placing your paint on the palette): Wait to lay out your palette in class. I will provide you with a printed diagram showing the sequence of colors to layout the paint on your palette. This diagram will assist you in laying out your palette in a consistent manner and in the sequence that corresponds with the color wheel.
PALETTE KNIVES: It is essential to bring TWO palette knives – one medium size, one smaller. The style to bring has a wooden handle with a round rod protruding from this handle. This rod drops down at a 90-degree angle. The knife blade is triangular. TOWELS FOR PAINTING: Please bring only VIVA brand paper towels – 1 roll. They are amazingly different from any other brand, very much like cloth. They will provide you with a great painting experience. It wouldn’t seem that a particular brand of paper towel could make much difference, but it does. Bounty is not nearly as good for painting. The facility will have paper towels for washing your hands, not for painting. You may find it helpful to add the following items to your supplies: PALETTE SCAPER: Palette knives do not do a very good job cleaning your palette mixing area. You will be able to clean your palette most easily with a straight razor type paint scraper. In the paint department of a hardware store, get a paint scraper holder for the straight razor. After painting each day or when your mixing area is full, you can clean the mixing area of your palette with the paint scraper. You can clean this mixing area even more thoroughly by using alcohol (rubbing or denatured) on a Viva towel. BINOCULARS: In this workshop, you probably will not need them, as you will be very close to your still life set up. However, you may want them to assist you in seeing the demonstrations that I will do. NUT CRACKER: An old-fashioned nutcracker helps to open stubborn paint tubes, or you could use pliers. BRUSH CLEANER SOAP: Get the "Masters Brush Cleaner" soap that is in a tan colored, round plastic container. This hard, non-sudsing cake soap will complete the cleaning of your brushes at the end of the day. You might also want the "Masters Hand Soap" which even removes dried paint from brushes, and sometimes from clothing. Your can protect your investment by properly caring for your brushes. When you have completed painting for the day, thoroughly clean your brushes. Wipe off the excess paint with a paper towel, and then swish in the turpenoid filled brush washer until the brush is clean. Wipe excess turpenoid off with paper towel. The final step is to wash the brush in water using soap until it is clean. Blot dry with paper towel, lay it flat and allow it to air dry overnight. **Do not wash your brushes with water and soap if you intend to paint again that day. It will take 24 hours for the brush to thoroughly dry so that it can take oil paint again. GLOVES or ARTGUARD: To protect your hands, the thin medical-type gloves are helpful, as charcoal, some oil paint and most pastels are toxic. Or, you may want to get: ArtGuard, a cream made by Winsor Newton to protect your hands, or, “Gloves in a Bottle”, a liquid that you rub on your hands, let it dry. It will protect your skin from paint, solvents and pastel dust. MASK: If you are sensitive to solvents or pastel, you will want this. I prefer a surgical facemask that hooks behind my ears. It is most comfortable. You can find it at a medical supply store or some drug stores. We try very hard to keep the solvents fumes under control. VISOR: A visor is helpful to block any light that may be pointing toward your eyes. MIRROR: A hand-held mirror is very helpful to check your painting by viewing it in reverse. The best mirror is found at a beauty supply house; it is large, square, and has a handle. CARRIER BAG: This is a lot of equipment to carry back and forth to class. Get a sturdy, spacious canvas bag (or even two bags that will allow you to carry all of this in various kinds of weather and keep the number of trips down to one). It is very helpful to have a luggage carrier or small cart with wheels to bring bags in from the car as they can get heavy. A few bungee cords help to hold it all in place. A large plastic garbage bag comes in handy to throw over it all in case of rain.
EASELS and TABORETS ARE PROVIDED BY THE SPRUILL CENTER. We will be able to retain our set-up overnight.
Local Vendors:
Binders: 3330 Piedmont Rd., Suite 18, Atlanta, 404-237-6331, www.bindersart.com **Take your supply list to store for 10% discount. They will help you find your supplies. Pearl Arts & Crafts: 3756 Roswell Rd, 404-233-9400, www.pearlpaint.com Utrecht: 878 Peachtree St., NE, 404-347-9119, or 800-223-9132, www.utrecht.com Hobby Lobby: various locations around Atlanta. Good for brushes: Robert Simmons, Signet 42, Filbert Dick Blick: Roswell
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