In Pursuit of ArtCloth:Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing WorkshopTwo Day Workshop at ATASDA, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaTutor: Marie-Therese Wisniowski

Preamble
This blogspot exhibits many of my students outputs from a variety of workshops. There are one, two and five day workshops as well as workshops that have a different focus. Nevertheless, it always surprises me how much I learn from my students and how enthusiastic they are to learn and so for your convenience, I have listed the workshop posts below.

Visual Communication and Design (The University of Newcastle Multi-Media Course).
The University of Newcastle (Newcastle and Ourimbah Campuses, NSW, Australia) 2008 to 2010.

In Pursuit of ArtCloth:Improvisational Screen Printing Workshop
The Australian Textile Arts & Surface Design Association Inc. Sydney, NSW.

One and Two Day Disperse Dye Workshops
Various Textile Groups (Australia) 2008 - 2011.

Five Day Workshop - In Pursuit of Complex Cloth
“Wrapt in Rocky” Textile Fibre Forum Conference (Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia) 29^th June to 5^th July 2008.

Five Day Workshop – In Pursuit of Complex Cloth
Orange Textile Fiber Forum (Orange, NSW, Australia) 19^th to 25^th April 2009.

5 Day Workshop – In Pursuit of Complex Cloth
Geelong Fiber Forum (Geelong, Victoria, Australia) 27^th September to 3^rd October 2009.

Two Day Workshop - Deconstructed and Polychromatic Screen Printing
Beautiful Silks (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) 20^th to 21^st March 2010.

Five Day Workshop – Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing
“Wrapt in Rocky” Biennial Textile Forum/Conference Program (Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia) 25^th June to 1^st July 2010.

Two Day Workshop – Improvisational Screen Printing
ATASDA (Sydney, NSW, Australia) 28^th to 29^th August 2010.

Two Day Workshop – In Pursuit of Complex Cloth (Day One)
”Stitching and Beyond” Textile Group (Woodbridge, Tasmania, Australia) 2^nd to 3^rd October 2010.

Two Day Workshop – In Pursuit of Complex Cloth (Day Two)
”Stitching and Beyond” Textile Group (Woodbridge, Tasmania, Australia) 2^nd to 3^rd October 2010.

Advance Silk Screen Printing
Redcliffe City Art Gallery Redcliffe, Queensland, Australia) 10^th April 2011.

One Day Workshop - In Pursuit of Complex Cloth
The Victorian Feltmakers Inc. (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) 14^th May 2011.

One Day Workshop - In Pursuit of Complex Cloth (Felted and Silk Fibers)
Victorian Feltmakers Inc (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) 15^th May 2011.

Five Day Workshop – Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing
SDA (Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA) 13^th to 17^th June 2011.

Five Day Disperse Dye Master Class – Barbara Scott
Art Quill Studio (Arcadia Vale, NSW, Australia) 15^th to 19^th August 2011.

Five Day Workshop – Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing
Fiber Arts Australia (Sydney, NSW, Australia) 26^th September to 1^st October 2011.

One Day Workshop – Improvisational Screen Printing
Newcastle Printmakers Workshop Inc. (Newcastle, NSW, Australia) 5^th November 2011.

One Day Workshops – Low Relief Screen Printing
Various classes within Australia.

Two Day Workshop – Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing
ATASDA (Sydney, NSW, Australia) 23^rd to 24^th June 2012.

MSDS Demonstration at Zijdelings
(Tilburg, The Netherlands) October, 2012.

Five Day Workshop - Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing
Fibre Arts@Ballarat (Ballarat, Victoria, Australia) 6^th to 12^th April 2013.

Two Day Workshop - Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing
EFTAG (Tuross Head, NSW, Australia) 13^th to 14^th April 2013.

Two Day Workshop - Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing
Zijdelings Studio (Tilburg, The Netherlands) 9^th to 10^th October 2014.

PCA - Celebrating 50 Years in 2016
Art Quill Studio 2016 Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

Image Dreamings: Basic Silk Screen Printing Workshop - Part I
2016 Art Quill Studio Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

Image Dreamings: Basic Silk Screen Printing Workshop - Part II
2016 Art Quill Studio Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

In Pursuit of: Improvisational Screen Printing Workshop
2016 Art Quill Studio Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

In Pursuit of: Low Relief Screen Printing (LRSP) Workshop 2016
2016 Art Quill Studio Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

Art Quill Studio 2017 Workshop Program
2017 Art Quill Studio Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

In Pursuit of: Low Relief Screen Printing (LRSP)
2017 Art Quill Studio Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

In Pursuit of Complex Cloth: Layered Printing Approaches
2017 Art Quill Studio Workshop Program (Newcastle, Australia).

Melding Experiences: New Landscapes Using Disperse Dyes and Transfer Printing.
2019 Art Quill Studio Workshop (NCEATA, Newcastle, Australia).

In Pursuit of ArtCloth: Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing Workshop
2022 Two Day Workshop (ATASDA, Sydney, NSW, Australia).

Introduction
For over two decades I have been experimenting and working with hand printing techniques using disperse dyes on synthetic/polyester fabrics. These experiments led to my signature technique that I have developed and named - MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS). I have been teaching my MSDS technique at international and national conferences/workshops, textile forums, to textile groups and in university courses.

The MSDS Technique
The MSDS technique employs disperse dyes and involves hand printing multiple resists and multiple overprinted layers employing numerous color plates and low relief plant materials. The completed works are rich in color, light, shade, contrast, movement, and depth. The multiple layers also imbue a painterly aesthetic and textural, three-dimensional quality to the finished ArtCloth works. Each print is unique and cannot be replicated.

Disperse Dye Information
Disperse dyes are light fast, wash fast and produce strong hues on synthetics. They are produced in a powdered form and so you must wear a mask when working with the dyes in their powder state. The powders are mixed with very warm to hot water. The intensity of hue is determined by the amount of dye that is mixed with the water; that is, less dye will result in a pale color whilst more dye will result in very intense color. The dyes are transparent (i.e. printing a blue area over a yellow will produce green) and so lend themselves to layering and overprinting to build up rich and complex surfaces as well as create delicate and subtle imagery. The dyes can be intermixed to create your own suite of palette colors - see previous disperse dye posts for more dye information.

Workshop Synopsis
This workshop was organized by the Australian Textile Arts & Surface Design Association Inc. Sydney, NSW Branch. It was held at the Epping Creative Centre, Dence Park on 21st - 22nd May 2022.

My thanks to Sarah Lazarus, ATASDA NSW Branch workshop co-ordinator and her team for their outstanding organizational skills and professionalism in ensuring that the workshop would be a huge success. Thank you Sarah and the team!

This two-day workshop was an introduction to the dye sublimation process (transfer printing) and melded participants experiences as valuable resources to create new artistic landscapes using disperse dyes.

Participants created their own custom dyed fabric using disperse dyes via direct imaging, experimental and layering exercises. They applied painted, textured, printed imagery onto papers with disperse dyes and then transfer printed them to polyester and blended synthetic fabrics to create a suite of color and pattern studies via an iron or heat press. Participants were also introduced to the tutor’s signature MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique featuring multiple layering and resists employing flora as ‘the thematic’ experience. The MSDS works imbue richly colored, textural, and vibrant 3-dimensional imaging to the cloth surface.

In summary, a fun and exciting workshop, where instruction and experimentation forged the potential of each participant.With these new skills each participant can further enhance their printed, dyed artworks by adding collage, additional layering, applique, hand & machine embellishments etc., to create truly unique ArtCloth pieces. All skill levels were welcome to this two-day workshop.

See the following images and enjoy some of the wonderful pieces that were created over the two days (all images by Marie-Therese Wisniowski unless otherwise stated).

Workshop Participants

Group Photo.
Back: From left to right - Suzanne Walcott, Cathy Griffith, Kathy Hawkins and Vicky Lowery.
Front: From left to right - Sarah Lazarus, Rhonda, Ha, and Tearza Stark.

In Pursuit of ArtCloth: Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing Workshop
Two Day Workshop at ATASDA, Sydney, NSW, Australia

Workshop Participant: Cathy Griffith.
Technique: Multiple resist, layering, texture and color study.

Workshop Participant: Cathy Griffith.
Technique: Design study employing layered imagery on a gradated/color wash background.

Workshop Participant: Cathy Griffith.
Technique: Personal exploration employing multiple layers, line art, color and texture study.

Workshop Participant: Ha.
Technique: Color study employing paper stencil resists and layered imagery.

Workshop Participant: Ha.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and colors working from light to dark – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 1).

Workshop Participant: Ha.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and out of sequence colors – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 2).

Workshop Participant: Kathy Hawkins.
Technique: Design study employing layered imagery on a gradated/color wash background.

Workshop Participant: Kathy Hawkins.
Technique: Color wash, resist and contrast study.

Workshop Participant: Kathy Hawkins.
Technique: Personal exploration employing ghost print stencil resists and color wash study.

Workshop Participant: Rhonda.
Technique: Paper stencil resist, layering and color study.

Workshop Participant: Rhonda.
Technique: Design study employing layered imagery on a gradated/color wash background.

Workshop Participant: Rhonda.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and colours working from light to dark – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 1).

Workshop Participant: Sarah Lazarus.
Technique: Multiple resist, layering, texture and color study.

Workshop Participant: Sarah Lazarus.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and colours working from light to dark – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 1).

Workshop Participant: Sarah Lazarus.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and out of sequence colors – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 2).

Workshop Participant: Suzanne Walcott.
Technique: Paper stencil resist, layering and color study.

Workshop Participant: Suzanne Walcott.
Technique: Texture, overprinting and color wash study.

Workshop Participant: Suzanne Walcott.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and out of sequence colors – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 2).

Workshop Participant: Tearza Stark.
Technique: Multiple resist, layering, texture and color study.

Workshop Participant: Tearza Stark.
Technique: Texture, overprinting and color wash study.

Workshop Participant: Tearza Stark.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and out of sequence colors – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 2).

Workshop Participant: Vicky Lowery.
Technique: Color study employing negative and positive paper stencil resists, and layered imagery.

Workshop Participant: Vicky Lowery.
Technique: Design study employing layered imagery on a gradated/color wash background.

Workshop Participant: Vicky Lowery.
Technique: Multiple resist employing multiple overprinting and colours working from light to dark – MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora (Version 1).

St Cuthberts MillArt EssayMarie-Therese Wisniowski

Introduction [1]
We can print on many substrates including wood, metal and plastics and yet the most important medium we print on is paper. There is one mill that has been historically aligned with the development of the printing process and that is St Cuthberts Mill in Wells, Somerset, England.

The mill is on the edge of the ancient cathedral city of Wells and is named after the local church dedicated to the the seventh century saint. The St Cuthbert's Cross illustrated on the mills artist paper in inspired by the cross on St Cuthbert's tomb in Durham Cathedral.

St Cuthbert's Cross illustrated on the mill's artist paper.

St Cuthberts Mill after the extension of 1889 to 1897.

St Cuthberts Mill as it appears today.

The mill has been active since the 1700s and is the only mill in the UK that makes artist paper. Somerset paper is of premium quality and is the printmakers choice across the globe. The mill is well placed being near the source of the River Axe, with its pure water filtered through the limestone of Mendip Hills.

Paper making requires a supply of clean water and all paper mills are located on/near a water source.

The River Axe, with its pure water filtered through the limestone of Mendip Hills.

Nearly four hundred years ago, paper making started in the Axe Valley at Wookey Hole. More than two hundred years ago papermaking started on the St Cuthbert site. St Cuthbert Mill is the only surviving paper mill our of the six once operating in the upper Axe Valley.

The first stage of papermaking at St Cuthberts Mill is the filtration of the water through large, historic sand filters. These filters clear any debris from the river water. Heavy rain means that more silt is brought into the system thereby affecting the production of white paper that is so sought after by artists who want to use this quality paper.

The filtered water gets pumped into a huge vat, or hydrapulper, along with 200 kg blocks of cotton linters, which is pulped into a porridge like mixture called 'stuff'. The stuff is collected on to a spinning cylinder complete with custom watermarks and fed by hand through a cylinder mould between two felts, giving the paper its signature texture. Each roller has two strips of paper in production at the same time, sectioned off by tape; this gives the paper its beautiful deckle edge.

The paper is dried to cure the sizing agent (which controls absorbency), then it is wetted again and dried again, this time being left to retain slight moisture. The paper is digitally measured to test that the weight is equal across the sheet before it comes off the press. Each batch of paper produced undergoes a series of strict control measures to make sure the paper is produced to the same standard every time.

Paper production schematic.

Paper production on rollers.

Hand checking fine-art paper.

Fine art paper.

Timelines of Paper Making: 1736 - 2010
Year 1736: Handmade paper production starts on the Cuthberts site under the name Lower Wookey Mill →Year 1835: First papermaking machine installed.→Year 1850: Present frontage of mill is built using local stone.→Year 1862: The mill is renamed Mendip Mill, in honor of the local hills.→Year 1887: The mill is renamed again as St Cuthberts Mill, after the parish of the local church inn which it is situated.→Year 1897: Office building built.→Year 1899: Somerset watermark first used for writing paper.→Year 1907: Cylinder mould machine (still used to make artist papers) built.→Year 1927: St Cuthberts Mill becomes a major shareholder in Scottish paper manufacturer Inveresk.→Year 1931: St Cuthberts Mill is bought by Inveresk.→Year 1950: Inveresk buys nearby Wookey Hole Mill (first established in 1425).→Year 1952: Cylinder mould machine installed at Wookey Hole.→Year 1957: Current PM1 paper machine installed.→Year 1957: 'Melamon' resin-loaded board first developed at Wookey Hole Mill.→Year 1959: Wookey Hole purchases the rights to produce T.H. Saunders paper (originally developed in 1920). →Year 1972: Wookey Hole Mill sold (now a tourist attraction) and the mould machine transferred to St Cuthberts Mill. Watercolor paper production now solely made at St Cuthberts Mill (including handmade, which will continue until 1976).→Year 1975: Bockingford rights purchased from Whatman.→Year 1976: Somerset traditional printmaking paper developed and launched.→Year 1981: Inveresk, including St Cuthberts Mill, is sold to Georgia Pacific and becomes GP Inveresk.→Year 1985: T.H. Saunders is developed to improve the surface strength of the paper.→Year 1990: Inveresk is sold by Georgia Pacific in a management buyout.→Year 1991: Three million pound investment in PM1 for pre-impregnated paper.→Year 1993: Inveresk floated on the Stock Exchange.→Year 1994: Somerset Velvet Radiant White developed and launched, creating an uncoated injet paper without the dot grain associated with uncoated papers.→Year 1999: Fine art inkjet papers developed and Somerset Enhanced launched.→Year 2002: Bockingford Inkjet launched.→Year 2007: Somerset Photo launched.→Year 2010: St Cuthberts Mill Ltd created.

Reference:
[1] M.Smith, People of Print, Thames & Hudson, London (2017).

Yuzen: Multicolored Past-Resist Dyeing - Part 1 [1]Art EssayMarie-Therese Wisniowski

Preamble
For your convenience I have listed other posts on Japanese textiles on this blogspot:
Discharge Thundercloud
The Basic Kimono Pattern
The Kimono and Japanese Textile Designs
Traditional Japanese Arabesque Patterns (Part I)
Textile Dyeing Patterns of Japan
Traditional Japanese Arabesque Patterns (Part II)
Sarasa Arabesque Patterns (Part III)
Contemporary Japanese Textile Creations
Shibori (Tie-Dying)
History of the Kimono
A Textile Tour of Japan - Part I
A Textile Tour of Japan - Part II
The History of the Obi
Japanese Embroidery (Shishu)
Japanese Dyed Textiles
Aizome (Japanese Indigo Dyeing)
Stencil-Dyed Indigo Arabesque Patterns (Part V)
Japanese Paintings on Silk
Tsutsugaki - Freehand Paste-Resist Dyeing
Street Play in Tokyo
Birds and Flowers in Japanese Textile Designs
Japanese Colors and Inks on Paper From the Idemitsu Collection
Yuzen: Multicolored Past-Resist Dyeing - Part 1
Yuzen: Multi-colored Paste-Resist Dyeing - Part II

Yuzen: Multicolored Past-Resist Dyeing - Part 1 [1]
The Edo period (between 1603 and 1867) was a time of great creativity. Throughout Japan, local governments developed and encouraged the products of regional industry. The capital city of Edo was a hotbed of new ideas This period was characterized by a flamboyance in dress. Not only were members of the elite Samurai class often in debt due to excessive clothing expenses but the merchants, who gained control of the economy in this period, also began to dress extravagantly. In defiance of the shogunate's sumptuary laws, the common people clamoured for new textiles.

A new dyeing technique called yuzen was developed around 1700 in response to this demand. The new art form, developed by and named after a fan painter named MIyazaki Yuzensai, was distinguished by its beautiful colors and pictorial designs.

This yuzen kosode depicts a falcon perched on a folding screen. Embroidery is effectively used for details such as the falcon's jesses.
Note: A jess (plural "jesses") is a thin strap, traditionally made from leather, used to tether a hawk or falcon in falconry. Jesses allow a falconer to keep control of a bird while it is on the glove or in training, and allow a bird to be secured on a perch outside its aviary.

Over the years yuzen developed into a major textile art. Yuzen was originally produced in the the city of Kyoto, where the waters of the Kamo River were ideal for rinsing the bolts of fabric after the dyeing process, and in Kaga Province. From about 1665, with Lord Maeda's patronage, Kaga became a center of art, industry and learning, on par with Kyoto. Lord Maeda's love of fine fabrics and the arts was well known, and with his encouragement of weaving and dyeing, Kaga silk and Kaga yuzen became famous. Later yuzen was also made in Edo and was known as Edo yuzen.

Yuzen is divided into two basic types, free hand paste drawing (tegaki) yuzen and stencil (kata) yuzen, according to the method of paste application used. Freehand yuzen starts with small version of the design on paper. It is enlarged to its final size as it is drawn onto the kimono silk with a fugitive blue aobana liquid (an extract of the spiderwort plant).

In the yuzen process designs are first drawn with the aobana liquid.

During most of the steps in the yuzen process, the silk is stretched on pliable bamboo rods called shinshi to allow the craftsman to draw and brush-dye the fabric.

With the shinshi in place, rice-paste resist (mochiko) of a finer consistency is drawn on the fabric along the blue aobana lines using a waterproof paper tube with a small metal tip.

The aobana lines are next covered with a paste resist.

Then a thin liquid soybean extract (gojiru) is spread over the paste and fabric. When dry, the paste works as a resist, keeping the dye inside its borders, while the soybean extract further reduces the chance of unwanted running and aids in the absorption of the dye into the silk. For even spreading of the dyes, water is brushed over the area to be colored and the dye is then applied with a small felt brush.

After applying the paste resist, dye is painted on with a brush.

After steaming the silk to set the dye, the paste is washed out, leaving delicate white lines that outline the colorful motifs and pictures of the design.

To protect the completed design during later dyeing, an additional coat of paste is applied over this area and the background dye is brushed on.

Various colors of dye - infused paste used in stencil yuzen.

After a final steaming, the paste is wah out again and the fabric is stretched on shinshi to dry. This delicately decorated silk is ready to be hand-stitched into a kimono which will be protected in a paper wrapper (tatoshi) until worn.

Section of a Kyo yuzen furisode in stunning colors, with tie-dye (Kyo fawn spots) and couched gold thread.

A Kyo yuzen kimono with a banquet scene at a palace depicted in bright hues. The garden in full bloom is surrounded by decorative curtains.

Pretty flower motifs of a yuzen stencil.

Reference:
[1] A. Yang and R. M. Narasin, Shufunotomo. Co., Ltd.,Tokyo (1989).

Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part III [1]Art ResourceMarie-Therese Wisniowski

Preamble
This is the eleventh post in a new Art Resource series that specifically focuses on techniques used in creating artworks. For your convenience I have listed all the posts in this new series below:
Drawing Art
Painting Art - Part I
Painting Art - Part II
Painting Art - Part III
Painting Art - Part IV
Painting Art - Part V
Painting Art - Part VI
Home-Made Painting Art Materials
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part I
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part II
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part III
Historical Notes on Art - Part I
Historical Notes on Art - Part II
Historical Notes on Art - Part III
Historical Notes on Art - Part IV
Historical Notes on Art - Part V
Tempera Painting
Oil Painting - Part I
Oil Painting - Part II
Oil Painting - Part III
Oil Painting - Part IV
Oil Painting - Part V
Oil Painting - Part VI
Pigments
Classification of Pigments - Part I
Classification of Pigments - Part II
Classification of Pigments - Part III
Pigments for Oil Painting
Pigments for Water Color
Pigments for Tempera Painting
Pigments for Pastel
Japanese Pigments

There have been one hundred and thirteen posts in a previous Art Resource series that focused on the following topics:
(i) Units used in dyeing and printing of fabrics.
(ii) Occupational, health & safety issues in an art studio.
(iii) Color theories and color schemes.
(iv) Optical properties of fiber materials.
(v) General properties of fiber polymers and fibers - Part I to Part V.
(vi) Protein fibers.
(vii) Natural and man-made cellulosic fibers.
(viii) Fiber blends and melt spun fibers.
(ix) Fabric construction.
(x) Techniques and woven fibers.
(xi) Basic and figured weaves.
(xii) Pile, woven and knot pile fabrics.
(xiii) Napped fabrics, double cloth and multicomponent fabrics.
(xiv) Fabric finishes.
(xv) Schrinkage, durable press and wash-wear finishes.
(xvi) Classification of dyes and dye blends.
(xvii) The general theory of printing.

To access any of the above resources click on the following link - Units Used in Dyeing and Printing of Fabrics. This link highlights the one hundred and thirteen posts in the previous Art Resource series.

There are eight data bases on this blogspot, namely: (1) the Glossary of Cultural and Architectural Terms; (2) Timelines of Fabrics, Dyes and Other Stuff; (3) A Fashion Data Base; (4) the Glossary of Colors, Dyes, Inks, Pigments and Resins; (5) the Glossary of Fabrics, Fibers, Finishes, Garments and Yarns; (6) Glossary of Art, Artists, Art Motifs and Art Movements; (7) Glossary of Paper, Photography, Printing, Prints and Publication Terms; (8) Glossary of Scientific Terms.
Note: From time-to-time all the above data bases will be updated.

If you find any post on this blog site useful, you can save it or copy and paste it into your own "Word" document for your future reference. For example, Safari allows you to save a post (e.g., click on "File", click on "Print" and release, click on "PDF" and then click on "Save As" and release - and a PDF should appear where you have stored it). Safari also allows you to mail a post to a friend (e.g., click on "File", and then point cursor to "Mail Contents On This Page" and release). Either way, this or any of the other posts on this site may be a useful Art Resource for you.

The new Art Resource series will be the first post in each calendar month. Remember, these Art Resource posts span information that will be useful for a home hobbyist to that required by a final year University Fine-Art student. Undoubtedly, some parts of any Art Resource post may appear far too technical for your needs (skip those mind boggling parts) and whilst other parts may be too simplistic with respect to your level of knowledge (ditto the skip). Hopefully, the trade-off between these two extremes will mean that the Art Resource posts will be useful in parts to most, but unfortunately, may not be satisfying to all!

Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part III [1]
Standard Specfications for Artist's Materials
In the past, selection of prepared artists' materials has rested upon the experience and judgement of the user, substantiated by simple tests which they have been able to make, such as exposure to daylight and a rough strength test. No satisfactory, practical standard was established for the control of artists' materials, for there was no agency where such activity could be guided by modern technicians whose judgement would be largely based on the artists' viewpoint with reasonable allowances for the manufacturers' problems.

Current Australian Consumer Protection.

In the case of oil colors, this situation was improved in America in 1942, by the adoption of a set of specifications voluntarily agreed upon between the manufacturers and the artist-consumer, under the auspices of the United States Department of Commerce, entitled 'Commercial Standard CS98-62 and commonly called the "Paint Standard" which was revised in 1981 with further revisions thereafter. This important step established a minimum standard by which artists' oil colors can be evaluated; those products which conform to or exceed its requirements are considered satisfactory for professional use in fine-art painting.

US Paint Standards.

The Standard also lists a series of performance and physical-property tests and an "offical" nomenclature, which is now being observed by most makers and has greatly benefited the artists. Paints whose labels guarantee that they conform to or exceed CS98-62 are of as high quality as modern methods and present-day knowledge can produce. Those which do not bear this number may well be substandard in some way, regardless of their advertising claims.

The common name for the Commercial Standard for Artists Oil Paints CS 98-62 is issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce. First printed in 1942, the Paint Standard provides specifications for the minimum quality required to artists colors. Copies can be ordered from the Superintendent of Documents, Washington DC.

The Need for Scientific Research
The study of artist's materials and techniques is hampered by the lack of scientific data of an authentic nature based on modern scientific laboratory investigations with which to supplement our present knowledge - the accumulation of the practical experience of past centuries, necessarily quite full of principles which rest on the shaky foundations of conjecture and consensus.

While there is lots of information about the history of pigments and paints there is little scientific research on their quality.

In the two parallel fields of museum conservation and industrial paint chemistry, much valuable work has been accomplished on these lines, but because its aims, criteria, and requirements are so divergent, the field of the practicing creative arts glean very little knowledge from these sources; proven data have accumulated slowly and lag far behind our needs. We await the day when a sustained activity, directed from the viewpoint of the artist, will supply us with more benefits of modern science and technology. In general, it can be said that our criteria of excellence in materials and technique is still not far beyond those of 1840 and that our oil-painting methods and materials are not substantially far removed from those of Rembrandt.

Dutch painter Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn is widely considered to be one of the most important painters in history. Many of his pieces were painted during Holland’s “Golden Age” — a time when Dutch trade, science and art was among the most acclaimed in the world. This year marks the 350th anniversary of Rembrandt's death and museums across the world are paying tribute with exhibitions dedicated to the influential artist.

What are the best brands of tube colors?
A vast amount of expensive laboratory work and a perpetual vigilance would have to be invoved before an impartial judge could vouch for the quality of any brand of prepared artist's materials. So far as top-grade lines of professional artists' paints are concerned, this much can be said: in general, those put out by prominent, well-established manufacturers are more or less on par. They make a conscious effort to provide the best they can, to make the finest oil color, water color, casein, or gouche in competition with others; their top grade are a prestige item. There is, however, some choice or range in color or pigment differences and in the mnaufacturer's ideas of what constitutes the best criteria for a good tube color, so the question is up to the users themselves - the artist might prefer one firm's blue, another's red, and so on, or they may favor a complete set of one brand.

Tube stocks. What is your favourite brand?

Conformity with a country's standard is another factor. It would not be feasible for an impartial specialist to recommend specific brands, for to do so would require the maintenance of a consumer's testing laboratory, continually checking every color in every line in every season.

Australian Consumer Advocates - Choice - preparing a submission to the Australian Federal Government.

Reference:
[1] The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques, R. Mayer, (ed. E. Smith) 4th Edition, Faber and Faber, London (1981).