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Caravaggio's, Judith. Well a try at it anyway.
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Message
Posted
"A bad workman always blames his tools" is rubbish: it's what certain employers would say if they were too mean to buy decent equipment!
Have a browse through Rosemary & Co's online catalogue - don't go mad and buy every brush on there, which I'm always tempted to do, but read the descriptions, see what the brush will do, look at it closely and see if it corresponds to what you think you need, and - BUY IT. Rotten brushes are no good to you (as "rotten" does rather imply!): it is hellishly difficult to get good results with poor brushes. Rosemary (there really IS a Rosemary, though her daughter Symi now seems to be running the company on a day to day basis) offers a very wide range of brushes in synthetic and natural fibres, and some of those synthetics - the Shiraz and Ivory ranges - are about the best I've ever used. The Golden range is good too, and extremely good value. Just about everything you need is there - hogs, fans, hakes, sable, sable-mix, rounds, flats, filberts, riggers: damn', my mouth is watering.
Also, the star painter on this site - I won't name him in case he'd be embarrassed - sent me some brushes a while ago, including a Jackson's black hog (available of course on the Jackson's website) - it's a fine brush: and I know he'd agree with me that you can't paint a good picture with a nasty bit of tufty bristle on a stick - or, actually, you probably can, but it'd be torture. You DESERVE a decent set of brushes, Denise, take the padlock off your purse and dive in!
Posted
Thanks Robert, I'll take your advice, I do buy brushes but I don't have the experience to know what I'm looking for most of the time. That is really useful. I've done some more today, I'm not sure how I'm doing, I can never tell, I know I have a lot to do and I would think I'm about half way through at this stage.I enjoy trying a portrait but they are challenging even if you are trying to copy one.
Posted
You're doing astonishingly well: which I think is a sentiment just about everyone in this forum would agree with. Which is why I say you deserve good brushes. If you like, pick out a selection from a good website, Rosemary's, Jackson's, Ken Bromley's, CassArts, Grantham's Art Discount - there are plenty to choose from, and all of these stock high quality products - and ask for opinions on them from the more experienced artists here: we know the value of a great brush, and know one when we see one.
The late Syd Edward, who graced this forum into his 90s - may have been just before your time, I can't remember - had just two words when asked about brushes, and ill-betide you if you didn't act on them! Those words were "black hogs!" He valued their greater flexibility - as do I, though now and then a good, crisp stroke is required which might require a somewhat firmer brush - although, if you know what you're doing, you can create a crisp line in watercolour with a hake, about the softest brush you'll find.
Seriously - and I trust I'm preaching to the converted by now - a pig-awful brush really is likely to lead to a pig-awful painting: and we don't want that, do we? No, we don't!
A beef I have with some suppliers is that they seem not to distinguish between painting knives and palette knives - I look forward to diving into that discussion in due course: I think you HAVE used knives, haven't you? I don't use them often, but am rather drawn to an old painting I did with knives, which at the time I thought hideous ..... but I digress. Let's get the brushes sorted out first.
Posted
Yes, you must have good brushes… and Rosemary &Co are the world leaders in brushes! Of course Robert knows that as do most professional artists!
I wrote an article on oil painting brushes a few months back now for TA, and Rosemary herself very generously sent me a good selection to put through their paces.
I was already familiar with their Ebony, Ivory and Shiraz range, but she sent me a selection from the Evergreen range… you can’t get a better selection anywhere.
Yes, I do like Jackson’s Black Hog also, I particularly like their Long Flat range, good value brushes that take some hammer, and I’m rough on brushes!
There’s no universal standard sizing on brushes, ridiculous but true… but, R & Co show the exact brush size illustration in their catalogue, now that’s sensible!
Posted
That's great Robert, I'm actually planning to go to CassArts tomorrow as it happens. I'll right down some of the things you have mentioned and look for them. I will be able to get a few decent brushes to continue on with my painting. I'll be in there for hours probably, looking at everything. I do have a couple of decent oil brushes, a couple Alan recommended a while back but I don't have a wide range that I now need, now that I'm doing more oil painting. I think I'm often using the wrong brush for specific areas, so I shall have a good study of all the oil brushes in the shop tomorrow. Thanks again Robert.
Posted
I got some decent brushes today to carry on with my painting but will have to go online for the brands mentioned. I am happy with what I got. I got a variety of their Pro arte range. I got a nice filbert brush. That was in their synthetic range and I also got some very nice hog hair in the same range. I got a couple of Winsor and Newton brushes. I got advice in the shop and showed them what I was trying to do. Then they asked did I have any more pictures of anything else I do. I showed them a couple of pictures because they asked. Anyway, I payed for my things, then on the way out, the lady said, would you like to show you work here in the shop. I said, how much will that cost, she said, it's free. We give two week slots to unknown artists. You get the whole wall in the shop for two weeks. You have to wait months for a slot but she said if I was interested, send my details in and gave me a card. So that was a turn up for the books, I didn't even know they did that at Cass art. I might just do it. I don't know how to explain brushes but they feel like they have good tension and spring to them and I feel I will be able to move the oil about much better as some of the brushes are the same sizes as some of the brushes, I've been using but I can tell, they have that tension in them. I got some very fine brushes also for detail. I'm looking forward to getting stuck back into my painting tomorrow with fresh brushes. Hallelujah.
Edited
by Denise Cat
Posted
Flippin’ heck Denise! I should think that’s a great opportunity to show your work at Cass Arts. Snap it up girl. I didn’t know they did that either. I’ve only ever been to their little shop near Trafalgar Square which is a shopping delight (aren’t all art shops!) but nowhere big enough for an art wall. Sounds like you have a good selection of brushes to get on with your journey.