Brushes
A short post on brushes.
My arsenal.
Cornelissen in London makes the best bristle brushes I’ve ever owned. They finally have an online store which is great, as getting to central London is a pain and their staff aren’t particularly friendly (I got in trouble there once for checking unfamiliar turpentine brands for mineral spirits and the clerk thought I was getting high). The series 44 are the ones I use. They are more expensive than other brands but they are built like tanks and last forever. Mine usually get worn down to a triangle shape after years of use.
For sables, Zecchi has the best quality brushes I’ve found. The red-handled ‘cat-tongue’ sables are very useful for drawing with your paint. They are also pricey (though cheaper than much of the competition), but will last a long time if properly looked after.
I get asked a lot about brush care. I clean mine about once a week with soap and cold water. In the meantime I keep them in the freezer at night so they wont dry out.
Bristle brushes I wrap individually with a little piece of paper towel to pull out the water and keep the shape. Sables I leave a bit of soap in and make a point with the hairs so they dry with a sharp tip.
you could get “high” from inhaling turp???
What is the point of putting brushes in the freezer? Never heard of this.
@Daniel, I guess so. Like sniffing glue I imagine.
@Harold, wet (with paint) brushes dry out much slower in the freezer, so I don’t have to clean them everyday. Many painters keep their palette (with fresh colors on it) in the fridge/freezer for the same reason.
Thanks Marc,
It is always nice to know a little bit about the tools that produce such beautiful work! Speaking about tools I was wondering about your wet canvass box. There seem to be a lot of different formats in your boards.
Hi Bruce, I need to make a wet-painting box. Until then, I usually only use three sizes for the panels and just clip the wet panels to the easel to carry them home (I can clip them to the legs while working). In my car I have a wooden wet-panel rack with room for 40 or so wet panels, as well as a metal rack for larger wet canvases.
Thanks, Marc.
Hi Marc,
Those are useful points on brush care. I treat my brushes periodically with one of those ’2 in 1′ shampoos, particularly sables/softhair brushes. Apparently the washing should be done twice and the second wash lathers more and the conditioner kicks in (there’s some scientific explanation for this, I heard a scientist explaining about the ‘clever molecules’)