Winsor & Newton: Winsor & Newton's Professional Acrylics are considered to be one of the best in terms of color intensity and permanence. They offer a wide variety of colors and is suitable for artists of all skill levels. Most student ranges also contain additives so that all colours dry to a uniform finish and texture. This can be beneficial to beginners as there is no need to worry about any variations in sheen or handling. The following brands fall into the student quality category: Artist grade typically contain a high ratio of single pigment colours and fewer additives or extenders. The more pigments you put into your mixes, the more likely they are to become flat, muddy and lifeless. Single pigment colours are much sought after to make colour mixes clean and clear. Artist paints also tend to let the unique characteristics of each pigment shine through. This means you will find that some colours dry to a different finish, are a slightly different texture and have varying degrees of opacity. What is a Series Number? Acrylic paints come in what I consider to be three basic types for fine art painting. These are what you will most likely be faced with for artist grade paints. There aren’t many hard and fast rules when it comes to acrylic painting. Sometimes the best approach is to experiment and see where your work takes you. Other artists prefer to do some preliminary sketches or paintings to help keep their focus. Once you’re settled on your composition, your sketches can be scaled up onto canvas. This can be done using a grid transfer method, with scaling dividers, pantographs, tracing paper, tracedown or even a projector. Use Liquitex Soft Body Acrylic Paint with Liquitex String Gel for some interesting effects

Professional paints contain more pigment and tend to have extra ingredients to improve consistency and surface quality. Better quality paints usually cover a surface more thoroughly, while poorer quality paints may be too see-through, which can be an issue depending on what you're looking for. Acrylics can be broadly separated into two categories – Student Quality and Artist Quality. Artist Quality Acrylic Paints If you’re unsure whether acrylic is the right medium for you, we suggest you invest in some student-grade paints. These cheaper colours won’t be as bright and lightfast as with higher-end options, but you’ll get a feel for the application, consistency and texture of acrylic paint. If you’re a committed artist with a mind to selling or exhibiting work, you probably already know it’s worth spending what you can: you’ll see the results in the vibrancy of the colours, and they’ll better stand up to the test of time.Slow Drying acrylics ( Golden Open Acrylic Colours) have an extended open time. This property allows acrylic artists to work with techniques usually restricted to oils. Best used in thin applications, these paints are not suitable for impasto techniques. If used in a stay wet palette their colour can remain usable for weeks – reducing the chance of paint wastage. Each Heavy Body color formula reflects the qualities of its pigment. Colors that tolerate a higher pigment load dry to a more opaque, matte finish. Colors that are more reactive and do not allow as much pigment loading tend to have a glossier, more transparent, finish. Because Heavy Body colors contain no matting agents, the gloss of each color will be different. Characteristics: One more big thing to think about is the grade of paint. Most brands produce student and professional grade paints. It's important to know the difference..

If a more economical paint is called for we are more than happy to recommend our new STUDIO Heavy Body Acrylic 200ml Tubes. They can act as a perfect starting place for someone looking to experiment with heavy bodied paints or, for artists searching to add bulk colour to their palette at a reasonable price. Not only that, they come in a robust range of 31 highly pigmented colours. Soft Body colours and inks can be used with springy natural hairs and softer synthetics. Synthetic fibres are remarkably resilient and can withstand more wear and tear than a natural brush. Brush Shapes The first thing you'll need to decide to choose the best acrylic paints for you is to decide whether you're looking for professional or student paints. The latter contain less pigment and have a more plastic-looking surface when dry. They're useful for sketching and more affordable for big projects that require lots of paint, and they're also great if you're just trying out the medium and don't want to commit to spending more on better acrylics.Acrylic paints made from high quality eco-friendly water based pigments and finest acrylic emulsions. Soft body acrylics: These paints, as the name suggests, have a slightly thinner consistency than heavy body acrylics. A good soft body tends to have smooth blending and layering capabilities. These acrylics are an excellent middle ground paint with a range of capabilities. You can achieve so many effects with Heavy Body. As well as brushes, you should definitely try applying with a knife - different shaped blades will give you different finishes. Combs and shaped scrapers will also give some interesting relief textures and patterns. The pigment PR206 used for Quinacridone Burnt Orange was discontinued by the supplier. After trying to develop an alternative hue, we realised we couldn’t identically replace this unique Quinacridone pigment, and decided to discontinue the color in Heavy Body and Soft Body. For lightfastness, NR means “Not rated” – meaning that it has not been tested by ASTM for lightfastness. ASTM D4303 is the test method for Lightfastness for pigment-based artist materials. Fluorescent dyes and color coated micas are not usually in scope for this test as they are not real pigments with Color Index as such. Fluorescent colors by their very nature are dye based, they are known to be fugitive and cannot withstand the negative effects of UV light like most pigments. This pertains to all fluorescent colors and has nothing to do with a professional or student range of art materials. We do our own in-house Blue wool test for Permanence rating where we test all our colors.

While these paints fall under ‘artists’ grade, there are slight variations in their quality. Spectracryl are the lowest of the artist grade. Winsor & Newton and Liquitex are on par with each other. Ther very best quality acrylics are Golden. Student Quality Acrylic Paints If you have a stiff, dried up brush that you are trying to rescue you may be able to remove the paint with Masters’ Brush Cleaner and Preserver, Zest-it Acrylic Brush Cleaner and Reviver or Loxley Brush Cleaner and Preserver. Fluid acrylics: These paints have the consistency similar to oil or even water, and are often used for pouring and other fluid techniques. These acrylics are great creating smooth, even washes of color or very fine detail.

Drying Time

There are many brands of acrylic paints – but not all paints are alike! Before settling on a particular make it is important to know the differences between the type of acrylics available. Student Quality vs Artist Quality Acrylics And as with all Liquitex products, the pigments in Heavy Body have passed extensive tests for lightfastness. Each pigment is rated according to the American Society for Testing & Materials (ASTM), and we only use pigments rated ASTM I or II*. This means your work will have the greatest archival permanence possible – at least 50 years+ in gallery conditions – with no color shifting or fading, to stay vibrant and true. What can Heavy Body be used for?

As with any acrylic from the Liquitex lab, Heavy Body is at the forefront of acrylic innovation. The formula represents the latest in acrylic resin technology. Its low-odor acrylic resin base gives an increased open time and colors of great clarity and vibrancy, with minimal wet-to-dry shift. The paint film is highly flexible, durable, non-yellowing, UV-resistant and water-resistant when dry.Stretched Canvas is perhaps the most common painting surface. It has a long history of use, and offers a good support to ensure your painting will stand the test of time. Today’s artists have much more choice in the surfaces they paint on. The pigment load will affect the vibrancy of the colors,” Clare says. For the best pigment load, Clare recommends choosing professional quality paints—like many of the brands listed above, including Golden, Liquitex, and Windsor & Newton—to achieve optimum vibrancy.