Tag: paint

Strathmore Online Workshop Series 3: Intro to Painting with Gouache

Posted on by Celia

Strathmore’s last 2019 FREE Online Workshop will be starting up again soon and we are so excited for this virtual classroom! Get ready for Intro to Painting with Gouache, with artist/instructor Myriam Tillson, which starts September 3, 2019!

This gouache workshop will explore the use of gouache as a painting medium in its own right. Students will learn about the particular properties of the medium, how it compares to other similar paints such as watercolor and acrylic, what materials work best with it, and how to use it to make the most of it and its specific qualities.

Viewers will be introduced to the paint in some detail, and will be shown which papers, brushes and tools can help enhance their experience with the medium. You’ll learn key tips and tricks to get more familiar with gouache, how to use gouache in an opaque manner, how to achieve the ideal consistency, and alternative applications.

Here is some basic information about how Strathmore Online Workshops work:

  • Workshops are self-paced. You participate when you want.
  • If you registered for the Online Workshops, you will receive an email at the start of each Workshop. Note that you will not be receiving an email each week a workshop lesson is published (only at the start of the workshop).
  • Each Workshop has 4 weekly lessons. Once a workshop begins, a lesson is published on the Workshop page each week for four weeks. Once the lessons are published, they will stay active on the site until December 31.
  • In addition to the lessons, students can participate in conversations on our discussion boards or share work in the classroom photo gallery.
  • Each weekly lesson includes a video lesson and downloadable instruction sheet. You will complete assignments on your own, at your own pace. Due to the size of the classes, there is no formal instructor review of your assignments.
  • Instructors will actively participate at the start of each workshop through the first 4 weeks. Instructors will post tips and comments during this time. However, due to the size of the classes, they may not be able to respond to all of students’ questions or comments. Strathmore will be helping out our instructors during this time. After the 4 weeks, Strathmore will continue to monitor classroom discussions and answer questions, with the help of the instructor as needed.

Mom-umental Gift Idea: Mixed Media Mega Set by Art Alternatives

Posted on by Celia
Mixed Media Mega Set by Art Alternatives

Drawing a blank on what to get her for Mother’s Day? This Mixed Media Mega Set by Art Alternatives includes everything an artist needs to create dynamic, mixed media artwork: 165 pieces housed in an attractive wooden box with metal clasps and a sturdy handle. The box folds outwards to reveal an extensive variety of supplies for drawing, sketching, painting and pastels. The set includes 30 oil pastels, 28 colored pencils, 24 watercolor cakes, 16 6ml watercolor paints, 16 6ml acrylic paints, 16 watercolor pencils, ten 9″ x 12″ activity sheets, eight sketching pencils, three charcoal pencils, three plastic palettes, two golden synthetic brushes, two natural hair brushes, two tortillons, one blending stump, one plastic palette knife, one 2-hole metal sharpener, one vinyl eraser and one kneaded eraser. Did we mention it’s ON SALE at 20% OFF? That’s $87.96 (list price $109.95). Mom will like that.

Draw Big with GOLDEN Acrylic Ground for Pastels

Posted on by Celia
Golden Acrylic Ground for Pastels on a wood door makes a great canvas.

Golden Acrylic Ground for Pastels is easy to use, yet it opens a range of creative possibilities for artists to go beyond paper. Like most GOLDEN acrylic gels, pastes, colors and mediums, it can be applied to anything acrylic will adhere to (which is most things), like walls, furniture, unglazed ceramic, plaster, natural and synthetic panels, and even paper. For artists like Steve, everything is a potential “canvas” – here he transforms a common door panel into a large work of art. If you’re an artist like Steve, thankfully we have all Golden Acrylic Colors, Gels, and Mediums on sale for 40% off during our Back To Whatever Super Sale: Winter Edition! But you better act fast because the sale ends tomorrow, February 8th!

Also, Sennelier Oil Pastels are on sale for 20% off! Created in the 1940s in collaboration with Picasso, these creamy, lipstick-like pastels are rich in pigment, cover well, and have outstanding opacity and lightfastness. These pastels are available in 110 “classic” colors and 10 iridescent colors. They are acid-free, can be applied to any surface, and may be thinned with turpentine and worked with a brush. Modern Sennelier Oil Pastels’ diameter are 20% larger than the original stick, and are available in a larger size called “Grand”, which is the equivalent of eight regular size sticks.

Painting It Forward

Posted on by Celia

This reddit thread was too good not to share. Someone’s mom painted an egret painting, her second piece of artwork, and she was concerned that no one would like it. The art community stepped up and several artists decided to “paint it forward”.

The family tree!

Aren’t artists and the Internets awesome?

What is a good basic watercolor set for beginners and for artists who want to start painting with watercolors?

Posted on by Celia

Some questions we are often asked:

“What colors do you suggest for a beginner to get started?”
“What colors should I get if I want to paint with watercolors?” 

Choosing a palette of colors is very personal, and at its most basic, the choice needs to include a yellow, red and blue for a primary mixing set. 

“Which yellow, red and blue to get started with?” 

We recommend the DANIEL SMITH Sketcher Half Pan Watercolor Set! 

This handy, thoughtfully selected group of 6 DANIEL SMITH colors was developed over several years by Sketcher Artist Liz Steel (with helpful feedback from other artists) to be an excellent starter palette of watercolors, perfect for the beginner, the artist who wants to upgrade to DANIEL SMITH Watercolors and the on-the-go artist who needs a good basic set to take with them.  

Because the set is made up of half pans, it is an excellent value to get started with six DANIEL SMITH Watercolors at a lower price than six 15ml tubes would be, and well priced for gift giving too! Currently, Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors are on sale for 30% off! Woo hoo!

The colors in the set were carefully chosen for their ability to mix beautifully making gorgeous and useful secondary colors as well as huge spectrum of other colors.  An important part of choosing the colors was including 2 primary triads [yellow, red & blue] in what Liz Steel calls a “Bright Primary Triad” and an “Earth Primary Triad“. Having two different primary mixing triads within the set makes color mixing fast, easy and successful for painting.   

“Bright Primary Triad”, for quickly mixing bright colors:

“Earth Primary Triad“, for quickly mixing earthly colors:

Color mixing grid of the Sketcher Half Pan Watercolor Set
organized by Liz Steel’s 2 primary triads:  “bright primary triad” and “earth primary triad”

With these two primary triads you can confidently mix a huge range of useful and beautiful colors, both within each of the triads and mixing combinations of the two triad colors together. 

The Sketcher Half Pan Watercolor Set was designed to be a solid foundation palette of colors to get started painting with watercolors for beginners, and are a great introduction to DANIEL SMITH Watercolors for more experienced artists.  The Set was also designed to work wonderfully with add on colors as each artist later chooses additional colors to personalize their palette for their particular subjects. The Set even includes 9 empty half pans ready to fill with additional colors from DANIEL SMITH tube watercolors! Now that you know these are on sale for 30% off, what are you waiting for?!