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Return to programme of classes |
Téigh ar ais chuig clár ranganna |
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A list of recommended equipment and materials for all drawing and painting classes. |
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There are separate lists for beginners and for each of the main media, acrylics, oils, water colour and pastels. Please go to the section that applies to you. At the end you will find a list of general items to bring.
Tulach Ghorm, Sheeaun, Kilmaley, Ennis, Co.Clare, Ireland. Email contact |
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ART MATERIALS FOR BEGINNERS (I recommend acrylics for beginners)
Pencils: Drawing pencil (hardness B).
ACRYLIC PAINTING EQUIPMENT (For improvers who wish to work in this medium)
Paints: Acrylic paint in tubes of the following colours: Permanent Rose, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow Deep, Cadmium Yellow Pale, Cerulean Blue, Ultramarine, Titanium White (If you want to buy additional colours I suggest the following: Raw Umber, Cadmium Orange, Sap Green, Winsor Violet, Mars Black). You can buy either the student quality such as the Winsor & Newton ‘Galleria’ range or the Daler-Rowney ‘System 3’ range, or alternatively the artists quality such as the Winsor & Newton ‘Finity’ range or the Daler-Rowney 'Cryla' range. The artists quality ranges tend to have a thicker consistency and are better to work with but are obviously more expensive. You may also wish buy a tube of acrylic gel retarder (this can be used to slow down the drying time of the paint).
OIL PAINTING EQUIPMENT (For improvers who wish to work in this medium)
Paints and thinners: Oil paint in tubes of the following colours: Rose Madder, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow Deep, Lemon Yellow or Cadmium Lemon, Cerulean Blue, French Ultramarine, Titanium White (If you want to buy additional colours I suggest the following: Raw umber, Cadmium Orange, Sap Green, Cobalt Violet, Lamp Black).
WATER COLOUR PAINTING EQUIPMENT (For improvers who wish to work in this medium)
Paints: Water colour set of hard pans with palette in the lid. or
PASTEL AND OIL PASTEL EQUIPMENT (For improvers who wish to work in these media)
Pastels: A box of either soft (chalky) pastels or oil pastels (work with one or the other, do not mix the two together). Soft pastels are easier to blend together but can be accidentally smudged more easily. Soft pastels come in various types; the narrower sticks tend to be harder so easier to use for detail, but the larger sticks are sometimes softer which makes them better if you want stronger colours. If you like working in these media you will soon need more than a basic set of colours. Buy individual pastels to suit the kind of work that you want to do, for example a range of flesh colours for portrait work or a range of muted greens, browns and greys for landscape pictures.
DRAWING EQUIPMENT (For those who wish to concentrate on this media)
Paper: Sketch pad (A4 size or similar, larger if you wish) or
OTHER THINGS TO BRING (Needed by all improvers)
Pencils: Drawing pencils (hardness HB and 2B).
IF WORKING FROM PHOTOGRAPHS
You will need suitable pictures to work from. Make sure that there is sufficient clear information; bigger pictures are generally better. In general avoid very complex subjects due to the limited time available. Subjects with strong contrast of light and shade are often better choices. It is best to bring a selection of pictures to choose from. If working from a painting it is best if this is in the same media as you are using yourself.
FURTHER INFORMATION
If you have any further queries about the course content or materials you may contact me at:
Sharpener: Pencil sharpener.
Rubbers: Ordinary soft white pencil rubber.
Paints: Winsor & Newton ‘Galleria’ or Daler-Rowney ‘System 3’ acrylic paint: Permanent Rose, Cadmium Red,
Cadmium Yellow Deep, Cadmium Yellow Pale, Cerulean Blue, Ultramarine, Titanium White, Mars Black.
Mixing palette: A tear-off paper palette pad or simply sheets of scrap paper.
Brushes: One flat-shaped acrylic brush with a width of about 12mm (1/2 inch) and one with a width of
about 6mm (1/4 inch) eg Winsor & Newton ‘Galleria’ or Richard Oliver ‘47F’ series brush. Also a small round
soft-haired brush (size 1, 2 or 3) for detail, preferably a long-haired brush called a ‘Rigger’.
Paper: Pad of paper for acrylic painting (e.g. Winsor & Newton ‘Galleria’ paper) 25.5 x 35.5 cm
(10 x 14 inches).
Miscellaneous: Piece of cleaning rag or roll of kitchen paper. Container for water (large wide plastic
pots are best).
What to wear: Acrylic paints do not wash out when dry so you will need something old to wear.
Mixing palette: The best option is a ‘stay-wet’ palette which consists of a shallow plastic dish containing a paper palette for mixing on, laid on top of a sheet of blotting paper that is kept moist with water. However these are more expensive. The simplest option is a tear-off paper palette (a pad of paper similar to grease-proof paper) or simply sheets of scrap paper. Alternatively you can use a flat wooden, plastic or glass palette (that can be scraped off with a paint scraper). Dish shaped palettes are not recommended due to the difficulty of cleaning off dry paint.
Brushes: I suggest that you buy a minimum of one flat-shaped brush with a width of about 12 mm (1/2 inch) and one with a width of about 6 mm (1/4 inch). You will need soft-haired brushes suitable for acrylic painting such as the ‘Galleria’ range or Richard Oliver acrylic painting brush. The length of the handle doesn’t really matter but the longer type is better for larger work. It is also useful to have a small round soft-haired brush (size 1, 2 or 3) for detail, preferably a long-haired brush called a ‘Rigger’. Buy additional brushes if you wish.
Board or paper: Painting boards (e.g. ‘Daler’ boards) or a pad of paper suitable for acrylic painting (e.g. ‘Galleria’ paper) or water colour paper 140 lb. A suitable size would be 305 x 406 mm (12 x 16 inches) but you may also like to have some smaller. Paper from a pad can be cut down to whatever size you like. You can also use water colour board such as made by Daler-Rowney which has a water-colour paper surface mounted onto a rigid card to keep it flat.
Small bottle ‘artists’ linseed oil (not household) for thinning paints without loosing the oil content.
Bottle of turpentine for thinning paints (cheaper if bought from a hardware shop). White spirit will do. For cleaning brushes white spirit is cheaper. (If preferred you can use a painting medium such as ‘Liquin’ instead of linseed oil and turpentine. This speeds up the drying time. You will still need white spirit for cleaning brushes.)
Mixing palette: Traditional artists palette or a piece of hardboard about 200 x 300 mm (8 x 12 inches).
Palette knife for mixing paint (flat, not trowel shaped) (optional).
2 dippers that clip onto the edge of palette for holding oil and white spirit (Alternatively use small jars or lids).
Brushes: I suggest that you buy a minimum of one flat-shaped brush with a width of about 12mm (1/2 inch) and one with a width of about 6mm (1/4 inch). If you have more than one of each size brush it will mean that you have less brush cleaning to do whilst you are painting. Bristle brushes are the traditional ones to use for oil paints. The brushes with longer handles are better for larger work as they enable you to stand back to see what the effect is whilst painting. It is also useful to have a small round soft-haired brush (size 1, 2 or 3) for detail, preferably a long-haired brush called a ‘Rigger’. Buy additional brushes if you wish.
Board: Painting boards (e.g. ‘Daler’ boards), or pieces of hardboard size 305 x 406 mm (12 x 16 inches) primed on smooth side with acrylic gesso primer or white emulsion paint.
Water colours in tubes of the following colours: Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Lemon Yellow, Cerulean Blue, French Ultramarine (If you want to buy additional colours I suggest the following: Raw umber, Cadmium Orange, Sap Green, Cobalt Violet, Payne's Grey).
Mixing palette: White plastic mixing palette or an old plain white china plate.
Brushes: Round soft-haired nylon brushes of medium and large size (for example sizes 5 and 10). It is also useful to have a small round soft-haired brush (size 3 or smaller) for detail, preferably a long-haired brush called a ‘Rigger’.
Paper: Pad of water colour paper 140 lb or 210 lb. size 305 x 406 mm (12 x 16 inches) or smaller, or sheets of water colour paper. If you want to stretch the paper to keep it flat you will need a roll of brown gum tape 38 mm (1 1/2 inches) or 50 mm (2 inches wide). However it is not usually necessary to do this unless working on a large scale and working fairly wet. An alternative is to use water colour board such as made by Daler-Rowney which has a water-colour paper surface mounted onto a rigid card.
Drawing board: Needed only if working on individual sheets of paper (not in a pad). See below for details.
If working on a drawing board you will need a small roll of masking tape or spring clips for holding the paper down. You will also need a drawing board if you want to stretch the paper.
Fixative: If using soft (chalk) pastels, you will need a spray can of fixative. A cheaper alternative is to use hair-spray.
Paper: Both soft and oil pastels work better on a paper that is not too smooth. You can use white paper (water colour paper can give a very strong textured effect), but coloured paper is often preferred as this way bits of the paper left uncovered blend more easily into the picture. Muted colours such as greys, blue-greys, buff etc tend to be more versatile. You may choose a colour to suit the dominant colour in the composition.. Coloured paper suitable for pastel work comes in sheets or pads. ‘Ingres’ paper has a suitable rough texture and usually has an attractive speckled effect in the paper colour.
Drawing board: Needed only if working on individual sheets of paper (not in a pad). See below for details.
If working on a drawing board you will need a small roll of masking tape or spring clips for holding the paper down.
Sheets of cartridge paper. Choose a paper that is not too thin and that does not have a very smooth surface.
Drawing media: Charcoal, compressed charcoal or pencils (see below).
Drawing board: Needed only if working on individual sheets of paper (not in a pad). See below for details.
If working on a drawing board you will need a small roll of masking tape or spring clips for holding the paper down.
Sharpener: Sharpening knife or pencil sharpener (metal type).
Rubbers: Ordinary white pencil rubber and soft kneadable putty rubber.
For scaling up the composition: If you wish to use a transparent acetate overlay grid
when working from photographs these will be available for sale at the classes. You will also need a 300 mm / 12 inch ruler (preferably plastic)
and a small roll of masking tape.
Miscellaneous: Piece of cleaning rag or roll of kitchen paper. Container for water (large wide plastic pots are best).Newspaper to put on tables.
Drawing boards (improvers only): If you are drawing or painting on individual sheets of paper (not in a pad) you will need a board. The best option is to get a piece of plywood cut to a size slightly bigger than the paper you use. The plywood needs to be 9 mm (3/8 inch) thick so as not to bend. I you want to stretch paper for water colour work you may want two boards.
Easels (improvers only): If you like working with a portable easel bring one with you although it is not essential. This can be either one to stand on the floor or a smaller table easel. Easels are mostly used with acrylic or oil painting.. If you are working from large photographs or pictures it is useful to have a stand to put on the table for them. This can be simply made from two pieces of board taped together along the top and tied loosely with string at the bottom.
If working from a still life (improvers only): Bring a selection of things to create a still-life from. These may be chosen from the point of view of colour, or the theme of the subject (e.g. food) or both. A desk lamp would also create better lighting on the subject (you may need an extension lead).
Tulach Ghorm, Sheeaun, Kilmaley, Ennis, Co.Clare. Telephone: (065) 6839383. Mobile: (086) 8074125.
Email contact.
Link to the Art & Craft Co, suppliers of art materials in Ennis