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Art Materials needed for drawing and oil painting.

To paint with oil paints, here's a list of the minimum art materials and art supplies items you will need to start your project!

#2 pencils
gummy erasure
36" ruler
waterproof ink and ink pen (calligraphy style, rounded or small square point)

Canvas or Masonite Panels:

Canvas should be sized to your comfort level. Start with a few small 9" x 12" sizes then move up as your confidence improves.
Masonite Panels.You can cut and prep these yourself. 1/8" thick for smaller sizes to 1/4" thick for larger sizes. These need to be smooth on one side. Most art supply stores now carry the smaller panels already prepped and ready to paint!
Canvas on panels. These are usually small sizes also. The canvas is prepped and then glued to card board. Not sure of the longevity of these, but for study pieces they are cheap. You can get packs of 3 for $5.00 at most supply stores!

Brushes:

assorted rounds from "00-1".
a few flats around the same sizes. 3-5 total.
3 large mop end, squirrel or artificial do fine.

See the images for examples.

art materials

materials

I've had some folks say, they have trouble finding the Mop brush that I talk about in the lessons. Here's a great example of one at a great price. Some call it a wash brush, some call it a blending brush. One's with squirrel hair are called "dusters" because they are used in dusting gold flake onto a painting. They're real expensive, but serve the same purpose in a very soft final dry brush blending of the paint.

Paints:

Titanium White (of the three or four whites on the market this one provides a high white count, and covers undercoats better than the others)

Burnt Umber
Ivory or Mars black
Yellow Ocher
Ultramarine Blue
Cadmium Red Medium
Cadmium Yellow Light
Alizara Crimson Red

Now here's a great deal. This set utilizes most of the above listing in a reasonable package. As your skill level increases, buying a professional grade paint through this same company will suit your needs. If you are just starting out, this is the pack for you:

As your skill and your confidence increases, you can add additional colors, but for now, you can create any color you need from these. Mixing the yellow and blue will give you a beautiful green!

I'll give you more info later on additional colors and art materials that will give you a true color spectrum and how to mix them. But for now, don't complicate your head, keep your palette simple. The old masters did! Partly because the more different colors you mix, the muddier the result!

Other Items:

Damar Varnish
Turpentine or low order turps
Linseed Oil, (not boiled, but raw refined artist grade)
Lavender Oil (found in health food stores under aromatherapy)(just a small 3 oz. bottle)
Liquin Alkyd Medium
Modeling Paste
Gesso

The first 3 are a must, the next 2 can be purchased as you get more into the work. The last two items you need to prepare the canvas for painting using this technique.

Now, for those looking to buy art supplies online, this is the place to get your materials. I've been using them for years, and have never been let down. Give them a try!

OK, check out this video on setting up your studio, and what you will need as a beginning oil painting artist! Great ideas from our friend down-under in Kiwi land.

Now that you've got an idea of what you'll need, click here to return to the main art lessons page for the next step (general discussion)

Or click here to go to the next in-depth discussion on composition for what you'll be doing next in the process!

Table of Contents for Main Lessons:

1.Materials needed to paint.	6.Toning the canvas.
2.Stretching the canvas part 1.	7.The Umber Underlayer Painting.
3.Stretching the canvas part 2.	8.The Gray Under Painting.
4.Preparing the Canvas.	9.The Color Layers.
5.Transfering your drawing.	10.The Finishing Layer.

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