e - Spotlight Promotions

product knowledge •
Above: Watercolour by the famous William
Blake (English 1757–1827)
Dante running from the three beasts 1824–27
illustration to The Divine Comedy by Dante
Alighieri (Inferno I, 1-90) 1824–27
Pen & black ink and watercolour over pencil
37.0 x 52.8 cm (sheet)
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Felton Bequest, 1920
Right: Samuel Prout
(English 1783–1852)
Bridge of Sighs 1825–52
Watercolour, pen and brush & brown ink with
touches of gouache & gum arabic
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Felton Bequest, 1932
Many watercolour works have
survived the years, especially those
kept under glass and framed. This
style of painting lends itself to
botanical work, seascapes and
landscapes. As the paint is loose and
transparent there is no body or texture
to it and the skill is in the layering
up of colour while keeping the fluid,
transparent look
CRACKLE MEDIUM
Crackle medium is a special
formulation that makes the paint
shrink and crack in certain areas. If
another colour is painted underneath
then that colour will show through
when the crackle medium is applied.
VARNISH
Varnish is a clear coating usually
applied to the last layer of artwork.
Varnish can have several effects such
as matt, satin and gloss and can be
brushed on or sprayed. This layer
protects the paint from fading, being
subjected to temperature fluctuations,
and to dust and dirt. In many cases
there is no need to varnish acrylic
paint as it is very durable and usually
has some gloss to the finish. Oil paint
is usually enhanced by varnish but
Damar based resins and varnishes
yellow over time and do not do
justice to the work underneath. The
best varnishes are ones that can
be removed at a later time such as
Gamvar. Gamvar is a low molecular
weight synthetic-resin gloss varnish
originally developed by conservation
scientists at the National Gallery in
Washington, USA.
IRIDESCENT MEDIUM
This medium gives any paint colour
a pearlised effect or sheen. It usually
also lightens the paint colour but
creates an attractive shimmer to it.
FLOW MEDIUM
This is a medium which makes
paint colour looser or thinner. It will
not lessen the intensity of the pigment
but will make it easier to brush on and
move around.
MARBLING GEL
This is a clear gel which suspends
paint colour and allows you to create
marble-like effects. This gel can also
be used to add texture and depth to
already loose or runny paint.
PUMICE
This is ground stone which gives
paint a coarse, sand-like texture. It
can be applied to the canvas to create
texture and then be painted on or
mixed into the paint colour to create
gritty effects.
FABRIC MEDIUM
This medium makes the paint
permanent on fabric so you can take
your ordinary paint colour and, when
mixed with this medium, it is able to
be applied to clothing and iron set.
NEXT ISSUE ... We will put
paints to use in a project. •
Janis Cathcart, craft
department, Spotlight
Hamilton NZ, takes her
scrapbooking seriously &
has been in a scrapbooking
club for many years. She
presents demonstrations
in-store whenever possible.
All the paints & some of
the scrapbook papers in
these works from Janis
came from her Spotlight
stash.
Get Creative Quarterly Autumn 2012 117