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Which Acrylics are you using?
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Message
Posted
With so many types of Acrylic paint out there, i was just wondering what others are using.
Soft body, heavy body, open?
Also, what different mediums are you using and has anyone made their own mediums?
Although new to painting, I have already played around with various brands/types and my preference is definitely heavy body, I really like Cryla.
I've tried making flow improver and retarder and both seem to work Ok, I've also made gesso which seems just as good as shop bought.
Posted
I am using Daler-Rowney too. I presume this is heavy body (its thick and not very viscous) and I have retarders and mediums but I have just been using them straight from the tube.
I used to use some thinner acrylics which came in little pots for miniature painters to use (back when these were £1 per pot and I was wearing short trousers, I think they are about 4 times than now) and these seemed much better for getting smooth gradients with but wouldn't go far on big canvasses.
Posted
Daler Rowney - George Rowney & Sons as was - were one of the pioneers in introducing acrylics to Britain, and Cryla was my first introduction to them, and remains a favourite. I've not tried Open acrylics, but they do things that I have no need for them to do - ie make the paint re-workable; so I'm unlikely to try them now. If I want a looser form of paint, System 3, also by D-R, is good - and I use Chromacolour, though wish they'd list the pigment identification on their tubes: I've never had any trouble with them, quite the reverse; but they should.
I have a good selection of Winsor and Newton artist's quality acrylics - which wet down to a quite fluid consistency, but are still heavy duty paints, and have a very good range of colours. I shall get around to Golden acrylics one day, if spared for a while longer from my Eternal Reward.... or possibly otherwise. But these paints serve me well, and have done so for a long time - 50 years, in the case of Cryla.
I don't know how you make your own retarder - in my case, it wouldn't be worth the effort, because I never use it and still have the plastic bottle, half-full, I bought decades ago. As for 'gesso' - the issue is the long term: yes, lots of things will work quite well ... but a product not made for artists' use is generally something I avoid. If you make your own, that might at least be better than domestic emulsion, which some people use - and which might last. On the other hand, it's not designed to last forever, and may degrade in various ways (increasing porosity, flaking and embrittlement, attraction to mould). But your choice .... on your own head be it .... etc - ne'er cast a clout till May be out; you mark moi words....
Posted
Dat's my boy who said dat.....
One of my missions in life is to get people to treat acrylic paint with the same respect they accord to oil and watercolour - I know you can make your own mediums, and make shortcuts and all the rest of it: but at the same time - if you're using the best quality paints, brushes etc, why on earth apply them to inferior quality supports?
Posted
I'm new to painting having started about a year ago, and doing it on and off, so I am in an exploratory phase of painting materials. I tried oils and water mixable oils, but I didn't quite like the texture. I then bough some acrylics, and tried Golden and Winsor & Newton (professional series). Both are nice, but I find the Golden ones a tad stiff, and have more 'drag' when paining. I really like the texture of W&N, I can spread it around but is not too fluid and can leave some texture if needed.
One downside of W&N, I find, is that some tubes seem to be too thick, for example some batches of Burnt Umber. Golden does not have this issue, but I'm finding that consistency and feel under the brush are the most important thing for me, so I'm settling I think on the W&N. The colours as well are great.
Posted
Yes - I've used Cryla since ca. 1970: still great paint, and after all these years I can claim the right to recommend it. I've not used W & N acrylics for quite so long, and the brand has changed a bit over the years, but our friend and colleague Béatrice Cloake, NAPA, recommends W & N colours for their beauty: and if anyone knows about beauty .... it's Bea.
Posted
I just use system 3 daler rowney, I need to use large amounts of repeat colour and its good for that. I cant be bothered with the heavy body paint, i use plaster as a base for impasto painting, then just paint over it with the daler rowney , it dries like plastic so it keeps the plaster waterproofed........
Edited
by StuArty
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