Shifting our gaze to the concept of sustainable art can be one way to protect our environment. As artists, we can make a difference by choosing products that lessen the environmental impact. Try to choose paper made from bamboo or bagasse instead of conventional tree pulp. Hahnemühle’s Bamboo Mixed Media art paper, made from 90% bamboo fibers, claims a place as a prime choice here.
Art Supplies List
Starting a journey into visual arts comes with the task of familiarizing oneself with some basic tools. The beginner’s kit typically includes pencils, sketchbooks, quality eraser, and a selection of paints.
- Pencils: Typically, a range of graphite pencils suffices for beginners. It’s common to start with a minimum of two types, one hard (like a 2H) for light linework, and one soft (like a 6B) for dark, defined lines.
- Sketchbooks: Ideally, these should have thick, smooth paper. An A4 sized sketchbook with spiral-bound design, serves as a versatile, yet practical choice.
- Quality Eraser: Artists often value kneaded erasers that mold easily, refraining from leaving residue.
- Selection of Paints: Acrylic paints are preferred due to their easy blending and quick drying. Brands like Liquitex and Reeves’ are renowned in the beginners field.
Choices for Advanced Artists
As one’s artistic skills burgeon, the art supply list expands and evolves. Advanced artists opt for an upgrade encompassing a bevy of specialized tools and higher quality mediums.
- Higher Quality Mediums: These include oil paints or pastels, where brands like Michael Harding or Sennelier rule the roost.
- Specialized Tools: An array of brushes of varying sizes and shapes are desirable. Palette knives for unique texture applications, and different types of canvases come into play.
- Art Easels: Depending on the work style, artists house tabletop or freestanding easels to provide support.
- Advanced Drawing Materials: Professionally inclined artists often delve into charcoal, pen and ink, or premium quality colored pencils.
Remember, investing in good quality supplies can significantly impact the artwork, regardless of whether you’re a beginner or an advanced artist. It surely encourages your artistic journey, taking your creativity one step further.
Art Supplies for Different Media
Watercolors
High-quality watercolor paint sets, like Winsor & Newton or Sennelier, are every artist’s dream. Natural hair brushes, such as sable or squirrel, offer superior paint holding capacity. Watercolor papers like Arches hot (smooth surface) or cold (textured surface) pressed are renowned for retaining the water and pigments well. Remember, investing in an artist’s tape restricts the paint from bleeding outside the canvas, keeping the edges sharp and neat.
Oils and Acrylics
Top-tier brands for oil paints include artists’ favorites like Winsor & Newton and Van Gogh. Mixing and applying oil paints becomes effortless with flexible palette knives. A quality canvas like Fredrix or Arteza can absolve the oil satisfactorily preserving the vibrancy. Acrylic painters can go for sets like Liquitex and Golden Brands. Brushes made of synthetic fibres like nylon or polyester are proven to hold acrylic paint well. A good palette such as New Wave or Mijello provides marvelous color mixing space.
Budget-Friendly Art Supplies
Affordable Options for New Artists
Navigating the world of art supplies can be daunting for newcomers, considering the array of choices and often steep prices. Yet, some brands cater specifically to newbies, offering top-notch quality at genuinely wallet-friendly prices simply because you’re starting out. Take, for instance, Arteza’s range of colored pencils. Arteza is not as pricey as Prismacolor Premier, yet it offers good pigmentation and durability encompassing a broad color range. New to oil painting? Opt for Daler-Rowney Georgian Oil Colors.
Saving on Bulk Purchase
Buying in bulk often brings down the cost per unit significantly. Bulk purchasing is ideal for art materials you frequently deplete—like sketchbooks or canvases—and those materials which don’t have a shelf-life—like brushes and palette knives. I often find incredible deals for canvases on stores like Michael’s or Blick Art Materials. They offer multi-pack canvas sets that bring overall unit costs down substantially, which is a smart way of stretching your dollars. Amazon too is a worth checking, especially for their bulk deals on sketchbooks, and frequently have rotating deals worth snagging.
