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Category Archives: New Art Supplies

Waterbrushes or Water Brushes?

12-Nov-06

Either way you spell them out they are great new tools for watercolor sketchers. Water brushes aren’t really new any more except in the USA. They originated in Japan and are widely used there. Many of the Japanese books on sketching recommend them. There are a lot of manufacturers on the band wagon now. I’ve used them exclusively since I started sketching again a couple of years ago.

So far, I’ve only been able to find three brands here in the U.S., and of those, the Pentel is the best. The water chamber is flattened to prevent it from rolling around. It is perhaps a bit better quality too. I think Pentel simply put a little more thought into their design, even in the shape of the filaments. Some of the late comers seem to have whipped one together so they could get to market. The Pentels are more expensive but I’ve found them to be worthwhile. Of note, the Sakura “koi” is the shortest and most compact.

The least expensive I’ve found were the Leow Cornell waterbrushes (Aqua Flo). I found them at a local Dick Blick store. All of the brands I’ve tried perform quite well for watercolor sketching. So, if you’re on a budget, or simply want to get to know these tools a bit, go for the less expensive ones.

If you do large paintings, say larger than 5×7, then these brushes are probably going to frustrate you. That’s because the brushes are simply not intended to be wash brushes. The filaments hold a fair amount of color but no more than an equivalent sized sable brush. Larger paintings, regardless of brush material, simply require more color in the brush. So these guys are ideal for small paintings and watercolor sketchbooks.

The hardest part for artists it seems, is getting past the way synthetic brushes “work” as opposed to sable brushes. They are a bit different in the way they bounce and react. Honestly, not being a professional fine artist, I’ve never been able to tell enough difference in how a synthetic brush affected my skills. Whether I use a waterbrush, or a $75 kolinsky sable brush, I get the same results in my sketches. That probably has to do with a lack of skill on my part, but as they say “ignorance is bliss”. Since all I do is sketch with watercolor, I don’t have a need for a broad watercolor skill set.

So What’s The Big Deal About Water Brushes?
By far, the greatest thing about water brushes is the water chamber. No longer does one need to take along all the paraphernalia associated with watercolor. The water is contained in the brush barrel. Squeeze and your brush is loaded with water. Dip in color and you’re ready to paint. Wipe the tip on a paper towel while squeezing a little water out and the brush is clean and ready for the next color. The paper towel is your “control device”. It helps you control the how wet the brush is. You could just as easily use a cashmere cloth if you’re into “finery”. Or even a sponge.

All I ever use to sketch is a tiny little watercolor box I made, a Pentel “twist-erase” mechanical pencil, a superfine (S) Pitt Artist Pen, and a medium Pentel Aquash water brush. I make my own sketchbooks now. The travel size is 3.5″ x 5″. All of this can go in my pants pocket in a pinch. Usually, I carry a really small fanny pack though. That way I can carry a couple of small squirt bottles of water to refill the brush if needed.

Simplicity Releases Creativity and Beauty
So, if you’re a sketchbooker like me, or do sketch crawls and travel sketching…SIMPLIFY. You’ll enjoy it more and get more sketching done once you give in to the change of thinking about brushes, colors, and sketchbooks. By the way, I use six colors. That’s it. I also have some white gouache in the little box for highlights if needed.

I’ll sketch up the refined design of the little watercolor box for you in a future post.

Sketch on brothers and sisters, sketch on!

Here are some links to online stores that have the water brushes.
Opus Framing and Art Supplies (Holbein’s version)
Cheap Joes
Conservation Resources
Wet Paint
Judson’s Plein Aire
Supplies dot Net
Paperkin Arts I bought Pentels here.
Dick Blick (Loew Cornells)
Dick Blick (Niji brand)

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Make A Mini Watercolor Palette

20-May-06

This is a tiny portable watercolor palette I made using a mint tin. All you do is press in some Sculpey oven-bake clay and carve out the color wells. I used a cheap clay carving tool to remove the clay for the wells. Then bake it in your kitchen oven following the instructions.

You can be as picky as you like with molding the clay. But I found that it worked fine without being to worrisome about it. After all, it’s for using in the field, not a design competition.

Once baked, you can spray paint the clay with enamel, or use Sculpey air dry glaze for a shiny finish.

I had enough room in this little box for 7 color wells. A bigger tin would allow more colors if you need them. The bigger Altoids boxes work well in that case. I found this particular tin at Borders Books in their coffee bar. It’s the smallest one I’ve seen. I did find a supplier online as well. Just Google “sliding top tins”. There is quite a selection available.

The color wells go all the way to the bottom of the tin. They are about 5/16” x 5/16” x 5/16”. They hold enough paint for a surprising number of sketches. Since I squeeze in tube watercolors and let them harden, the color strength is greater than with watercolor pans. So the colors are surprisingly long lasting. Just make sure you buy “Artist’s Quality” paints. I happen to use Holbein.

Fill the wells in three layers allowing each layer to dry. They will dry faster that way without cracking like a sun-baked desert. As you use up your paint, simply squeeze in some more and let dry for the next use.

All of my sketches are done in small sketchbooks about 5” x 6–1/4”. So the mixing area is sufficient for the small amounts of color I mix. I even keep a couple of colors on there at the same time occasionally.

Sometimes I use it at home or the office so I stuck some tiny, clear, cabinet door bumpers on the bottom. That makes it less likely to slide around my desk while mixing and poking in the paint wells with the brush.

Sculpey is the key. You can use whatever container you like and mold your own palette. Keep in mind though that this concept is for small, portable palettes. The clay is too heavy if you make full size palettes with it. Unless of course you want a really heavy desk palette.

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Moleskine Watercolor Notebook, Test III

19-May-06

This is a sketch of my wife alongside the ruler of our home.

Now I’m starting to get the hang of the Moleskine Watercolor Notebook paper. It simply soaks the water in quickly, and as a result, the pigment is “stuck” on the surface almost immediately. Heavy washes of mixed colors sometimes separate a bit.

Knowing that now, I’ve layered lighter washes so the grainy effect is eliminated. All that’s present now is the grain of the paper and its contribution to the style of the image/artist’s touch. That’s a desirable attribute for a watercolor paper. So three cheers for the Moleskine Watercolor Notebook! Once one becomes used to its characteristics, its great.

As for buckling, the paper does “bend” as it becomes saturated, but it never really “buckles” or “puckers” like a thin bond paper would. And once it’s dry, it pretty well flattens out; certainly flat enough for framing as long as there is sufficient backing to press against the painting.

Speaking of framing, each leaf is perforated so you can remove a sketch easily for framing etc.

As for bleed through….there isn’t any. Test one and test two were done on each side of the same leaf. I did let number one dry first though.

So, I think this is a great addition to the Moleskine line. Now if they would just produce them in a cahiers version. They would be ideal for chronicling a vacation or specific subjects, etc. as individual little volumes. All the cahiers sizes would make great little solutions for that type of use.

Sometimes a sketchbook with lots of pages becomes a scattering of subjects with no particular identity, other than the year it was produced perhaps. Thinner sketchbooks make it easy to keep similar subjects and sketches under the same cover and finish each volume fairly quickly. Then, If you want to have a look at your Zion National Park sketches, you’ve got a little volume with only those in it. Plus, one can complete a thin sketchbook faster. For me at least, completing a sketchbook is a good feeling. So the thinner the sketchbook, the more good feelings I get.

Who knows if they’ll ever do that though (make watercolor cahiers)? So for now, seize the day and get yourself a Moleskine Watercolor Notebook. They’re cool!

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Moleskine Watercolor Notebook, Test II

18-May-06

Another Moleskine Watercolor Notebook test with a different red pigment.

It’s definitely the paper that is causing the pigment aggregation; not the pigment. It causes a somewhat sandpaper effect to the way the pigments settle because the paper soaks up the water very fast.

Light washes are fine but dark washes (meaning lots of pigment) accentuate the effect.

There is no time for “working” the pigment around on the paper to smooth it. In fact, that seems to make the effect worse if you do that.

Other than that, the paper works well. It takes fountain pen nicely too. I use Noodlers Ink which is about the most waterproof fountain pen ink on the market. (I tested all the well known waterproof fountain pen inks).

I’ll continue experimenting with the Moleskine Watercolor Notebook and post the results here. I won’t be switching from the Arches Text Wove paper though. It provides a lot more control. I do have to make up my own sketchbooks with it but that has turned out to be great fun anyway. The only company that produces sketchbooks with it is www.renaissance-art.com and they are quite a price…very nice, and worth it if you like the concept however. As high end sketchbooks go, you can’t beat ‘em.

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Moleskine Watercolor Notebook Test

17-May-06

I purchased a couple of the new Moleskine watercolor notebooks today to try them out. I found them at Dick Blick Art Supply.

This is the first sketch and my first impression was that I didn’t like the paper.

It seemed to make the paint aggregate into a grainy consistency; just like the thinner paper in the original Moleskine journal books.

It was particularly problematic with the red pigment. But the paper reacted that way with all the pigments. It was most prevalent when the pigment load was saturated. Light washes were not a problem.

So, before I officially decide to use them or lose them, I’ll perform further tests over the weekend and post them here.

So far, I’ve not found a better thin paper for watercolor sketching than Arches Text Wove.

The Moleskine watercolor paper seems to need more sizing for watercolor to react properly.

But still, it’s a far cry better than the Moleskine sketchbook paper. It was totally unsuited to watercolor.

Of course, opinions vary on all art papers. Each artist’s style produces different results on different papers. So, just because I don’t like it, doesn’t mean it’s not a good product! Other artists styles might work perfectly with it.

All I’m pointing out is a characteristic (the graining of the color) that didn’t appeal to me. So, to all you Moleskine devotees, please don’t take offense. Get one and try it out instead.

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