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Brusho
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Message
Posted
Don't know, but do bear in mind that Brusho paint is not lightfast - it won't stand up to daylight.
http://www.isleofwightlandscapes.net
http://www.wightpaint.blogspot.co.uk
Posted
The change in Sylvia's painting was dramatic - I remember it well. The more vibrant the colours, the quicker they're likely to fade, as well. It's a great shame, but I would think anything over a year and you'll see clear signs of fading. What you can do is do your painting, and have prints made from it in modern inks (they're not all lightfast either, so take good advice from whichever printer you use). And of course you can photograph/scan them to your computer - a good photograph of the painting can be used again in a print; and you'll have something on your computer even when the colours of the actual painting fade.
http://www.isleofwightlandscapes.net
http://www.wightpaint.blogspot.co.uk
Posted
An artist friend of mine decided she wanted to give brusho a try and, as she sells quite regularly, I told her about Sylvia's sorry tale of the disappearing painting. My friend ,not wanting to be embarrassed by the same thing happening to her, e mailed Colorcraft and asked about it's lightfastness. Below is a copy of the reply she got:-
Brusho is as lightfast as any other similar type of watercolour medium. We have paintings here on site, by several artists, that are over thirty years old and just as vibrant as when they were first painted.
It is manufactured with the finest raw materials and has been carefully formulated to obtain the maximum intensity and performance from each colour. Also, of course Brusho has the added advantage of being an extremely versatile medium with an infinite range of possible applications.
However, as an added protection for Brusho or any other watercolour paintings from damage caused by dust, dirt, humidity, ultraviolet radiation, smoke, scuffs and scratches - we recommend using a high quality uv spray.
We wondered where you read that Brusho is not lightfast?
Kind regards
Laura
Colourcraft
What do you think of their reply? I don't think I'd want to spray a watercolour!! I have trouble enough spraying fixative on a pastel and try to avoid it as much as possible .
Val
Posted
Interesting reply - when I have a minute, I'll take a look at their website and see what goes into the paint and have a ferret about. I don't think the water would affect it in terms of lightfastness, by the way, but ultraviolet light would - and you can get UV-resistant glass, I believe.
There are some colours which will fade in watercolour and in anything else, they're right about that. For instance, the madder reds - Alizarin Crimson, and Rose Madder Genuine; some Crimson Lakes; Opera Rose and Geranium Lake (pity, they're lovely colours), Gamboge, Aureolin, some forms of Sap Green, Prussian Blue can fade - very much depending on who makes it; Mauves and violets will often fade in watercolour, and presumably in Brusho. These are the notorious ones, and if they fade in Brusho more than, say, the earth colours, they should be marked as such.
I'll come back in a day or two when I've had a look into this further.
http://www.isleofwightlandscapes.net
http://www.wightpaint.blogspot.co.uk
Posted
OK, I've had a quick look - I would have taken the time I said I'd take to investigate it further, but there just isn't good information available, at least that I could find.
There's no indication of the pigments that go into these paints. What is 'leaf green', for instance? No idea. There's an Ost Red - now the Ost (Ostwald) range is something you're not likely to see anywhere else any more: it's a standard that has long since been superseded, and it's completely unreliable and uninformative as a description, but it certainly doesn't indicate lightfastness. Then again, the makers say the colours have a "high degree of lightfastness": what does that mean? As opposed to what? I have a high degree of longevity, if compared to a gerbil; and a very poor one compared to a giant tortoise. It doesn't mean anything.
There's a video on Youtube, which was about the most useful thing I could find out about the lightfastness of the paint (I'll post a link) from a US painter - she exposed the paint to light in her greenhouse: this might have been a somewhat extreme test, but the Ultramarine faded - Ultramarine should not fade. She moved rapidly on to techniques, but her conclusion was basically that Brusho is fine to play with and have a bit of fun with, but it's not for serious work you intend to last.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating so far as I'm concerned. If the company are confident in the long-term lightfastness of their colours, it's not good enough to use terms like "a high degree of lightfastness", or to claim they're about as good as other ranges of watercolour - that's just meaningless. Let them list the pigment numbers: then we can check the permanence for ourselves. If you can't say "these paints are lightfast", they're not suitable for serious artistic use. Now - not every paint on the market HAS to be: there are some I'd never use in work I'm hoping to sell or even give away. They may still be great to play with, for illustration purposes, for turning into prints - and clearly Brusho has its devotees. If it's a craft product, that's nothing to be ashamed of. But if some people are buying the paint because they think it's suitable for long-term work, that's something else again. Use it and enjoy it, but be aware of what it is.
Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JH9TQzW6fmY
If you can find any better information than I've managed to find, do point me to it.
http://www.isleofwightlandscapes.net
http://www.wightpaint.blogspot.co.uk
Posted
I was reading an article recently about alizarin crimson watercolour and lightfastness - it became lightfast after being coated with 6 layers of a UV coating (although this affected the colour and texture of the paper). If it's possible with watercolour I'd guess it's possible with Brusho. However, if you're going to this much trouble surely it's easier just to buy lightfast materials in the first place.
I do love the look of Brusho though and have considered having a dabble, just for the fun of it. The trouble is, then, if you produce something you're really proud of and are then unable to hang it anywhere...
Kay Marriott
Posted
After telling my friend about the problem with lightfastness of Brusho I tried to investigate the pigments in them and their ratings but, like Robert, couldn't fine anything at all. If Colorcraft are so sure their product is lightfast why not list the pigments on their pots, after all the well known "artist quality" manufacturers of watercolour, W&N, Holbein and many more are happy to do so plus their ratings on possible fading. If they want their product to be used by serious artists hoping to sell their work then why not list them.
Posted
Water: When rain falls on granite as it does in Scotland, Dartmoor, Bodmin Moor parts of Wales and Ireland, it runs straight off into the rivers and does not pick up elements and salts from the rock. It therefore tends to taste a lot better/purer than the chalky, limey stuff from the South East. So if water is an issue for you locally, you can always use distilled water.
UV: I don't like the concept of spraying, so when framing watercolours, you can always use UV filtering glass and your painting will be protected from fading.
Posted
After reading this thread I decided to give Brusho a whirl, just for myself, not to sell.
I love the effect, it's a very interesting medium to use but ever so delicate to manipulate, I found it very easy to pool or smudge/smear. I eventually came up with this, but haven't found it the easiest medium to master so far.
I'll press on with it, it's pretty magical stuff.....if a little messy.
Any techniques gratefully received!
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