All of these attributes need to be considered when selecting
your brush. If you are not satisfied with the results of your
paintings, you may want to look at the brush you are using.
It may not be the right brush for the job.
The Long & the Short of It
In the world of Brush 101, there are two types of
brush handles: short and long.
Short handled brushes are made for watercolorists who traditionally
sit at a table while painting. The artist holds the brush as
you would hold a pencil. Long handled brushes are made for oil
and acrylic painters who traditionally stand at an easel. This
artist grabs the brush handle near the end to gain more distance
between the artist’s eye and the canvas. Once you break
with tradition, your brush handle decisions become personal.
A watercolorist painting a mural on a 12-foot piece of paper
with full arm arching strokes would require a long handled brush.
An icon painter using oil on a 5x7-inch wooden panel probably
sits in front of their image using short handled brushes.
Soft Bristles versus Stiff Bristles
The hair in a brush can be separated in two categories: soft and stiff. Soft hair makes up the majority
of watercolor brushes. The soft hair acts like a sponge to hold
the thin-bodied paint. One of the qualities you look for in
a watercolor brush is how much paint it holds before the brush
needs to be reloaded. Another quality to consider is what shape
the brush holds after making a stroke. A good watercolor brush
snaps back to its original form so another stroke can be made
without reshaping the brush. For a dry brush technique, a watercolorist
may try a stiffer hair to make rough, uneven strokes.
Oil and acrylic painters
usually begin with a stiff haired brush. Rather
than the sponge action, these heavy bodied paints need bristles
that allow the paint to sit on the lower end of the brush. A
better quality brush will have the hair flagged (split ends) in order to hold more paint. The more paint the
brush holds, the longer the stroke and/or the less the brush
needs to be reloaded. Another quality of a stiff brush is how
fast the paint releases from the brush to the surface. Irregularities
in the hair will allow the paint to release as the brush is
drawn across the surface rather than plop all the paint out
as soon as the brush hits the canvas. A stiffer brush will leave
a certain amount of stroke (ridges) in the paint. A softer brush
will blend these strokes, blend colors and add details. An artist
may want to use different brushes for canvas than wood panels
because of the difference in “give” on the two surfaces.
The hard surface may require a stiffer brush.
The Round and the Flat of It
Brushes start with two basic shapes: round and flat. The ferrule, the metal piece that
holds the head of hair to the handle, is either round or flattened.
A round can come to a point or be more dome-shaped. It is most
traditionally used to create lines. A flat is traditionally
used to create broad strokes. Flats are further delineated for
easel painting by how long the hair is. A bright has a shorter
hair extension for easier control. The flat-ferruled brush’s
hair can be curved to make a softer edged stroke and is then
called a Filbert. Rounds and flats can be further specialized
as liners, Egberts, blenders, and bulletins, to name just a
few.
The next time you’re at Wet Paint,
talk to one of our staff about what you are trying to achieve
in your paintings. We may find that a change in brushes could
result in more successful paintings.
