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Woody · Mar 7, 2008

Wendy, the centre kite is a treat, and they would all look great over a Welsh valley...

Josh, using good quality materials is always the way to go if you can afford it but look what people here can do with a biro, abox of school crayons and a couple of bits of old newspapers. Just for the older Brits, you could always use 'a pair of Val's old knickers!'

Nick, I don't care what you use or paint on, just so long as you share the results here!

Mike

desgreene · Mar 7, 2008

nickderry said:
As for buying the best equipment, if you can afford it, get it, if not don't make sacrifices with brushes, they're the most important. On my paltry allowance (they can't legally call such a pittance a salary) I have to make do with cheap paper and student quality paint, but couldn't paint with crap brushes.

What would you say are the basic essential brushes for acrylic painting?

I'm about to have a go with acrylics, I have a couple of brushes left over from an evening class I attended a few years ago, but would love to know what others I may be missing.

Cheers,
Des.

timwootton · Mar 7, 2008

Hi Des - I find some of the bespoke acrylic brushes to be rubbish and wear out really quickly ('Cryla' by Daler Rowney is perhaps the worst offender in my experience) - although the Pro-Art (Sterling) brushes I DO like a lot. My favourite smaller brush for acrylics is a sable (I know, I know!!) and my 'generic' brushes are Sceptre Gold (W&N) - a sable/synthetic blend.
Regarding sizes - well that depends on; style of painting and canvas/board size - it really is a personal choice - but, a selection of rounds (no. 2, 4, 8, 12) and flats (say a 4, a 6 and a 3/4 inch) ought to cover most applications.
One thing I'm going to flag up and that's a mail order company I've been using for a while now. They're thoroughly excellent and highly recommend them (particularly if you live far away from a decent stockists - say, er, on an island somewhere!) and that's Discount Art http://www.discountart.co.uk - based in Yorkshire (where else?!).
Hope this helps.

desgreene · Mar 7, 2008

Cheers for the info Tim. A few gaps in my armoury currently then!

Once you've shelled out all those squids on brushes, are there any tips on care, cleaning etc when used with acrylic?

Thanks,
Des.

nickderry · Mar 7, 2008

acrylic paint would be a godsend if it didn't f*ck up just about every brush it touches - larger brushes can be cheaper ones - they inevitably get clogged up with paint, something like system 3 rowney is fine. Smaller brushes get so knackered and lose their 'spring' that I end up using watercolour brushes (up to about size 3) as long as I don't let the paint dry on them and keep them clean they can still last a long time. One thing that may be worth exploring is a 'paint tool' or somesuch - like a shaped rubber that is used to apply the paint. If buying brushes get too expensive (as it is for me - I keep the old knackered ones for years) then finger painting can be good with acrylic.

timwootton · Mar 7, 2008

Good advice from Nick. regarding care - be fastidious about cleaning them after use (unlike me) - and, if you are like me and allow them to dry with acrylic on them - boil a kettle, pop an inch or so into a cup and twirl the hard brush around for a bit. The acrylic will soften allowing a proper cleaning job to be undertaken. Use the remainder of the kettle's contents for a large mug of coffee and sit down and watch the racing all day. Then you'll be a proper artist (I wish!!!).
I thing we had a good tip about brush care on this forum fairly recently - was it Mark????

desgreene · Mar 7, 2008

Thanks again gents. My worst problem is picking up my water pot instead of my coffee!

Not nice.

peter mathios · Mar 7, 2008

There was a good care tip recently that I have started using. It's laying a newly cleaned brush on a hot plate or stove or iron. It makes it like new. I haven't bought a single brush since I've been doing that. Fantastic tip and thanks to who posted it. One tip I might add about cleaning brushes is to use liquid dish soap. It sucks the acrylic right out. Works great, then take the brush to the heat.

Here's today's painting...

ARTHUR BISHOP · Mar 7, 2008

Lovely woodduck and elephant Peter.
Wendy I love the Kites

cjoakley · Mar 8, 2008

Wow - some great stuff on happening on here...

Josh - just keep painting - love the gulls and the yellow throat ( saw my first one of those just last year

You're being offered great advice - as to shading just get a soft pencil ( B rather than F or H ) do a few lines wherever you want the shading to go and then smudge it with your finger - you can do the same with cross-hatching...if it goes too dark use a good gum eraser to gently lighten it up again...hth

Peter - not sure there are any descriptive words left in the language one or another of us hasn't already used...scaup - wood duck - elephant - brilliant! Love the water, light - everything. I'll have to try the ironing tip for brushes - can attest to the dishsoap one - use it all the time...

Tim - thanks for the boiling water tip

Wendy - great kites - can see them hovering now over one of your totally amazing landscapes...lovely!

While I agree that it's best to have the highest quality tools - the most important thing is just to paint, draw, sketch your heart out...using whatever is to hand if that's what you can afford...not much point in holding back for lack of having the 'right' stuff to use...

peter mathios · Mar 8, 2008

Some white-fronts coming in to join their buddies resting in the water...

timwootton · Mar 8, 2008

Fabulous, these two latest minis Peter. I particularly like the treatment of the sky in the white-fronts - just the two tones and a couple of clever action marks - brilliant!

nickderry · Mar 9, 2008

Tim's comment saves me from writing the same! Fabulous stuff.

jomo · Mar 9, 2008

Wonderful image, Peter! I still have yet to catch up with these -- we always get a few reports during migration, just never the sort of when-and-where that I can take advantage of.

birdpotter · Mar 9, 2008

Really good advice going around here.

Peter, these last two are simply great.

hunterpaul · Mar 9, 2008

love the pic of the white fronts... but I thought the sky was actually a mountain side... just very much muted and in the distance.... oops... HP

spizaetos · Mar 9, 2008

Although mostly absent at the moment, I'm trying to visit this Forum
as often as I can to admire among others your amazing Day-pictures
Peter! Every one of them is a treasure!
Still without any field work, so I decided to post few preliminaries for a series
of bird illustrations.

Paschalis

nickderry · Mar 9, 2008

stunning stuff, as we've come to expect - the mallards are particularly special - you've captured the quality of light - something incredibly hard to do in monochrome.

PWG · Mar 9, 2008

spizaetos said:
Still without any field work, so I decided to post few preliminaries for a series
of bird illustrations.

Paschalis

Couldn't find a 'Thud as jaw drops to floor' smilie. I wish my finished work was a quarter good as your preliminaries.

Goes for Peter's painting a day too. At first glance thought you'd posted photos! looks like I need to practice some more.

birdpotter · Mar 10, 2008

Absolutely fantastic work Paschalis. It's good to see some of your work again. I had better get on the ball myself, before you all start kicking me out for not contributing anything.

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