Photo Credit ~ Jonathan Patriarca, Surfers Flow Yoga
Don't you love it! Huge piles of color. I would love to sink my hands into them up to my elbows. But of course that is not recommended, these things are best handled in tiny amounts, and with great care so as to keep them out of your eyes, and of course, lungs. Still, it's fun to dream and thanks to Jonathan for sending this amazing image from his travels in India.
Pigments and paintmaking are fascinating topics, and I thought this would be a good place to include some of my favorite links and information on the subject. I think it's important to know as much about your materials as you can. Fading, flaking, yellowing, and unexpectedly hideous color mixes (in my case greens seem to be particularly troublesome) are among the pitfalls of not knowing your materials or how they interact with one another, or with time.
I don't profess to be an expert on this subject, but I try to learn as much as I can, and in the interest of sharing, I wanted to include some notable sites on this colorful subject.
What's in YOUR paint???
Well if you are talking watercolors, your tube holds a not-so-mystical concoction consisting of pigment(s), a binder such as gum arabic, an extender for bulk, a humectant like honey or corn syrup, and maybe even a little water.
Want to know more?
Bruce MacEvoy's exquisite site, Handprint includes a section that he calls "The world's finest guide to watercolor painting." I don't think Bruce is exaggerating one bit. In fact, I think he is selling himself short. This site is a wondrous font of information on all things pigmentary.
This is information that can be used regardless of what medium you have chosen to get the colors out of your head and onto paper, canvas, silk, or whatever you have chosen to get them out on.
For an excellent description of how watercolors are made, grab a cup of something and settle in for some very interesting reading on paints, pigments, and how the magic happens when you crack open a tube of your favorite watercolors.
OILS
Oil Paint is perhaps a bit more simple ingredient-wise, at least in terms of what's in the tube. Pigment; a binder, in this case, oil; perhaps stabilizers and/or fillers, but not always. Sinopia's site includes information on oils, encaustics, and more. The site also includes a section called How to Make Oil Paint.
You can also read up on inks, dyes, and pastels.
If, like me, you are interested in mixing up a batch of your own medium using Balsam, Spike, Walnut oil or other such treasures, visit Studio Products to learn more, and browse through their catalog of hard to find ingredients. The recipes section will help you figure out how to pull it all together. The message boards here and on the worth-its-weight-in-gold site Wet Canvas will yield what I can only describe as a ton of information, suggestions, debates, and tips on how to get the most out of your paint. These are not the only sites to find such information, they happen to be the ones I use the most.
I also have to nod to Robert Gamblin's site. Robert and his wife Martha make and sell paint to a vast and growing market. I use several types of paint in my work, and my palette does include some Gamblin colors, as well as some other brands like Maimeri, Old Holland, and Doak, which are all quite loaded with pigment. I particularly appreciate very much the informative nature of the Gamblin website, and their willingness to answer emails, even by telephone. They bill their site as "turning color theory into color mixing," and with their guide to color space and guide to their own selection colors (take a look at the blue section), you can make some informed decisions on what to use and what to include in your personal palette. (Mine is usually slathered with a dozen reds . . .) I am not trying to sell Gamblin paint here, but I am saying that I sure do appreciate their passion for information and they make a nice product line.
Finally, any mention of color, pigments, and palettes would be woefully incomplete without a shout out to Don Jusko's amazing site, Real Color Wheel. Its more than a color wheel. Good grief, that's an understatement!
It's a history of painting, pigments, color theory, gallery, reading room, resource list, and overall amazing collection of links to all things color. And the actual Real Color Wheel itself allows you to click on matching pigments. Even if you are not yet sophisticated in the selection of pigments, this is an indispensable tool, and free to use and download. A visit to the site is well worth your while. What are you waiting for??? Get over there now! Don's work is amazing, and he does lovely things with water and light and every manner of thing.
The Society of Dyers and Colorists has a great site called The Virtual Colour Museum, which has lots of interesting facts and information on the history and application of colors in various media.
Last but certainly not least, I quote from Handprint . . .
Explanations are not as interesting as art, so I ask you to redeem the time you spend here by reaffirming your commitment to painting, and painting often. Bruce McEvoy
Tags ~ art, oil painting, pigments, oil painting techniques, watercolor, color wheel
