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Posted
Mine are general inquiries, your questions, Alan are of great interest. I too hope this continues, but like everything else, if there isn't any great interest then it will discontinue.
There are so many medium and medium supports, I'm sure there are many Q+A that could be asked - never be afraid to ask - that is how we learn, and there is always something to learn
no matter how many years we have been practicing the art of art.
Maybe we get in a 'comfortable rut' who knows. This is why I have branched out into oils (many thanks for your help) and Chinese brush painting, experimenting with different Chinese Xuan papers, brushes and paint, so very exciting :)
Posted
alanbickley (8/8/2019)Hello Alan, I think Robert answered your question perfectly below- pigment numbers are the best gauge of colour. Old Holland's Old Delft Blue is a great example- the pigment number is PB60, a strong deep blue pigment which is available in W&N as 'Indanthrene Blue'. Many paint manufacturers like to name their paints differently! It's worth remembering that even if the pigment number is the same, the exact shade may vary- pigment numbers indicate the chemical composition of the pigment, but methods of manufacture and the binder used will alter the colour.
I’ve recently won an award at this year’s TAPC open competition. My prize is a £450 voucher to spend at Patching’s Art Shop, and I had intended to use the bulk of this to buy some Old Holland oil paints. I’ve never tried this make before but am aware that they are top quality, which is of course, reflected in the price. Having just has a browse through the Jackson’s website at the range of colours available, I am a little confused with Old Holland’s colour descriptions. Yes, there are some usual one’s such as Burnt Sienna and so on, but many of them have names I’m not familiar with; for example: Old Delft Blue, Barok Red and Scheveningen Yellow, just to mention a few. I don’t particularly want to deviate from the colours that I’ve been using and familiar with for many decades, so is there a chart available that will convert these somewhat obscure and unfamiliar names into standard colours, as stocked by W&N etc, so that I know exactly what colour I’m buying. If not, it may well be a matter of looking at the colour on the tubes and taking an educated guess.
Posted
RobertJones (8/8/2019)Great response, Robert! Being familiar with pigment numbers is very helpful when choosing paints
Old Holland's colour range is extremely - some might say excessively - extensive. You won't find a precise equivalent to W & N's colours, and I'm unaware of any handy guide which might lead to an approximation of them. Golden Barok Red was employed by the late Scottish artist Ken Bushe in his evening skies, to great effect - his website still exists, I think, and somewhere on there (it's also quite extensive, if the whole site has been retained), is a brief guide to some of the colours he used. Otherwise, the only means of checking what's in the colours, and what they have in common with W & N, is the Pigment Number - many of the Old Holland colours are mixes of several pigments. There are other premium brands of course - Michael Harding's, Vasari (fiendishly expensive), and one or two other niche manufacturers - you might find it interesting to take a look at Rublev: I've yet to purchase any, but they look interesting.
Posted
carol (8/8/2019)Hi Carol, it was great to speak to you via email last week. Regarding your question about watercolour pans- decanting tubed watercolours into empty pans is an excellent idea. Watercolour pans tend to contain a little more glycerin (a wetting agent) than tubed watercolours, but you should still find that tubed watercolour will re-wet easily. Evie
<p>I have sent for some 'empty' full pan replacements from Jackson's art, as I have purchased some D.R aquafine tubes at a reasonable price. My question- I will be filling the pans with the tube paint for convenience, when out and about. What, if any, difference will this make to the paint? The pans will be placed in an empty paint box. As this is about watercolour questions I'd like to ask about the Jackson's Watercolour easel :EJ009, I've just spotted on your site at a special price of £60 Before I purchase could you give some information about the extra shipping costs as stated. It looks a chunk of an easel for the money. Could I send a cheque or is it an online purchase only? </p>
Posted
RobertJones (8/8/2019)I agree- it's difficult to resist a new, unusual colour. Daniel Smith's Primatek oil range, which uses genuine mineral pigments, are particularly tempting I think.
Told you my brain was fuddled, of course you can only spend your voucher on what's available........... I think what I'd do in your place, apart from gurgle happily, which may not be the Bickley Way, is have a splurge on colours I don't normally use, and treat the whole thing as a play exercise - get a few exotics (I know the snag there: chances are you'll never use them), try a few colours that aren't usual for you, but look, so far as you can tell from labels, as if they might be near to those you're used to or interesting variants thereon. The problem with physically shopping with a list of Pigment Numbers is that you'll inevitably forget them - much easier online, when you can check against a list. But you can always create your own convenient list - not necessarily of EVERY pigment, but of the ones you know to be reliable and suitable for your palette.
Posted
Did you see this question from Alan Bickley further up the thread?
As a prolific sketcher, who loves using Daler-Rowney willow charcoal sticks, which incidentally have served me adequately well for many decades, is it time to move on?
I’m seeing a lot of adverts in the art magazines for Nitram Liquid Charcoal, plus a host of other related Nitram products, all of which has left me a little confused as to what to buy.
So, as well as the Nitram Liquid Charcoal, which sounds unique as it’s obviously applied with a brush; an interesting idea and I can’t wait to have a go with that! Then we have packs of Nitram Mignonette in different sizes, also Nitram Charcoal Sticks, round and square, again in varying sizes, plus Nitram Academie Fusains square stick charcoal. What’s the difference between all these? It all starts to get very confusing!
What are these made of and how do they compare to a standard stick of willow charcoal, apart from being a bit harder and much more expensive? Can you use all of these in conjunction with the liquid charcoal (I’m sure that you can) and do these products require the use of a fixative?
Last but not least we have Nitram Powdered Charcoal, now I’m confused! How do you use that?
I’ve had a browse through the products on offer on the Jackson’s website, and as I would have expected, you stock the complete range. What exactly do I need to buy to get started? I’ll probably end up buying the lot and experimenting, but a bit more knowledge beforehand would be helpful.
If all goes well, and I turn out something acceptable, I’ll be showing my results and sharing my experience of using these products in a letter to the editor.
Posted
alanbickley (8/12/2019)Hi Alan! Nitram Charcoal is more durable and produces less dust than willow charcoal. They provide different grades of charcoal, which really sets them apart from others- and they've created quite a following. To get started I would suggest the Nitram Stylus which comes with academie fusains square sticks of different grades- H, HB, B (hard, medium and soft) and extra soft. You don't need to use the stylus, of course- each stick can be hand-held. But the stylus keeps mess to a minimum which may be preferable depending on your drawing technique. In addition to the smaller charcoal sticks, they also produce large sticks- the biggest being a 50mm extra soft stick (Bloc de Saule) which lends itself to deep black, gestural mark-making. Liquid Charcoal is Powdered Charcoal in a gum arabic binder, making it behave like watercolour (water re-soluble). It can be used alongside Nitram charcoal sticks and it granulates beautifully. The gum arabic binder holds the charcoal pretty well, but I would recommend using a fixative as well because it still smudges a little. Powdered Charcoal can be used in a myriad of different ways! Often artists apply it directly to the paper to create tone. But you can also mix it with a binder, like gum arabic or acrylic medium, to make a paint. Certainly worth experimenting with! Evie
Question for Jackson’s As a prolific sketcher, who loves using Daler-Rowney willow charcoal sticks, which incidentally have served me adequately well for many decades, is it time to move on? I’m seeing a lot of adverts in the art magazines for Nitram Liquid Charcoal, plus a host of other related Nitram products, all of which has left me a little confused as to what to buy. So, as well as the Nitram Liquid Charcoal, which sounds unique as it’s obviously applied with a brush; an interesting idea and I can’t wait to have a go with that! Then we have packs of Nitram Mignonette in different sizes, also Nitram Charcoal Sticks, round and square, again in varying sizes, plus Nitram Academie Fusains square stick charcoal. What’s the difference between all these? It all starts to get very confusing! What are these made of and how do they compare to a standard stick of willow charcoal, apart from being a bit harder and much more expensive? Can you use all of these in conjunction with the liquid charcoal (I’m sure that you can) and do these products require the use of a fixative? Last but not least we have Nitram Powdered Charcoal, now I’m confused! How do you use that? I’ve had a browse through the products on offer on the Jackson’s website, and as I would have expected, you stock the complete range. What exactly do I need to buy to get started? I’ll probably end up buying the lot and experimenting, but a bit more knowledge beforehand would be helpful. If all goes well, and I turn out something acceptable, I’ll be showing my results and sharing my experience of using these products in a letter to the editor.
Posted
alanbickley (8/20/2019)Fantastic! Please let us know how you get on
Well I’ve gone ahead and just ordered a selection of Nitram liquid charcoal and some various sticks etc. from Jackson’s. It’ll be here tomorrow so I’m excited about giving it a go! I’ll report back on how I get on with it. It is pretty expensive stuff, so I’m hopeful it’s worth it.
Posted
carol (8/20/2019)No problem Carol, enjoy your paintsJacksons (8/20/2019)They are a great addition to my collection of watercolours. The paint is still very moist and so handy to have the empty full pans to hold the extra colours I require. Many thanks for your wonderful customer service, and reply. Kind Regards Carolcarol (8/8/2019)Hi Carol, it was great to speak to you via email last week. Regarding your question about watercolour pans- decanting tubed watercolours into empty pans is an excellent idea. Watercolour pans tend to contain a little more glycerin (a wetting agent) than tubed watercolours, but you should still find that tubed watercolour will re-wet easily. Evie
<p>I have sent for some 'empty' full pan replacements from Jackson's art, as I have purchased some D.R aquafine tubes at a reasonable price. My question- I will be filling the pans with the tube paint for convenience, when out and about. What, if any, difference will this make to the paint? The pans will be placed in an empty paint box. As this is about watercolour questions I'd like to ask about the Jackson's Watercolour easel :EJ009, I've just spotted on your site at a special price of £60 Before I purchase could you give some information about the extra shipping costs as stated. It looks a chunk of an easel for the money. Could I send a cheque or is it an online purchase only? </p>
Posted
I do get excited about these things, Alan :)
I will have a look at the hog brushes, I'll have to keep this hush hush as I have so many brushes, I just might have to sign myself in to be certified, but one redeeming feature... they're for different medium.
On a serious note, how do you find them when using oils? I have a limited selection of oil brushes, as a beginner, and it would be nice to have recommendations, not only of the way they perform, and I know some don't like to see too much brush work, but I do like to see this, do you think they would suit my need in this respect. Its all a learning curve, and I would be interested to know.
The name just sound good, also. Just like the 'evergreen' from Rosemary and Co. I wasn't disappointed there.