Jun 07 2008

Creating a Masterpiece

Published by murray under Free Art Classes

Click here to view Modern Paintings by Murray Hubick……………………………………………………

One of the advantages of watercolor painting is that it calls for little in the way of equipment. We shall consider briefly the materials needed before you can start to work.

Brushes

Brushes are of great importance. Cheap ones on the whole are of doubtful value. As one needs but few brushes, he should buy the best. Those of red sable hair are generally so considered. The round, sharply pointed type is probably the most popular, but flat square ones can also be useful at times. A rectangular space such as a door or window shutter, for instance, can often be painted using a stroke of a flat, sable brush about three-fourths of an inch wide.

One generally needs about three round red sable brushes - small, medium and large. For any given piece of work, it is best to use the largest size brush practical. Small brushes require too frequent dipping and can lead one into finicky ways. For bold sketching (such as outdoor work) and for laying large washes (as on skies and backgrounds), so big a brush is needed that one sometimes feels forced to use a cheaper substitute for sable, such as imitation sable, camel hair or squirrel.

The Number 17 camel hair “dabber,” for instance, costs a fraction of the price of a red sable brush the same size. However, since camel hairbrushes lack spring and seldom hold their points well, they are not recommended except in the large sizes for bold work.

For certain types of work, particularly for scrubbing out high lights, stiff bristle brushes are sometimes used.

Care of Brushes

With proper care, good brushes will give years of service. Rinse them frequently, as you use them, and wash them thoroughly when you put them away. Don’t leave them standing for long periods in paint or water - and don’t allow them to dry in cramped positions.

Watercolor Paper

The most desirable papers for watercolor painting are usually handmade and imported, the best known perhaps being Whatman from England, Arches from France, and Fabriano from Italy. These papers are handmade of the very best rag stock, following traditional methods handed down through the years from father to son (not at all practical here in the United States); their properties are toughness, long life, surface texture, which cannot be matched by the very best machine-made papers, whether American or imported. A good handmade paper will withstand a considerable amount of soaking, scrubbing and erasing and will age with little deterioration.

The weight (thickness) of watercolor paper is important. Thin papers should generally be avoided, especially for large work, since they buckle when wet and are inclined to split if stretched. Weights vary from a light “72 lb.” to the extremely heavy “300 lb.” and, occasionally, even “400 lb.”

Some papers are smooth; these are identified by the phrase, “hot pressed,” or “HP.” The more popular surfaces, however, have a grain or “tooth.” “Cold pressed” or “CP” indicates a slight grain; “rough” or “R,” a heavier tooth. These last two have an indescribably sympathetic texture, excellent to work on and pleasing to look at.

Watercolor papers come in several sizes, but the most popular is the “imperial,” approximately 22″ x 30″. This is a convenient size for the averagee painting and it can be halved or quartered for sketches. Papers are also available in spiral-bound pads and in blocks that are convenient for sketching.

Now when you have purchased the paints you need, you have everything required for your painting. Good luck!

http://www.paintcolorchart.net/

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Art Marketing Course For Artists & Craftspeople At All Levels. This Is A 13 1/2 Hour Multimedia Downloadable Course.

Paint Or Draw Any Subject With Ease. Learn Unique Principles From A True Art Master!

Use Mixed Media, Papercrafts, Textiles, Polymer Clay, Jewelry Making And More As A Transformative Tool For Self-development And Creative Expression. Written By Arts Industry Experts. Available By Individual Issue And By Annual Subscription

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

No responses yet

Jun 07 2008

How the Paint Color Chart Impresses People That View Your Work

Published by murray under Free Art Classes

Click here to view Modern Paintings by Murray Hubick

……………………………………………………

Just as numerous attempts have been made to discover the laws of light and of color vision, and to invent practical systems of color measurement and notation, great effort has been expended in trying to ferret out the reasons why some combinations of color are pleasing and others are not, and to devise laws to insure harmonious color employment. We have finally learned, however, that even if it were possible to grasp all such reasons, workable laws guaranteeing immunity against chromatic discord still could not be devised.

Experience has taught us that certain combinations of colors, whether in nature or art, affect the eye and mind agreeably, while others give offense. We call the former “harmonies,” the latter “discords.”

 

In view of the contrary claims of some writers, we offer the following arguments to substantiate our statement.

First, as we have demonstrated, colors change in effect according to their environment, each hue being modified by those adjacent to it. Color harmony is not merely a matter of selection, therefore, but also of arrangement a fact not nearly as commonly recognized as it should be. A color scheme extremely pleasing to the average person can become, in rearrangement, positively disturbing. Arrangement obviously cannot be controlled wholly by rule at least in representational paintings.

Area, like arrangement, influences color appearances, as we have seen. Harmonious schemes can often be made discordant, or at least uninteresting, simply by increasing or decreasing certain color areas. Of course, the reverse is also true. It is easy to see that a small spot of vivid red, which delightfully reinforces, through contrast, a large area of bright green, might, if sufficiently expanded, rival the green, causing a disturbing division of interest. But there are no arbitrary rules to be followed with regard to area and color harmony.

Nor are there definite laws governing the use of such phenomena when alternating bands of complementary colors were viewed from a certain distance. Yet effects such as this are capable of making some schemes disagreeable and others pleasing or telling.

Texture, although not a quality of color, is another influence that can seldom be ignored. In architecture and decoration, for example, materials harmonious in color often show textural inconsistency or discord. A mere coating of varnish, changing dull woodwork to shiny, can be enough to upset a scheme completely. Even in painting pictures, textural harmony is almost as important as color harmony the two are closely wedded yet there are no clear cut laws.

Color fitness or suitability must also be considered, as must that ever present matter of personal taste. After all, who is to say which colors harmonize and which do not? We have all seen that changing fashions can have a considerable effect on the average person`s ideas of what colors are or are not attractive and suitable for particular purposes, especially in relation to women`s clothing and interior decoration. There are also, as we are all aware, attitudes toward particular colors and color combinations that stem from temperament, national traditions, climate, environment and other unpredictable factors.

This should be enough to warn the student against the exaggerated statements of writers who claim or imply that their methods or systems of obtaining color harmony are infallible or universally applicable. Printed laws and clever devices designed to reveal color schemes can certainly be of help, but only in a very limited way.

http://www.paintcolorchart.net
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Art Marketing Course For Artists & Craftspeople At All Levels. This Is A 13 1/2 Hour Multimedia Downloadable Course.

Paint Or Draw Any Subject With Ease. Learn Unique Principles From A True Art Master!

Use Mixed Media, Papercrafts, Textiles, Polymer Clay, Jewelry Making And More As A Transformative Tool For Self-development And Creative Expression. Written By Arts Industry Experts. Available By Individual Issue And By Annual Subscription

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

No responses yet