Category: Shop Talk

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Tom Hudson

My large order of heavy-duty stretcher strips arrived from Jerry’s on Thursday. Enough stretchers and cross braces for 12 paintings: 6 @ 36″ x 48″; 6 @ 40″ x 50″. I am preparing three at a time–three of one size and then three of the other and so forth. Buying in bulk saves money plus I got them on sale–$275 for the lot.  I have everything necessary to prepare the canvases–GAC 100, acrylic gesso, and oil ground. And the canvas, of course.

These 12 new canvases along with the 12 larger ones I prepared earlier (the biggest is 5′ x 6′) will keep me busy for awhile.

Status
Tom Hudson

I’ve whined before about the jars RGH uses for its paint. They’re useless–worse than useless. They don’t seal properly so unless you use the paint straightaway, it’s wasted. I lost one half of a 250ml jar this way. Even spraying water over the paint failed to preserve it.

The jars nullify an otherwise brilliant strategy. RGH offers the all-import lead white in a variety of sizes and binders. As far as I know, RGH is the only supplier that allows customers to select the binder–cold-press linseed, walnut, refined linseed, and others. Their prices are good too. But the jars make it moot and transform an instant buy into an avoid.

I notice that RGH now offers a 125ml tube of white, but the tube is priced at the same price as a 250ml jar! At this price, the tubbed white is not a bargin.

materials, Reviews, Shop Talk

Broken easel

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I gushed about my new easel last spring. It was my first new easel in a very long time. My other two easels are old and broken down. I’m always fighting them. The new easel–Utrecht Artist’s Convertible Easel, Vertical/Horizontal (51772-1001)–can support canvases up to 97″ high. It’s rugged but still mobile. I haven’t tested its limits, but…

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materials, Paintings, Shop Talk, Studio Corner

In the studio 3/1/15

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I worked the past several days on finishing the under-painting of The Woman in Purple Boots. The Woman in Purple Boots is 40″ x 50″ which is a nice size and format. I’m thinking of preparing a batch of canvases that size, say 4-5. I often prepare batches of the same size. Last year, I prepared 7-8 canvases that are…

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materials, Shop Talk, Tips and Studies

Linseed or walnut?

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Linseed oil or walnut oil? Linseed oil has always been more widely used, but walnut oil has its defenders–sometimes passionate defenders. Leonardo was one such. Walnut oil yellows less than linseed oil, but it’s relative. I suspect the difference affects poor quality versions of the oils, with low quality linseed yellowing more than poor quality walnut.…

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Bio, Shop Talk, Uncategorized

Purge

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Winter time; bitter, bitter cold. More snow this morning. I’ve written before about the benefits of working on a lot of paintings simultaneously. Working this way allows paint layers to dry thoroughly. Painting over a layer too soon leads to bad problems (to use a technical term), such as cracking and sinking in. Working this way…

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materials, Paintings, Shop Talk, Studio Corner

In the studio 2/15/15

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After a marathon 13-hour session with The Picnic, I think I’ve wrestled it to the ground. The Picnic has fought me since day one.. First, the canvas, from a sub-par batch of cotton duck, wants to sag against the cross bar. Worse is the lousy ground. I’m always looking for efficiencies and this time it…

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Paintings, Shop Talk, Studio Corner

In the studio 2/8/15

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I worked on these paintings this morning. I painted-out some foliage in the upper-right of Three Girls. The tone in the photo of that area is more yellow–by far–than the actual tone. The under-painting is done (has been for a bit) and I’m driving toward finishing it. It’s a lot of fun painting the VW Bug. Three…

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