Art Lesson - Materials and equipment

Soft pencil or charcoal is best for the initial drawing.

Sable brushes are best for watercolour.
Fitch, squirrel hair and nylon brushes are also used. Watercolour paints are bought in the form of blocks known as pans and half-pans, or in tubes.
Wash pans are for mixing paint, and are built in to boxed sets, as illustrated on the right. Wash pans can be improvised from any small shallow container.
Containers are needed for water: one for clean water to add to paints, and one for washing paint from the brushes.

Paper is the best support (surface) for watercolours, bought in pads, blocks, or as individual sheets, in a variety of weights and textures. Light weight paper needs to be stretched to avoid distortion. Paper 140lb. and over can be used with out stretching.

The main requirement of a watercolour easel is that it can hold the paper horizontally when applying washes. Table top easels are useful for indoor work. Shown here is a collapsible easel. These are very portable and can be used for outdoor work. It can be adjusted for height, and will hold the work surface horizontally.