PLAYING WITH A NEW PALETTE & A NEW BRUSH!

Hello Sketching Friends,

Hope you are enjoying your warm summer days and creative juices flowing. If you need new ideas, I hope this blog will inspire you.

3 weeks ago, I flew to Georgetown Penang to be part of Asia Link Sketch Walk event. Unfortunately I did not managed to snag a ticket so had to miss some of the organised events. However it was still wonderful go free and easy without being constrained to a fixed schedule. 5 days and I met so many new and old friends in this picturesque UNESCO old town.

Fortunately the event’s art market was open to sketchers without tickets and I had the good fortune of meeting Neena from Shanghai. She had a table full of cool gadgets that sketchers/artists will definitely go crazy over. She was so kind to gift me 2 lovely handmade palette and wanted me to field test her designs to see how they will enhance the sketching experience. When I got home, I filled this larger 12 full pan palette with my favourite @danielsmithartistsmaterials watercolour sticks. I went a bit wild and stuffed some pans with 2 different colours. Now I can pick up 2 colours using a single brush stroke and the mixing possibility is endless. The complete list of colours in the palette is listed below. Some of my favourite mixes are actually in-between shades. Example, if I mix Hansa Yellow Medium and Hansa Yellow, I can create a warmer brigher yellow. The Burnt Umber and Lamp black combo created a gritty brown and really surprised me too.

LIST OF COLOURS IN MY NEW PALETTE.

1. Hansa yellow Medium & Hansa yellow Deep

2. Pyrrol Orange + Pyrrol Red

3. Permanent Alizarin Crimson

4. Lavender

5. Raw Sienna

6. Burnt Umber + Lamp Black

7. Undersea Green

8. Phthalo Turquoise + Phthalo Green (Blue Shade)

9. Cobalt Blue Teal

10. Cerulean Blue Chromium + Cobalt Blue

11. French Ultramarine

12. Indanthrone Blue + Lunar Black

The 2nd new art tool you see in my video is a @davinci_artistbrushes_official sable brush I bought from Nanyang Bookshop. This artist edition Kolinsky sabe brush was specially designed collaboratively with Berlin based artist Gris. It has a really lovely spring and point and holds a lot of liquid. Size 7 is my guess as no size was specified on the box. The most unique part of the brush is the clear perspex handle and it has a slanted end which is a perfect scratching into wet watercolour washes to create textures. Below are important considerations when I select/purchase brushes.

BRUSH SELECTION CRITERIA.

1. Shape of brush - Shape of stroke (I do favour round organic strokes)

2. Liquid Retention (how much watercolour can it carry before needing to reload?)

3. Liquid Release (Can I splash & splatter easily?)

4. Natural or Synthetic hair (affects liquid retention & release)

5. Lasting spring & Ability to straighten quickly after unloading a wash

6. Ability to retain point of the brush

7. Length, Weight & quality of brush handle (balanced when painting?)

These are some useful brush techniques that I used to test drive my new sable brush. You can practice these important brush strokes to improve your brush techniques. It is important to let the brush be an extension of your hand and feel the paper through the brush. Painting is a transference of your energy and emotions so remember to have fun.

Love to hear how you organise your palette and also how do you pick your brushes.

Have a wonderful creative week ahead!

---

ART FOOD CULTURE RETREAT IN VIETNAM

Experience Colour, Food, Textiles, Architecture, Culture and Fine Arts in Central Vienam with your host Anna Barnes and Paul Wang your art instructor!

Date: January 26th - February 4th, 2025

Location: Hoi An, Vietnam.

Click here for more details.

---