Materials List
Details and links:
Materials used in this course for the demos and exercises
*I only provided the links to the Blick online store but you can do your research if better prices are available elsewhere.
Papers:
Non-Sanded Papers
Some non-sanded mid tone gray paper, 9"x12" - mostly for the exercises. You can also use it for grayscale value studies.
Brands I use: Canson or Royal Talens, either one will work (you don't need both).
Canson: Gray Tones pad or a few sheets of mid tone gray.
https://www.dickblick.com/items/canson-mi-teintes-drawing-papers-9-x-12-gray-tone-pad-24-sheets/
Rembrandt by Royal Talens pad, Toned Industrial Grey
https://www.dickblick.com/items/rembrandt-toned-mixed-media-pad-industrial-grey-117-x-83/
Sanded Paper
UART sanded paper, 400 grit, neutral color (not black) - for the projects. You can get 12"x18" sheets and then cut a sheet in two 9"x12" when smaller sizes are needed.
If for any reason you cannot have UART paper, you can use another brand of sanded paper, just make sure it's either white or neutral - that's what is needed for the underpainting technique. Not all sanded paper can be used with liquid - water or alcohol might dissolve the adhesive that holds paper and grit together. It's best to run a quick wash test on a swatch of paper if I've never used it with the Wet Underpainting before.
https://www.dickblick.com/items/uart-sanded-pastel-paper-12-x-18-400-grit-single-sheet/
*Sennelier La Carte is an example of sanded surface that cannot be used with a wet technique. At the same time, it's a wonderful paper to use with dry techniques and comes in variety of colors.
Pastels:
Hard Pastels
Hard Pastels are important in my process, including the underpainting technique. I listed the colors I use most often in the attached Materials List pdf that you can download (the attachment at the top of this lesson).
*You can download the pdf file (at the end of the lesson) with these swatches of hard pastels and see the names and numbers for each color. The Materials List pdf ( at top of the lesson) has the names/numbers of these colors but does not show swatches.
Soft Pastels
It's not that easy to narrow down the colors needed in softer pastel brands. We all have personal preferences for brands. It's always great to start with making sure that you have basic color in each family - blue, green, purple, yellow, etc.
Then we need to see if we have them in cooler and warmer versions (e.g. warmer purple has more red in it, and cooler purple will have more blue).
Chromatic (pure) colors cannot be mixed, so we definitely need them, as well as some neutrals (less pure colors).
Finally, we need to have at least 4 values (same color from light to dark) or more within each color.
If you are not very familiar with any of the terms I mentioned above, don't worry, we'll be talking about color more in depth in the beginning of the course. Right now you can just refer to the image above, with color swatches of greens, turquoises, blues, and purples. You don't need to take this table literally, rather use it as a guide to review your color collection. You might have fewer values, also remember that some colors can be mixed.
As far as recommending a specific set of pastels, it's hard for me to do that - I use different brands during different stages of the painting. However I can suggest a few sets by different manufacturers that can help to expand a range of colors.
*Please note, that the sets mentioned below are not “must-have” for this course. It’s up to you how you build your palette. Besides, it’s just a fraction of what’s available.
If you need a base coastal set, you might consider my theme set of Richeson pastels, Coastal Palette (80 pc). It’s not specifically a seascape set - it includes the range of colors for painting dunes, rocks, grasses as well as waves. It’s a good place to start, then you’ll add more specific colors and brands along the way as you discover your preferences.
My Coastal set is available from Judson Art:
https://www.judsonsart.com/collections/richeson-instructor-sets/products/lana-ballot-coastal-palette-80-pc-set
If you are looking to expand a certain color range, then I have a few suggestions below. Please note, that these mentioned sets are not “must-have” for this course. It’s up to you how you build your palette. Besides, it’s just a fraction of what’s available from different pastel manufacturers:
Terry Ludwig, Best of Blues
https://www.dickblick.com/items/terry-ludwig-soft-pastels-best-of-the-blues-set-of-30/
Unison, Blue Green 1-18
https://www.dakotapastels.com/product/unison-18-blue-green-1-18?cat=270&idsku=10620
Mount Vision Soft Pastel Set - Blue, Set of 25
https://www.dickblick.com/items/mount-vision-soft-pastel-set-blue-set-of-25/
Richeson Soft Handrolled Pastels - Turquoise Greens, Set of 20
https://www.dickblick.com/items/richeson-soft-handrolled-pastels-turquoise-greens-set-of-20/
Richeson Soft Handrolled Pastels - Turquoise Blues, Set of 20
https://www.dickblick.com/items/richeson-soft-handrolled-pastels-turquoise-blues-set-of-20/
Art Spectrum Extra Soft Square Pastels - Highlights, Set of 10
https://www.dickblick.com/items/art-spectrum-extra-soft-square-pastels-highlights-set-of-10/
Materials for the Wet Underpainting technique:
Synthetic brush, 3/4" or 1" Don't use an expensive brush, the sanded surface will quickly ruin it.
Isopropyl Alcohol - I use 70%, but other % numbers can be used, the higher the number the faster it dries. You can also use water, if you cannot use the Isopropyl Alcohol for any reason.
Have a jar to pour a small amount of liquid into it, to dip the brush in it. Have another just with water to rinse the brush particularly between the colors and dry on a sheet of paper towel.
Hard Pastels work really well for blocking in the color for the different shapes. You can also use firmer pastels, like Rembrandt to do that. If you have to use softer pastels, try to keep very light pressure so you don't fill the paper with pigment right away.
*Some prefer to do a watercolor underpainting, but I'm not going to cover it in this course - I prefer deeper and more intense color washes that I can achieve with pastels.
Other materials and tools:
Bristle Brush - to remove pastel, to correct mistakes, etc.
Toothbrush - to create fine mist of the foam spray
Foam Core Boards - for taping your paper to a board. Later you can cover it with glassine paper to protect pastel from smudging.
Glassine Paper - semi translucent paper. It's better to buy it in rolls because then you can cut a piece exactly the size you need. A lot of artists store finished unframed pastels covered with glassine paper taped to a board.
https://www.dickblick.com/products/glassine-interleaving-paper/
Masking Tape - use Artist's tape from an art supply store, the blue (or any other color) tape for house painters is not doing a great job, besides you might find it distracting to have those blue spots around around work.
https://www.dickblick.com/products/artist-tape/
Gloves - some people work in gloves, others don't like them or find it awkward. It's up to you. I work in gloves and they save my hands from being too dry and cracked from constant washing.