Supplies for Oil-painting

[Cepro]

I have been doing lot's of oil-studies lately. I'm mainly using gessoed paper and the cheapest oil-paints I could find. Now I feel like I could start doing some real painting, so I want to by some supplies.
My questions regard the following: Oil-paints and canvas.

The oil-paints I have been using until now work just fine for practising and I have no complaints whatsoever. Since i haven't used any pricier paints, I'd like to know what the differnce is, if there is any of significance. What should I pay attention to, if I want to buy paints of good quality (i.e. if I want to sell my work)?
I also want to stretch my canvas by myself. But I have no idea what fabric I should buy. I guess it really doesn't matter that much, but I'd like to hear if there is anything preferable, if I want to paint wiht oils?
Thanks for your help.

[Craig D]

Student grade paints have more filler, less pigment.
While pricier and maybe better (only in some respects) paints
are available many people will probably suggest using the artist grade
Windsor and Newton or the Rembrandt paints.

Remember that, especially with oils, personal opinions abound.

If you do a search you will find two or three threads which have discussed paint types.

[Elwell]

If you do a search you will find two or three DOZEN threads which have discussed paint types.
Fixed.

[JParrilla]

im not sure how true this is.. but I have heard that streching your own canvas isnt really cheaper than buying one pre made. Please dont quote me on that because I dont really paint yet.. i just remember hearing it somewhere. If you just want to do it for the hell of it and not for the money.. then I guess it doesnt matter :)

[DSillustration]

im not sure how true this is.. but I have heard that streching your own canvas isnt really cheaper than buying one pre made. Please dont quote me on that because I dont really paint yet.. i just remember hearing it somewhere. If you just want to do it for the hell of it and not for the money.. then I guess it doesnt matter :)

yeah. That's about right.

The quality will be better, but if you're an amateur, that might not be the case either.
Stretching a canvas is costly, time consuming, and takes a lot of practice.
The benefit is, once you are good at it, you can make them to your own specifications.

I'd recommend changing the paints, but sticking with a similar surface for a while.
This way, you can compare and NOTICE the difference.
Canvas acts WAY different than paper, and will make the transition more complicated.

Rembrandt paints are cheap and good.

Strathmore illustration board is not so cheap, but really good.

I use both and am very happy.

[Cepro]

Thanks for the replies. I did search the forums and I did find loads of threads. Strangely enough I didn't find what I was looking for though. Perhaps I was searching with the wrong words.
I know that buying prestreched canvases is cheaper. But I want to start doing it myself to get some experience and of course I'm not going to buy loads of it right away. ;) I'll still be using gessoed canvas-paper for doing studies.
I guess what I really wanted to ask is if I can determine the quality and durability of the paints by reading what is written on the packing. (Since the brands they sell in every country are different aswell)

[Blue]

I actually find stretching canvas to be a very fun and fulfilling experience. The most expensive ingredient is the gesso, and if you buy bulk then you don't need to spend alot. Sans gesso, i have a 6ft x 4ft hand made stretched canvas I put together for about 40 bucks. I had a great time stretching it too. But these days i've been using the same method Dan does and enjoy it quite a bit.

[SuicideCommando]

You can also try mounting/gluing canvas onto wood board, or just straight gesso onto board. It also depends upon on how traditional you want to go, rabbit skin as your gluing agent, or some sort of modern medium for gluing.
The advantage of going with wood panel is that you have the opportunity to try traditional ground gesso, which is so out of this world compared to that acrylic stuff.

[B u r l]

With wood, though, isn't it prone to concave if you work large? But yeah, making and stretching your own canvas is great fun, as long as you don't mind the hard work (my knuckles went red raw, my teachers where bleeding :$). I made an 8 by 6 foot one at college and it's an awesome feeling when you finish it. But, I was under the impression it's cheaper to make your own? At least, it get's cheaper as you move up in size, because the larger canvases I saw in the shops get crazily expensive.

[journeyman10]

stretching your own canvases is cheaper the larger you go. if you were to buy a 3x4' canvas at the art store you could easily spend $60. But if you make your own stretchers and buy a huge canvas roll you could do it much cheaper. Making stretchers is the daunting part, but its really easy to do. and with very few tools as well. Stay with student grade paint, but experiment with different brands, as well as different mediums. Always experiment. Most artists that I know, myself included, will tell you that if you want to go out and buy expensive stuff, and use it exclusively, you probably don't need to. Artist quality paints are nice, but you usually don't need them. (there are occasions that you do (( i love pthalo turquoise and cant find it in non-artist quality paint)) ) so what were really saying is, just do it. Experiment.

[That fat kid]

With wood, though, isn't it prone to concave if you work large?

Put braces in the middle. You can work as large as 8x4 (or larger, but you'll have seams from where the wood ends), but you need to have braces to give support and rigidity. The main drawback isn't strength of large panels, it's the weight and storage issues that arise.

And invest in a pair of canvas pliers, twenty bucks is worth it not to have bleeding knuckles, plus you'll have tighter canvases. However, the power you'll be afforded with pliers means that you can easily tear the canvas if you're pulling with gusto. Only half of the pulll needs to be on one side, so experience will tell you when it's too tight. And, canvas does have the tendency to slack a little bit after it's been gesso'd. Just break out the pliers and pull it tight again and add a few more tacks/staples.

Artist quality paints are nice, but you usually don't need them.

Not true. Student grade paint is literally incapable of performing certain tasks because it has fillers like barite, chalk, wax and other extenders which means that it won't mix or handle properly. If you want wax or chalk in your paint to thicken it up, you can add it. To offset the cost of professional artist grade paint, compare brands and construct a pallet that doesn't hinge on the cobalts or cadmiums because those tend to be the most expensive. Moreover, when you get quality paint, it takes less to perform the same things. Not that I'm recommending stingy use of paint, just that crap paint behaves like crap.

They say a bad craftsman blames his tools, but a good craftsman uses quality materials and maintains his tools.

[jhgoforth]

I've rarely used canvas painting supports. Learned with Masonite and gesso and kinda stuck with that when I do the few oils that I do. Not terribly tough to use and most hardware stores that you would buy masonite boards will cut them down to manageable sizes for you (might charge a bit if you are getting too varied in sizes though). But since I'm living in a smaller apartment these days, I might be switching to some smaller supports >.>' My first oil painting class in college several years ago, the instructor forbid anyone buying 'student' grade because of the fillers.

[Cepro]

Thanks everyone for the replies! :)

[chaosrocks]

mostly paint on gessoed watercolor paper taped tight to plexiglass.
but for reall quick studies I use ink jet mylar sheets. its a fun surface and takes paint really well .. stores flat once dry. shrivels very satisfactorily when you burnit

have three big canvases I made in college. I keep reusing them... one has at least four paintings under there. I find that its really quite fun to use the old painting as an underpainting for a new one. economical too, and hide the hideousnessof the old one

[UNEXPLODEDduck]

Am i the only person on the internet that doesn't like the texture and feel of gesso? I much prefer to use watered down PVA for canvases and boards.

[dcorc]

Am i the only person on the internet that doesn't like the texture and feel of gesso?

If you're talking about the abrasive acrylic stuff - you're not alone. It eats brushes for breakfast. I use it, but put a lean coat of oilpaint down, using a cheap household brush, and let that dry well for several weeks before using.

Dave

[Noah Bradley]

I love working on primed masonite. You can make it any size you want, it's not nearly as heavy as wood, and doesn't have (too) much of a warping problem. I haven't tried working on paper yet... maybe I should, though.