What if I end up painting masterpieces.. will my novice works withstand the yellowing of time? Here is a starter palette I often recommend. I dont care if those paintings last because Im probably going to paint over them. I certainly use my Golden paints, but I also use my student grade paints with plenty of success. The higher ratio of pigments costs more than the added filler, but you would have less colour shift and more opacity and coverage with the paint due to the higher pigment load. Will, when my masterpieces come alive and tangible, I want you to know God used you to help me! Thanks! The glazing medium I use also alters the consistency, trying to create a thinner layer. You might find this article of interest. Learn how your comment data is processed. Ive learned a LOT from your videos and from your site, and I love your tone always happy, informal, and the just the right amount of detail in your instructions! Just wondering was getting ready to work on some color mixing charts and noticed this when I read your article. Hi Tony, great to hear from you and really pleased youve been finding the site helpful in developing your painting skills. In comparison to say Terre Verte which has a very low tinting strength. Hi Ben, Id say its a mix of all 3, The lightness (or opacity of the paint) the colour shift (how much the colour changes when it is wet and then dry) and the longevity of the paint. Cheers, Will. I have one question: I work with acrylics, I paint realism/photorealism and so far, I am working with Amsterdam Standard acrylics (student grade), because where I live (Macedonia), this is the best you can get. What are your thoughts on this? I completely understand your thoughts on how the quality of the tools and materials can actually be detrimental to the learning process, so my question is about the finished quality of my paintings done with student grades. Certainly very interesting, learnt a lot, I have been a bit of a paint snob in the past, but now I am working on larger painting and abstracts, I have been looking at cheaper paints. Hi Will! How long do they take in delaying the drying time? You have quite a style and ease of communicating this craft you love so much! Same question for the alphabetical series e.g., A vs. B? Transparent colours are used for glazing and tinting. Hello Will. Are there any other brands of paint that are just as high quality as Golden? Thank you. Hi Alan, yes you can have a very light sand to even any slight bobbles, classically you would paint shadows thin and then have thicker impasto paint for the lights. And should I plant to upgrade to Liquitex or Golden at some point or are the Grumbacher and Winsor Newton paints high enough quality to achieve lasting results? So will make a paint that has pretty good coverage. 2. Thank you SO much your sharing your knowledge! this video shows the difference on a raw canvas surface. Have run into this issue specifically with the brown color family. Its helped knowing myself more as I begin this journey learning to paint. Am encouraging my grandchildren to draw and paint while they still love the process. The binder (acrylic polymer) is relatively inexpensive in comparison. You can see a comparison video here: watermixable-oils Cheers, Will. If you want to stretch it up and put it under tension onto a stretcher bar, youll want a thicker one. This is how easily a paint colour covers another paint colour, for example, a black paint will cover a yellow easier than the yellow will cover the black. The brands are Artists Loft vs. The Art District. I paint abstract paintings and plan to make those kind of shadows in the objects and some areas using paynes grey creating nice shadows that fade creating a kind of gradient effect and then build new layers of transparent colors that will create depth and create areas for the colors. Are there some colors that you recommend investing in the artist quality (i.e. Hi Tracey, its confusing isnt it! Household paint doesnt have the opacity, limited colour shift or archival quality of artist acrylic paint and will be harder to work with than standard paints. Thank you. You can watch a video demonstration on the differences between gels and mediums here. Thanks. These stand for the colour family, e.c PB blue, PG- green And some numbers. I truly do thank you for all your help and passing on your knowledge to those of us who need it and will use it. Is there a remedy for this? But Im not sure I wish to afford a professional grade to get started. Will, Hi Will, Just a note to thank you for keeping me on a list that continues adding and updating answers to my original question. How to choose a basic oil portrait painting palette, The Artists Handbook by Pip Seymour. The one I found is pretty transparent and it makes the paint more watery. ;o), PS.. One companies yellow ochre is other companies yellow ochre pale they also name the colour depending on their brand. Do you think that is the problem? I tried adding tiny amounts of water and it wasnt effective. The brands are Artists Loft vs. The Art District. I have put a coated of gesso and Ill give more coats. So a 60ml student grade titanium white might be 2.50 and contain pigment, binder and filler whereas a 60ml artist quality titanium white (series 1) might be 5.50 and contains pigment and binder. I was excited to start painting but quickly realized when beginning one of your tutorials that my paints have no name. From what little research Ive done, it seems that the W & N student grade (the Galeria) is of a higher quality than the student grade of some other brands, and thus I can probably find some uses for the Galeria. I added a little glazing medium on top so it shines and deepen the colors a bit. You can still of course mix colours and create a painting, but if you intend on working quite small for the difference in initial cost for a few tester pots compared to a paint starter set Id always advise the artist paints. Is it just a question of light / colour fastness or longevity? Series 1 artist quality are not the same price as the student. You can see a comparison of a few different white paints here. Thank you for what you share here on your website. Thank you so much for a very helpful article. Can you share any other info about brushes, such as the type of hair thats best for acrylics? Most artist quality brands have a similar opacity to the paint, M Graham, Winsor & Newton, Old Holland, Liquitex are all really nice brands. I started looking and paying more attention to the names and even the artist grades had the names hue in them for cadium red and Cerulean Blue Hue etc., what does this mean? Welcome along and thank you for your kind words. The paints are offered by the manufacturer in Medium and Heavy Body versions. So far, i have not tried using a retarder. Hi Jo, because of the relative amount of pigment and fillers in the paint tubes and the cost of the raw ingredients to make the paint. Hope you enjoy the articles and tutorials. For example, Alizarin Crimson Hue from Golden paints is a modern artist grade paint that is trying to replicate historical Alizarin Crimson. Titanium White) and others that I could get away with buying a student quality or hue version? Maybe you can advise. Will. Good luck with the paintings with your Grandchildren. Hi Garry, yes, thats right, artist quality white will have more opacity to it, but you can also get great results with student grade paints. Re paints, I notice there seems to beat timesthree grades: student, artist, professional. Sign up now to get the latest posts, news about products & art inspiration, straight to your inbox, How Controlling Your Light is Key to Painting Realistic Florals Outside. Same question for the alphabetical series e.g., A vs. B? Thank you for your videos and all your extensive instruction on the basics for the relatively new painter. I am 75 and have over a number dabbled with both acrylic and watercolour. Hello Mr. Kemp, I find it so very wonderful to be learning from the ground up from as great an artist as yourself. Which identifies the pigment. Im looking to balance quality and price. The Art Studio Renovation Diary Phase 1 Completed! The way that different canvases are prepared changes the way that the paint behaves onto them, also the type of painting you want to create. (Ive had no income for a few years now, so I cant afford to pay for lessons.) Will, I am a grandmother just starting painting for the first time in my life. 2) Do these numbers also correspond with the grade of canvas? Drats! Thanks again, -Jan. Hi Jan, nice to hear from you and pleased youve been enjoying the site. hi sir, i am from india. Thank you for your help. I have always been using oils and suddenly considering the irritation in the respiratory tract, everytime i take to painting, I am thinking of switching over to acrylics. Hey Mike, great to hear from you and so pleased youve been finding the site helpful. This refers to how much or how little paint is needed to alter the colour of white paint. You can be a paint detective though by understanding the colour index of pigments. How about it? Whats your opinion? Excellent Article Will. Thanks. So, can you not get Cadmium red in student quality paint? I hear you ask, well you can get Cadmium Red Hue. First, I want to tell you Bravo for all those info you are sharing. Its a great resource and provides much appreciated motivation! I personally knew lenny bocour, sam golden, bob simmons joe grumbacher bob simmons and many others and have been a painter for many manny years and your advice is good and well written. I think you provide all kinds of helpful information, and I really appreciate all the free information, including videos. Most companies have a list of the lightfast rating of each of the tubes of paint they manufacture. A rule of thumb is if you cant pronounce the name it is usually a transparent paint. Lenny Bocour once told me he had a night mare that all of his prodcut had dried up in their tubes. This book goes into great details on the various properties of each individual pigment Empty Easel Professional Grade Oil paint vs Student Grade oil paint review. hi. Although the pigment chemical names will be the same there will be subtle differences in shade. Appreciate anything you can suggest. You use the example of grading paints numerically, but in what context might you see the alphabetic grading? May I first say that you are an amazing artist, and a great help to many of us that are beginners or even professionals! Thank you. The amount of information that appears on the label of a paint tube (or jar) varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, but good artists quality paints will typically list the following: For beginners, thats about enough information that you need to know for an informed choice to get started but for the paint geeks theres more detailed information below: 1. Hi Will, Absolutely LOVE your site!!! Liquitex pouring medium will give you a good resin like sheen but wont hold a dome shape as well. I wish to paint classically using opaque acrylics so avoided the garish colours; also in the belief that white is one of the most important paints I purchased some tubs of Heavy Body Titanium White which I hope will give greater coverage. ), Under the Free Videos tab at the top of the page, or listed under the Acrylic Painting Tab. I just wanted to know the names of some of the most expensive acrylic or oil paints and some of the cheapest acrylic paints. Series A, Series B) and others numbers (e.g. Hi Courtney, I would always invest in an artist quality Titanium white, and youll notice the biggest difference between the yellows, an artist quality cadmium yellow light will be much more opaque. anyway, I love to paint lots of layers, Chippy paint style. Im trying to get cells in the pouring technique using acrylics. Hi Will I use acrylic colors and I have been painting a lot. Cleaning the brush or using a new brush would help avoiding the shadow to extend longer creating a nice fade? 3) Same question for brushes which series numbers are the more professional vs. the student grades? Hopefully I read an article from you that talks about how to prime a canvas with gesso. i was visited your website.recently..you are great artist.. it is was soo helpful to mebasically i am an employeebut i like paintings very muchi have experience in drawings. Hi Christiane, What an introduction! Hi Pratyush, some of the most expensive pigments are Cadmiums, and the least expensive are earth colours, classically ultramarine blue was very expensive with Lapis Lazuli being ground into a powder to make into paint. Does it depend on manufacturer, type of paint? Paint pigments can be expensive and vary in cost. When first starting painting lessons it is often overwhelming to try and decide which brush to buy, what canvas to paint on and the biggest choice of all. So frustrating. These canvases are often in rolls that you can stretch onto stretcher bars. Is this considered a defect? Baby steps!! landscape,nature,water fall so which brand is best to for mealready i was buyed Winsor & Newton 24 colours brand aryclis paintsand brushes..when i was an paint the sky and cloudsit was not yet.coming .realistically and shades alsonot able to paint properly..so can you please give some suggestions ..which brand is best..even how to use the brushes.and colour mixing, Hi Nagasatish, pleased youve been enjoying the website, Winsor & Newton are a great brand and one of the brands that I use in my professional work so a great brand to work with. e.g. I am looking forward to moving forward with my hobby and am sure that your tuition will help me in my endeavours. Ive tried to do this so that I can quickly re-direct any frustration I run into by telling myself Its ok.. this was for trying out THIS one thing.., Sorry for the long leader.. all that to say that I have acquired a collection of student grade paints mostly with the mindset that I just want to paint, and get comfortable first and foremost with the motion of putting paint on surface (mostly canvas for me). So a paint made from earth, such as an ochre will be made from crushed up rock, this, of course, is hard to see through! Will. Will. In closing, I cant thank you enough for your free you tube videos. I have tried Looking up for the difference in artist and student material for a while and finally came across your article. Also, I love your site. Hi Hardy, it is usually depended on canvas weight and feel. No, is the simple answer. Hi Anne, pleased youve been enjoying the website. Hi Will, I started this comment by writing a novella.. so Im putting the question up front, and if you (or anyone else reading) cares to read on,.. you wont fall asleep before I get to my question.. LOL Being a new painter, Ive amassed a large collection of student-grade acrylic paints, mainly for the purpose of just allowing myself to be comfortable with using paints and experimenting with color mixing. A bit like those produced by Kerry Darlington in a lot of her tree paintings. David Altmejd interpretation of the classical nymp, Acrylic Palette Knife Painting Techniques Free Video Course Part 2 of 4, Fishing Boat at St Michaels Mount Acrylic Step-by-Step Tutorial for Beginners, Acrylic Palette Knife Painting Techniques Free Video Course Part 1 of 4, differences between gels and mediums here. Fredrix make some nice canvases as do Claessens. What is the difference between Artists Loft (Michaels) academic canvas vs the professional, please? Im looking to get started painting as a hobby just for my own personal enjoyment, nothing fancy, and am researching what paints to buy for my starter set. Bless you for sharing your knowledge! Im planning to give 3 layers of gesso and wondering if it would be good to sand the canvas after that to have an even surface. thank you, Nice to hear from you, really pleased youre finding the site helpful and are enjoying the cherry painting tutorial. If yes, any info on that please. I guess I have found out what the issue is! And I dont feel as though they are holding me back. Any idea of the combination of paint I need to use to create cells in the pouring technique? No, the series is for the price of the paint within either a student or artist range of paints. So you can imagine its never going to have the colour saturation that an artist grade paint will have, however, for pigments that are manufactured to resemble historical colours they can also be called hue. I would try and invest in an artist quality titanium white and then try a couple of brnads to see which you prefer. Im afraid if I ask I will be typing all day! All Ive seen so far is the number value level I or II but no other information that would indicate the quality, such as the weight, type of fabric, gesso, tightness of the stretching, etc. The varying percentages and opacity of acrylic paints can really vary depending on brand/cost. In student quality paints a white binder will have been used and often the cheaper you go the greater the colour shift. Good one Dinah, pleased youre finding the site helpful. Thank you again for all you share with your adoring students. Thats if you can rememberLoL! Thanks Elaine, Glad it helped to explain the difference between the two. That is why artist quality paints are split into series.(e.g. So if you paint that masterpiece, as Im sure you will, you can be safe in the knowledge that future generations will not have a hefty conservation bill! You might find that you prefer more fluid paints and there are other brands that make fluid colours that are already in a pourable consistency. And for shadow I guess l need to load the brush with little paint so the shadow fades faster and does not cover an area bigger than the necessary right? Would you be able to tell me why the cheaper pigments i.e. When you see hue written on a paint tube it means imitation, so it could be a combination of cheaper available reds to make a colour very close for a student range brand or for modern pigments that are manufactured to resemble historical colours they can also be called hue. So I was wondering what is the best mediums to get all the texture, also, is it find to use the cheaper paints underneath then just golden on top? But i have always failed when it comes to blending. Thank you Will for your expertise and your down to earth tuition. Thank you, Sandy, Hey Sandy, really pleased youve been finding the site helpful. My question is, what is your experience with paint out of new tubes that is grainy and too thick. Cheers, Will, Hi Will i also want to know if there is anyway that could determine if the soft pastel I buy is good quality of not! Thanks for helping! It was often reserved for painting the main figure. 5) Where can I find a list of all of your free tutorials? Thanks. I have to say the standard has improved, mixing the two working well for me. Unless Im mistaken I think that the student quality also uses aluminum stearite as a filler. Also I noticed that this website mainly is set to teach about about acrylics and oil paints. Is it true that anything that has hue after it is student? Im not sure its artist quality or student. Now, read on for the more detailed comment.. haha Hi Will! 5 Little Lessons from Painting a Large Painting in a New Space, Capturing Spring Sunshine by Painting Colourful Shadows (Acrylic Painting Tutorial). Ill try to reduce the amount of medium and see what happens. Pleased you found the article helpful Sarah. Here you go: is there any place for the use of home decorating acrylics (maybe for practicing??). I havent found an acrylic medium that is milky like the ones you are using. What paints to buy! Hope this helps. Can you share any other info about brushes, such as the type of hair thats best for acrylics? You are awesome! I havent personally used the Michaels academic canvas so couldnt say for sure. Will the finished quality of my paintings be affected (in regards to the longevity) because they were done using student grade? After joining your sight and reading this article I also realize that the paints are 48% acrylic resin, 33% extender and only 14% pigment! Recently i am working in a realistic portrait, but i have few past experience in acrylic painting..But i want to do the portrait with acrylic.. Can you give an idea about that? Golden have substitued a mix of quinacridone and phthalo modern pigments to substitute a traditional Rose Madder. Thanks, -Jan, Youre more than welcome Jan, pleased youve been finding it helpful. I boght a pack of soft patelnot a famous brand), so I want to know how to check if it is good or not( artist grade), Hi Chris, cheaper pastels tend to be a bit harder than artist pastels (even if theyre called soft pastels) and not as intensely saturated. I am fortunately a right-brained, naturally artistic person and have done a lot of what I call folk art painting using acrylics from bottles. 1) Is series 1 acrylic paint more of a student or a professional grade than a series with a higher number? It all depends on the absorbency of the surface youre painting onto, the adhesion of acrylics/gesso is more to do with the absorbency of the surface rather than the water ratio mixed with the paint. All those things you have to try to guess on if no one ever takes the time to explain. ASTM D4236 (Standard Practice for labelling Art Materials for Chronic Health Hazards), D4302 (Standard Specification for Artists Oil, Resin-Oil, and Alkyd Paints), D5098 (Standard Specification for Artists Acrylic Dispersion paints), as well as the required health warnings, So now you know the differences what should you buy? When you see hue written on a paint tube it means imitation, not a pure Cad red pigment but a combination of cheaper available reds to make a colour very close. How to choose paint brushes. I like how straight-forward it is in defining a lot of the basics to keep in mind. So, is it pretty rare to see alphabetical grading? Ive done you tube searches for willkempartschool, but generally only find a few from you and only parts of series, mixed with other artists videos. Think of old chipped wood and rusted metal style. At a closing down sale of a local stationers I purchased a few box sets of student quality acrylic paints from a well known UK manufacturer. My granddad never had the money for real paints and used cheap household paints for his early works. Hi Will, this topic was of great value to me. Cheers, Will, Hi Will, Im so grateful for all your information that has helped me grow in painting! Nonetheless, I think Ill heed your general advice to use the professional-artist grade, along with a soft gel gloss and an acrylic glazing liquid gloss medium. Your website has been invaluable to someone for whom painting is a complete mystery. Are these also not professional grade even though they state they are? It should be simple, but sometimes all the information on a paint tube can be confusing. 2) Do these numbers also correspond with the grade of canvas? Cheers, Will. Hi Alison, pleased youve been enjoying the articles, when you say to create cells what specifically are you trying to create? Hi Nontas, the lightfastness is usually more to do with the actual pigments used in the paints. Hi Katie, pleased youve been finding the lessons helpful, if you use a regular gel its about the same consistency and standard heavy body paints, so if you want a bit stiffer texture then i would go for the heavy gel. when mixed with water and mixed with flow release. Now I want to switch to Artist acrylics and I am thinking between Golden or Windsor. Would you advise? This can make things even more confusing than they already are. Cheers, Will. Again, thank you for taking time to answer my question here. Will the finished quality of my paintings be affected (in regards to the longevity) because they were done using student grade? Im having trouble getting glaze to work. Ive learned a LOT from your videos and from your site, and I love your tone always happy, informal, and the just the right amount of detail in your instructions! Thanks again. Thank you for posting this article. :-). So for bright, colourful abstracts Terre Verte would be the wrong choice, but for toning down a bright pink in your portrait painting palette, Terre Verte would be perfect. I purchased your acrylic color lessons and took to the easel to try the lemons painting. SO THANKS!! If you had a shiny surface of a canvas board and very diluted heavy body paint with water you would have the paint beading rather than staying in one paint film, for this scenario you would include a few drops of flow release medium to give the paint a better dispersion or use a thinner medium mixed with the paint, the flow release medium reduces the surface tension, this video shows the difference on a raw canvas surface. Id like to view all you have to offer because your videos are fantastic! Specifically, these are the colors that Im interested in Burnt Umber Titanium White Ultramarine Blue Phthalo Blue Cadmium Yellow light Cadmium Red Quinadricrone Crimson. The question is: is there a huge difference in quality or is just the question of taste of the artist? Cadmium red is an expensive raw material so is series 9 (highest price) whereas burnt umber is relatively inexpensive so is series 1 (cheapest price). Ultimately it comes down to the painter. I think Rotring do their own Rotring waterproof white ink. Or is there any other better variety of oils that u would suggest for me Would appreciate your response Thank you so much, A. Hi Archana, acrylic retarder will increase the workability slightly be no way as much as oils, you could also have a look at golden OPEN acrylics which have a much longer working time or waterbased oils, that can be cleaned with water so you can work solvent free. How to choose a basic acrylic palette 2. Should I even try? I wish I had discovered your site long before this! I have a question about your reference to hue when it comes to names on the paint labels. Will. Hi Rose, pleased youve been enjoying the website. Cheers, Will. Will, Many thanks in advance for all the help u have been rendering.. I emailed the company and was asked to send the the number off the crimped end of the tube (very tiny and very difficult to see) which Ive done. 4. Excellent clarification and explanation, Will. To have a sheen without a gloss finish I would use a satin varnish. Would you have any suggestions and tips on this? Darlene, Thats very kind of you to say so Darlene, so please youve been enjoying the articles and lessons. Cheers, Will, How long are paintings made with student grade acrylics likely to last, currently I am using BASICS Liquitex and when some colors are sold out, I get some by artists loft (michaels brand I think), has there been any study about the lightfastness of artists loft acrylics. Hi Carl, If youre first starting I would work with what you can afford, but always try and buy an artist quality titanium white. The higher the letter or number, the more expensive the paint. Cheers, Will, Hello Will Im from Brazil and having painting lessons a few months ago, and your site is very helpful, Im doing your exercise (that with cherry). Winsor and Newton have two grades of paint, but have recently been rebranding their artist acrylic to be called professional acrylic, Artist range Now called Professional Acrylic previously called Artists Acrylic. Cheers, Will. I have a question. Thanks a lot! Here is a Liquitex basic sheet that has the lightfastness rating next to each pigment: Im not sure about the Artist Loft Acrylics, I havent personally used them. Is there a teacher and their website you could recommend for beginners to do with soft pastels and even side walk art? 1. The fillers and binders used in Student grade acrylics are lightfast and wont deteriorate over time. Thank you. This helps to unify the sheen, saturate the colours and give you a slight sheen. :). Many thanks. Pigments vary in their transparency by nature, different paints have difference levels of opacity depending on the paint pigments chemical make up. Really hope you enjoy the apple tutorial (Part 2 should be live in a couple of days). Do you use hair dryer to speed up the dry process? The said theyd try to replace the defective paints.