Recently we set about testing a variety of solutions for what has been a constant problem: preventing a can of paint from forming a skin, especially when stored for months or even years at a time. Plastic wrap pressed against the surface definitely worked, but also created a mess when being removed, while anti-skinning sprays … Read more
Home>Oils > Turning the World of Cans Upside Down
Archive | Oils
The evidence was undeniable as our eyes swung slowly across the drawdowns that spread out before us. The handful of initial colors ground in every possible combination of oil all pointed to a similar conclusion: there was something here that simply could not be ignored. The clarity of the colors was exceptional and in some … Read more
Edited by Joyce Hill Stoner and Rebecca Rushfield After seven years of work and including essays by seventy-nine international author-experts, Conservation of Easel Paintings is now available from Taylor and Francis, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com, etc. David Bomford, formerly Acting Director at the Getty Museum and currently Director of Conservation at the Museum of Fine Arts, … Read more
It started innocently enough, the email slipping silently into the queue of our Inbox: “I was just wondering,” wrote the customer, “if there has been any thought of making a range of Munsell Neutral Grays in oil paints, similar to the ones in GOLDEN acrylics? I’m not holding my breath but this would be fantastic.”So … Read more
Although it will be my intention to present a stand-alone essay relating to the perception, use and technology of color and color reproduction, it is inevitable that references will be made to the Just Paint 22 article The Subtleties of Color as it serves as not only the conceptual starting point for this article, but … Read more
From the beginning Williamsburg was always known as a ‘painter’s paint.’ Partly it was because the founder of the company, Carl Plansky, was first and foremost a painter by both temperament and training. Everything he made was infused with a painter’s sense of touch and passion for color. The hours spent over a mill or … Read more
Available for this winter season only, this set of three fantastic blues is sure to pique your curiosity, especially if you’re looking for the fundamentals of blue, with a slight twist. Included in the set: Anthraquinone Blue Smalt Hue Cerulean Blue Deep Available at your favorite art supply retailer. For more information about the Uncommon … Read more
EDITOR’S NOTE (6/6/23): Please note the statement saying “…the sample ended up doing no better than our standard Williamsburg Titanium White, which contains no drier whatsoever,” was true at the time of publishing, but in 2012, a formula change occurred so the statement needs to be edited for accuracy. Therefore, the statement should now read … Read more
Bringing the Williamsburg brand under our care has brought a high level of excitement throughout our GOLDEN community. One would think that after 600 years of history, study, trial, and error, all that needs to be known about the oil media is already known — no space for discovery, argument or conjecture as to its … Read more
It all comes down to stresses and strains of one sort or another. Almost everything about an oil painting will swell and contract, stiffen and flow, in response to the environment or physical handling. To make matters worse, the degree and nature of these changes will themselves change over time as the various materials undergo … Read more
