#14 Camille Corot 'Italian Landscape' - 25 Days of Tonalism
Hello and welcome to Tonalist painting with M Francis McCarthy.
Today's painting is a study after Camille Corot, 'Italian landscape.'
Our video features the progression of this study from its early underpainting stages on up through the final finishing brushwork. Also featured is my usual rambling narration, so please check it out.
Today I like to talk about cleaning brushes. I know this may not seem to be a particularly interesting subject. However, brushes are a very important part of landscape painting and the proper care of them will extend their life considerably.
I'm sure I have mentioned in the past that it's counterproductive to purchase cheap brushes even for amateur painters. I recommend that you invest in quality brushes that do not drop hairs on your paintings or lack in snap/springiness. The brand of brushes that I use (for those of you that are interested) is Robert Simmons Signet Brushes (Flats).
For a long time, I was cleaning my brushes using jars with a bit of metal screen placed inside of them. I had a two-stage process. I would start with one jar, rubbing my dirty brush against the screen inside the jar filled with mineral spirits. Then I would go to a second cleaning jar and repeat to finish. My two jar process worked pretty well, but last year I discovered a way to dramatically improve my brush cleaning.
Before I get into that, I should indicate some of the things that happen as brushes age from use. The main thing that occurs is that pigment that is left inside the brush (not thoroughly cleaned out) will cause the brush to lose its shape over time and eventually the brush will become fat and spread out losing its shape. For some painters this is not a problem, but for the way that I work I require that my brushes be nicely shaped and quite flat.
Last year I was turned on to a product by my friends at Takapuna Art Supply here in New Zealand. The product is called Art Spectrum Hand and Brush Cleaner. It's available in a tube as well as a 500 ml jar. This product has increased the usable lifespan of my brushes by at least four times. That may seem like an unbelievable extension in the lifespan of a brush but this product has really made that sort a difference.
The brush cleaner is actually a kind of soap that you rub into your brush and work thoroughly through the bristles. This removes pigment that can't really be gotten out any other way. It's truly amazing how I can clean a brush with my jars of mineral spirits and they will seem to be 100% clean, yet after applying the soap and rubbing it in I always remove a ton of pigment that was hidden inside the brush even after the vigorous cleaning I've done with my jar of mineral spirits.
Truth be told, I sometimes retire my brushes now, just because they have become too rounded at their edges. I have encountered very little of the sort of spreading that I would regularly incur in the past, and as a bonus the soap leaves a nice film on the brush that also helps preserve the bristles. This is been a helpful tip from your friendly resident Tonalist painter M Francis.
M Francis McCarthy
Landscapepainter.co.nz
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| Painted after - 'Italian Landscape' by Camille Corot, Study by M Francis McCarthy - Size 5x7, Oil on wood panel |
Our video features the progression of this study from its early underpainting stages on up through the final finishing brushwork. Also featured is my usual rambling narration, so please check it out.
Today I like to talk about cleaning brushes. I know this may not seem to be a particularly interesting subject. However, brushes are a very important part of landscape painting and the proper care of them will extend their life considerably.
I'm sure I have mentioned in the past that it's counterproductive to purchase cheap brushes even for amateur painters. I recommend that you invest in quality brushes that do not drop hairs on your paintings or lack in snap/springiness. The brand of brushes that I use (for those of you that are interested) is Robert Simmons Signet Brushes (Flats).
For a long time, I was cleaning my brushes using jars with a bit of metal screen placed inside of them. I had a two-stage process. I would start with one jar, rubbing my dirty brush against the screen inside the jar filled with mineral spirits. Then I would go to a second cleaning jar and repeat to finish. My two jar process worked pretty well, but last year I discovered a way to dramatically improve my brush cleaning.
Before I get into that, I should indicate some of the things that happen as brushes age from use. The main thing that occurs is that pigment that is left inside the brush (not thoroughly cleaned out) will cause the brush to lose its shape over time and eventually the brush will become fat and spread out losing its shape. For some painters this is not a problem, but for the way that I work I require that my brushes be nicely shaped and quite flat.
Last year I was turned on to a product by my friends at Takapuna Art Supply here in New Zealand. The product is called Art Spectrum Hand and Brush Cleaner. It's available in a tube as well as a 500 ml jar. This product has increased the usable lifespan of my brushes by at least four times. That may seem like an unbelievable extension in the lifespan of a brush but this product has really made that sort a difference.
The brush cleaner is actually a kind of soap that you rub into your brush and work thoroughly through the bristles. This removes pigment that can't really be gotten out any other way. It's truly amazing how I can clean a brush with my jars of mineral spirits and they will seem to be 100% clean, yet after applying the soap and rubbing it in I always remove a ton of pigment that was hidden inside the brush even after the vigorous cleaning I've done with my jar of mineral spirits.
Truth be told, I sometimes retire my brushes now, just because they have become too rounded at their edges. I have encountered very little of the sort of spreading that I would regularly incur in the past, and as a bonus the soap leaves a nice film on the brush that also helps preserve the bristles. This is been a helpful tip from your friendly resident Tonalist painter M Francis.
M Francis McCarthy
Landscapepainter.co.nz
A bit about my study after Camille Corot, 'Italian landscape'; I'm happy with the way this came out. As always I got a lot of good information and education out of doing a study after this Master painter.
To see more of my work, visit my site here
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| Original painting 'The Italian Goatherd' by Camille Corot |
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| Study after 'Italian Landscape' by Camille Corot (Detail) |
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| Study after 'Italian Landscape' by Camille Corot (Detail 2) |