Notebook

Notebook, 1993-

MATERIALS & METHODS

Paper

[From: Thompson, Daniel V., Jr., Research and Technical Adviser, The Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London. The Practice of Tempera Painting. New Haven: Yale University Press. 1936. Fourth Printing, 1946.]

Tinted Papers


To prepare the papers for this sort of drawing, first obtain a few pieces of good drawing paper, preferably hot pressed. Lay them out on a clean bench or table. They need not be fastened down at all. For large pieces, it is best to stretch the paper; but up to 11" x 14" or somewhat larger, the sheets can be managed quite well without even tacking down the corners. Next dissolve half an ounce of gelatin in 18 ounces of water. Then take dry powdered colors, and mix up any tone you please, making it rather lighter than you want the finished paper to appear. For this purpose, the best white pigment is zinc white. Zinc white, ivory black, opaque oxide of chromium, Venetian red, yellow ocher, French ultramarine, and raw umber will give a wide range of fine colors; but very beautiful results may be obtained by using such brilliant colors as vermilion and cadmium yellow. Some zinc white should be included in every mixture; and it is better to have the tint too light than too dark.

When you have compounded a satisfactory mixture of the dry pigments, add a little of the gelatin solution, and stir thoroughly to mix thoroughly and break up any lumps. Then add more of the gelatin solution, making the mixture quite liquid. Then strain it through a piece of fine silk into a clean cup or bowl. Instead of using the pigments dry, you may use pigments ground with water; but it will be harder to judge the color, and there is no great advantage in having the pigments very finely ground. If dry pigments are used, the straining will remove any unground particles which might be troublesome.

Apply enough coats of this mixture of size and pigment to your pieces of paper to produce an agreeably even tone. A bristle brush is best to use for this, say a 1" or 2" sash tool. A slight striation from the brush strokes is often pleasant. If you want a perfectly smooth surface, you may get it by putting on many thin coats, or by stippling each coat as you put it on with a badger blender. Let each coat dry thoroughly before you put on the next. If the papers tend [p. 44] to curl badly in drying, add a little water to your mixture. The advantage of not using thumbtacks to hold the paper down is that the brush strokes may be run over the edge of the paper onto the table, and the paper thus tinted evenly right up to the margins. If thumb tacks are used, the papers have to be trimmed.

The finished papers should be agreeably colored, not too dark, and smooth and even in surface. They should be kept under a weight, or between the leaves of a book, to keep them flat and clean. If properly prepared, they will have no tendency to curl, and the color will be firmly bound on the surface. [pp. 44-45]

[Thompson, Daniel V., Jr., Research and Technical Adviser, The Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London. The Practice of Tempera Painting. New Haven: Yale University Press. 1936. Fourth Printing, 1946.]




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