Below is an excerpt of an independant examination of our paints by Ray Campbell Smith for the Leisure Painter Magazine. Ray is a well known and prolific professional artist and teacher whose work is represented in collections world wide. He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Founding Fellow of the British Society of Painters, and an Associate of the British Watercolour Society.
I have been asked to produce a test report on a rather special range of paints produced by the Michael Wilcox School of Colour. Michael Wilcox is well known for his in-depth research into colour and for his brilliant publications on the subject.
His famous book, Blue and Yellow Don’t Make Green broke new ground and opened the eyes of its many readers to aspects of colour and paint manufacture, of which they were totally unaware.
The Michael Wilcox School’s main product is information on all aspects of colour in the form of books, study courses, videos, etc., and it supplies its own line in paints for use in connection with these.
Now that most of the worst fugitive colours have been eliminated from the paint manufacturing process and the rest graded in accordance with their lightfastness, artists are inclined to believe that the problem has been solved. Sadly, the reality is rather different and the more delicate media, such as watercolour, can fade appreciably if long exposed to strong light, particularly sunlight.
The Michael Wilcox School of Colour paints are exceptionally lightfast and have been subjected to ASTM (American Society of Testing Materials) examination. In addition, each individual paint was exposed to the direct sun of Western Australia for two years to ensure their reliability and all passed this severe test with flying colours.
Extensive research was also carried out to identify a limited range of colours that would produce the maximum number of clear, clean blends. The result has been a set of 12 colours from which virtually every other colour can be mixed, each in a lightfast form. The associated Colour Mixing Swatch Book gives full details on how such secondary an tertiary colours may be produced. All the standard colours such as Naples yellow, Paynefs grey, sap green and many more can be easily and accurately produced without difficulty.
The 12 colours are:
Cadmium red light
Quinacridone violet
Cadmium yellow light
Hansa yellow light
Cerulean blue
Ultramarine blue
Phthalocyanine blue
Phthalocyanine green
Burnt sienna
Yellow ochre
Raw sienna
Titanium White
These colours are common to all four media: watercolour, gouache, acrylic and oil, and come in tubes . 16ml and 37ml for watercolour; 37ml for acrylics; 37ml for gouache; and 37ml for oils (plus white in 150ml tubes). In addition to the name of the paint, each tube contains such useful information as the colour in simple terms, its degree of transparency or opacity, its lightfast quality, its colour index number and its complementary colour.
Watercolors
I have been asked to produce a test report on a rather special range of paints produced by the Michael Wilcox School of Colour. Michael Wilcox is well known for his in-depth research into colour and for his brilliant publications on the subject.
I subjected each medium to a series of rigorous tests.
1: Starting with the watercolour I prepared a number of single colour washes and applied them in three strengths: pale, medium and dark.
2: I repeated the process, this time using the broken-wash technique and experimented with some dry brush work.
3: I then prepared several washes, some containing two colours, some containing three, and applied them, as before, in three tonal strengths.
4: Having prepared six single colour glazing washes, I applied them, wet on dry, one over the other.
5: Finally, I applied several of the paints using a wet-in-wet technique.
I was very favourably impressed with the results of all the tests. I found the paints responsive and full of vibrant colour, which they still retained when diluted. Those with a high transparency rating produced particularly clear, fresh results and, when applied in successive glazing washes, remained free from any tendency to muddiness.
Naturally, permanence can only be assessed over a considerable period of time, but it was clear to me that the paints were manufactured from finely ground pigments in top quality binders and I have no doubt their permanence will match their other admirable qualities.
The most exacting test of all is, of course, to use the paints to produce a finished painting and this I proceeded to do, using an old sketch of a Venetian canal scene for the purpose (above).
The colour notes suggested warm, rich colours, so my limited palette consisted of cadmium red light, raw sienna, burnt sienna and ultramarine. Having sketched in the main construction lines on a quarter Imperial sheet of Arches 300lb rough watercolour paper, I applied the paints in full, liquid washes of varying strengths. I found the paints responded to every demand I made upon them and were a joy to use.
Gouache
Gouache is an opaque form of watercolour and gouache colours are made paler by the addition of white instead of diluting them with water, as with the transparent medium. I chose four colours at random from the 12 and mixed in increasing proportions of white to produce ever paler versions of the original colours.
I then applied them to my watercolour paper in a series of limited washes and allowed them to dry. They produced a satisfactory smooth, even and vibrant coverage of the paper. I then prepared several mixtures of the two basic colours to produce secondaries.
Once again the results were excellent smooth, even and glowing. My next test was the preparation of several tertiary colours, blending three of the basic colours in varying proportions.
Experience and knowledge of colour theory will help in the choice of basic colours and the proportions in which they are blended, but the less experienced will find useful advice in the Colour Mixing Swatch Book. It is worth noting that any mixture in which two complementary colours predominate in roughly equal proportions will turn out dull and muddy.
I finally applied a number of pale colours and colour mixtures over areas of deeptoned underpainting to test the covering capacity of the paint. Once again, the result was entirely satisfactory, with complete coverage of the dark background.
I found the paints handled well and were pleasant to use. They are completely compatible with watercolour with which gouache is often used. They are clearly manufactured to a high standard, with finely ground pigments and top-quality binders.
Acrylics
These paints may be diluted with water and used in much the same fashion as watercolour, but, unlike watercolour paints, they become insoluble in water when dry. I employed similar tests to those I used with the watercolour paints, again on Arches watercolour paper, and found they responded well to produce excellent results.
All acrylics I have ever used have darkened a little upon drying, but with these paints the darkening was minimal and barely perceptible. Acrylics may, of course, also be used more in the manner of oils and applied straight from the tube. I applied undiluted colour from all 12 tubes to my canvas board. I then prepared several mixtures, some of two colours, some of three, and applied them to the canvas board.
I found the colours blended well together and the results were strong and intense. My next test was to produce some heavy impasto work, applying the paint firstly with a bristle brush and then with a painting knife. The impasto finish remained reasonably crisp. There are, incidentally, additives on the market, which facilitate the retention of the crisp, impasto finish.
Acrylics are a versatile medium and are often at their best when both watercolour and oil techniques are employed in the same painting. These acrylic paints are smooth and easy to use, and the colours are rich and intense. Once again it was clear that they are made from well ground pigments and top quality acrylic resins.
Oils
To save repetition, I will simply say that I employed the same tests as those used on when handled as oils. I found the oil paints smooth, with an excellent buttery consistency and good viscosity.
They handled splendidly, mixed readily and brushed out well to cover large areas. They also held a crisp impasto finish. It is clear they are made from the best materials and that much care has gone into their manufacture.
Despite the fact that the Michael Wilcox School of Colour paints are manufactured from top quality ingredients, with no corners cut to boost profitability and are made in relatively small quantities, they are very keenly priced at around half the cost of comparable Artists’ quality paints from the major manufacturers.
They will be of particular interest to artists concerned about the permanence of their art work and interested in the findings of Michael Wilcox’s scholarly and original research into the vitally important subject of colour.
