What are the best art supplies for beginners? The best art supplies for beginners are versatile, good quality without breaking the bank, and allow for experimentation across different mediums. We’ll delve into specific recommendations for various art forms.
Choosing the right art supplies can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re starting out. There’s a vast ocean of paints, brushes, papers, and tools, each with its own purpose and price tag. But fear not! This comprehensive guide is designed to help you navigate this exciting world and equip yourself with the art materials guide you need to bring your creative visions to life. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just dipping your toes into the artistic pool, making informed choices about your tools can significantly impact your process and the final outcome.
Getting Started: Essential Supplies for New Artists
Every artist, at some point, was a beginner. The key to a successful start is to choose best art supplies for beginners that are forgiving, encourage learning, and are not prohibitively expensive. You want to be able to experiment without feeling like you’re wasting precious resources.
Drawing Tools Selection
Drawing is often the foundation of many art forms. Having a good set of drawing tools will serve you well.
Pencils
- Graphite Pencils: These are your bread and butter. They come in a range of hardness from soft (B series, for dark shading) to hard (H series, for light lines).
- Recommendation for Beginners: A good starting set would include an HB (for general drawing), a 2B (for darker tones), and an H or 2H (for lighter lines and sketching). Brands like Faber-Castell and Staedtler offer excellent student-grade graphite pencils.
- Charcoal Pencils: For rich, dark, and smudged effects. They offer a different texture than graphite.
- Colored Pencils: A fantastic way to introduce color into your drawings.
Erasers
- Plastic/Vinyl Erasers: Good for clean erasing without damaging the paper.
- Kneaded Erasers: These are pliable and can be shaped to lift graphite or charcoal gently, perfect for subtle highlights.
Sketchpad Paper Quality
The paper you draw on makes a huge difference. Sketchpad paper quality is paramount.
- Weight (GSM): For general sketching and graphite, 90-120 GSM is usually sufficient. For softer mediums like charcoal or ink, a heavier paper (150 GSM+) is better to prevent buckling.
- Texture (Tooth): A bit of “tooth” or texture helps the pencil adhere to the paper, allowing for richer marks and easier layering. Too smooth, and the pencil might slip; too rough, and fine details can be lost.
- Acid-Free: Always opt for acid-free paper. This ensures your drawings won’t yellow or degrade over time.
- Recommendation for Beginners: A multi-purpose sketchpad with a medium tooth and a weight of around 100-120 GSM from brands like Canson or Strathmore is a solid choice.
Essential Painting Supplies
When you’re ready to add color, paints and brushes become your primary tools.
Paint Types for Artists
There are several popular paint types for artists, each offering unique characteristics.
- Watercolor Paints: Transparent, luminous, and great for washes and delicate effects. They are water-soluble, making cleanup easy.
- Pros: Portable, relatively inexpensive to start, unique luminous quality, forgiving for layering.
- Cons: Can be difficult to correct mistakes, requires specific paper.
- Acrylic Paints: Versatile, fast-drying, and can be used thick like oil paints or thinned with water for watercolor-like effects. They adhere to almost any surface.
- Pros: Fast drying time, durable once dry, opaque or transparent depending on dilution, easy cleanup with water.
- Cons: Fast drying can be a challenge for blending, requires quick work.
- Oil Paints: Known for their rich, buttery texture and slow drying time, allowing for extensive blending and subtle color transitions.
- Pros: Excellent for blending, luminous depth of color, long working time.
- Cons: Require solvents for cleanup, longer drying times, can be more expensive to start with.
Choosing the Best Canvas
When you decide to paint on a larger scale, the surface matters. Choosing the best canvas is an important decision.
- Stretched Canvas: Pre-stretched fabric over a wooden frame. Convenient and ready to use.
- Materials: Usually cotton duck or linen. Linen is generally considered superior for its durability and smoother surface, but cotton is more affordable and excellent for beginners.
- Priming: Most canvases come pre-primed with gesso, which creates a barrier between the paint and the fabric and provides a good surface for paint adhesion. Look for canvases primed with acrylic gesso if you plan to use acrylics, or universal gesso for both acrylics and oils.
- Canvas Panels/Boards: Canvas stretched over a rigid board. More affordable and easier to store than stretched canvases. Great for practice and smaller works.
- Canvas Rolls: For artists who want to cut their own sizes or work on a larger scale continuously.
- Recommendation for Beginners: For acrylics and watercolors, a stretched cotton canvas primed with acrylic gesso is a good starting point. For oils, ensure the canvas is properly primed to prevent the oil from degrading the fabric over time. Canvas panels are excellent for practicing techniques.
Acrylic Paint Essentials
For those drawn to acrylics, here’s what you’ll need:
- Acrylic Paints: Start with a basic set of primary colors (red, yellow, blue), black, and white. This allows you to mix a vast spectrum of colors. Artist-grade acrylics offer more pigment concentration and better lightfastness than student-grade.
- Brushes:
- Synthetic Brushes: Excellent for acrylics. They are durable and hold their shape well.
- Shapes: A flat brush (for broad strokes), a round brush (for details and lines), and a filbert brush (a mix of flat and round, good for blending) are essential.
- Sizes: A few sizes in each shape (e.g., small, medium, large) will give you versatility.
- Palette: A stay-wet palette is highly recommended for acrylics as it keeps the paint moist for longer, preventing waste. A simple plastic palette or even old ceramic plates can work too.
- Water Containers: Two containers – one for rinsing dirty brushes and one for clean water to dilute paint.
- Rags/Paper Towels: For wiping brushes and cleaning up.
Watercolor Brush Recommendations
Watercolor requires specific brushes to achieve its characteristic flow and transparency.
- Hog Bristle Brushes: While good for oils and acrylics, they are too stiff for the delicate nature of watercolor.
- Synthetic Brushes: Many good synthetic watercolor brushes are available. They are often more affordable and maintain a good point.
- Natural Hair Brushes:
- Sable Brushes (especially Kolinsky Sable): These are considered the gold standard. They have excellent spring, hold a lot of water, and come to a fine point, making them ideal for both washes and fine detail. They are, however, more expensive.
- Squirrel or Goat Hair Brushes: Softer than sable, they hold a lot of water and are excellent for large washes but may not have the same snap for precise work.
- Shapes for Watercolor:
- Round Brushes: Essential for lines, details, and small washes.
- Flat Brushes: Good for broad strokes and covering large areas.
- Wash Brushes: Larger, flat or mop-shaped brushes for applying large washes of color.
- Recommendation for Beginners: Start with a good quality synthetic round brush in a medium size (e.g., size 8 or 10) and a medium-sized flat brush. If your budget allows, a small Kolinsky sable round brush for details will be a valuable addition.
Oil Painting Mediums
Oil painting offers a rich and forgiving medium, but it benefits greatly from the use of mediums. Oil painting mediums alter the properties of the paint.
- Linseed Oil: The most common drying oil. It makes the paint more fluid, increases gloss, and slows drying time.
- Turpentine/Odorless Mineral Spirits: Used as a solvent to thin paints and clean brushes. Turpentine has a stronger smell than odorless mineral spirits.
- Alkyd Mediums: These are modern mediums that speed up drying time and increase flow. They are a good alternative for artists who want the properties of oils but with a faster drying time.
- Painting Mediums (Pre-mixed): Many pre-mixed mediums are available, such as Liquin or Galkyd, which can improve flow, gloss, and drying time.
- Recommendation for Beginners: Start with a bottle of odorless mineral spirits for cleaning and thinning, and a small bottle of linseed oil to experiment with. Always use mediums sparingly at first to get a feel for how they affect your paint.
Elevating Your Art: Intermediate and Advanced Supplies
As your skills grow, you might want to invest in higher-quality materials. These often offer better pigment load, lightfastness, and a more refined user experience.
Medium-Specific Considerations
Colored Pencil Techniques
Once you have your basic colored pencils, you’ll want to explore colored pencil techniques. The paper you use and the quality of your pencils will significantly impact your ability to execute these.
- Burnishing: Applying a layer of light-colored pencil (often white or a very light shade of the base color) over other colors to blend them smoothly and create a waxy finish.
- Layering/Glazing: Applying thin, transparent layers of color over each other to build up depth and create new hues. This is where pencil quality truly shines.
- Scumbling: Using circular scribbling motions to create texture and build up color.
- Stippling: Using dots to create shading and form.
Choosing the Best Canvas (Revisited)
For more advanced artists, the choice of canvas becomes more nuanced.
- Linen Canvas: As mentioned, linen is a premium material. It’s stronger, more flexible, and has a finer weave than cotton, leading to a smoother painting surface and greater longevity. It is, however, more expensive.
- Weight and Weave of Canvas: Different weaves offer different textures. A tighter weave might be preferred for fine detail work, while a looser weave can add texture to the final piece.
- Stretcher Bars: For custom-sized canvases, invest in good quality stretcher bars. French or “strainer” bars are wider and more robust, preventing warping over time.
- Priming: For oil painters, ensure your canvas is triple-primed with acrylic gesso or oil primer for optimal protection and surface.
Beyond the Basics: Specialized Tools
- Pastels: Both soft and oil pastels offer a unique tactile experience and vibrant color. They require specific papers or fixatives.
- Inks: India ink for drawing and calligraphy, or artist inks for vibrant washes and mixed media.
- Airbrush: For smooth gradients and precise spray effects.
- Sculpting Tools: For clay, polymer clay, or even wax sculpting.
- Digital Art Tools: Drawing tablets (Wacom, Huion), styluses, and digital art software (Procreate, Photoshop).
Where to Buy Art Supplies
- Local Art Supply Stores: Offer personalized advice and the ability to see and feel materials.
- Online Retailers: Provide a wider selection and often competitive pricing. Popular options include Blick Art Materials, Jerry’s Artarama, Amazon, and specialized art material websites.
- Student-Grade vs. Artist-Grade:
- Student-Grade: More affordable, with less pigment concentration and often less lightfastness. Great for practice and learning.
- Artist-Grade: Higher pigment load, better lightfastness, and more cohesive formulations. They are more expensive but offer superior results and longevity.
Caring for Your Art Supplies
Proper care ensures your supplies last longer and perform better.
- Paints: Keep lids tightly closed. Store acrylics upright. Oil paints can be stored upright or on their side if the lids are secure.
- Brushes:
- Clean immediately after use.
- Acrylics and watercolors can be cleaned with soap and water.
- Oils require brush cleaner or mineral spirits.
- Reshape bristles while wet and lay them flat or hang them bristles-down to dry. Never store brushes bristles-up in a jar, as this can damage the bristles.
- Pencils: Store in a pencil case or box to prevent breakage.
- Paper: Store flat in a dry, cool place, away from direct sunlight, to prevent warping or yellowing.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q1: Can I use watercolor paper for acrylics?
A1: Yes, you can, especially for thinner acrylic applications or washes. However, traditional watercolor paper might buckle when wet with thicker acrylics due to its lower weight and sizing. Heavyweight watercolor paper (300gsm or more) will perform better.
Q2: What is the difference between student and artist grade paint?
A2: Artist grade paints have a higher concentration of pigment, resulting in more vibrant colors and better coverage. They also have superior lightfastness, meaning the colors won’t fade as quickly over time. Student grade paints are more affordable and suitable for practice and learning, but the colors may be less intense and fade more readily.
Q3: How do I clean my oil painting brushes?
A3: First, wipe off as much excess paint as possible with a rag. Then, rinse the brushes in a solvent like odorless mineral spirits or turpentine until the water runs clear. Finally, wash the brushes thoroughly with mild soap and water, rinse, reshape the bristles, and let them dry flat or hanging bristles-down.
Q4: What is the best way to store colored pencils?
A4: Store colored pencils in a case or box to protect the leads from breaking and to keep them organized. Keeping them flat or in a vertical holder where the tips are not pressed against anything is ideal.
Q5: What is gesso used for?
A5: Gesso is a primer used to prepare a surface, such as canvas or wood, for painting. It creates a smooth, non-porous ground that seals the surface, prevents the paint from soaking in too much, and provides a good tooth for paint adhesion.
Q6: Do I need to use a fixative on my drawings?
A6: A fixative is used to protect dry media drawings (like charcoal, graphite, and pastel) from smudging. It’s generally recommended for charcoal and soft pastels. For graphite and colored pencils, it can be used, but be aware that some fixatives can alter the appearance or sheen of the artwork. Test on a scrap piece first.
Choosing the right art supplies is an ongoing journey of discovery. Don’t be afraid to experiment, try new brands, and see what works best for your personal style and needs. Happy creating!