Art gallery

Until 2020, the Works Progress Administration, a Great Depression–era government program that gave billions of dollars to artists during the 1930s, was largely the stuff of high-school U.S. history courses. But it didn’t take long for it to become the source of fascination within the art world once the pandemic struck the U.S. and Europe. In late March of last year, a mere two weeks after lockdown began in most places, curator Hans Ulrich Obrist called for a government relief program of the WPA’s scale. (So far, none has sprung up.) One month later, art historian Jody Patterson wrote in an ARTnews essay that the WPA’s “aim of radical inclusivity and accessibility—in which art benefits more people, rather than fewer—should not be the distant vision of a past generation.” Government funding for the arts—rarely, if ever, a sexy topic—hadn’t seemed this interesting in ages.

With all this renewed attention being … Read the rest

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Gouache, an opaque water-soluble paint with gum arabic or acrylic as its binder, is one of the best-kept secrets in painting. Want flat, opaque areas of color? You’ll need only one coat with gouache. Want strong tones? Gouache has a high pigment load, ensuring saturated color. Gouache is perfect for illustration and design work because it dries quite quickly and great for digital scanning because it is nonreflective. It’s excellent for plein air painting too, since it’s both portable and easy to clean up. Traditional gouache paints may be reactivated with water after they dry, but note that those made with acrylic binders cannot. All gouache paints work best on premium watercolor papers; because they are opaque, they work well on colored papers. Browse our roundup of the best … Read the rest

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A sandpaper pointer, usually a block of small sandpaper sheets mounted to a wooden handle, is a handy accessory for artists who use charcoal, pencils, and pastels. Pointers can be used to sharpen each of these drawing implements, offering the highest level of control to achieve a perfect point. They are indispensable for pencils with delicate leads that need a soft touch, and for creating an irregular point, such as for shading. They are also are useful for cleaning drawing tools like erasers, blending stumps, and tortillons, as well as de-burring cutting mats. We have rounded up some trusty, sturdy options below.

ARTNEWS RECOMMENDS
Creative Mark Sandpaper Block
The classic paddle shape of this block and its wooden handle make it easy to hold. Simply drag your pencil, charcoal, … Read the rest

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Create kaleidoscopic compositions with acrylic pouring paint. In recent years pouring paint has become quite popular, but the technique has actually been around since the 1930s, when Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros happened to discover the elaborate effects of pouring different shades of paint onto a wooden panel to produce what he termed “accidental painting.” Fluid dynamics are at work in the pouring of paint: When a pigment of greater density is poured atop a less-dense one, the two interact to mix and swirl—the more dense pigment tends to sink and the less dense one tends to rise. (The opposite pour, a less-dense paint over one of greater density, will not work.) Channel your inner Pollock and play around with pouring pigment over canvas. Investigate the possibilities by browsing … Read the rest

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Traditionally used in Japanese woodblock printing, a baren is a circular tool with a flat face used for rubbing paper to effectively transfer ink. Like many artists, you might have found that a wooden spoon can serve a similar purpose, but there’s no true substitute for a baren. The tool eases the burnishing process, allowing you to achieve more uniform and steady circular motions while covering more space in less time. Barens can also be used for linoleum printing, gel printing, and more, and they cause far less slippage than a brayer. Explore our favorite ones below, and say goodbye to the spoon. 

ARTNEWS RECOMMENDS
Speedball Block Printing Baren
Speedball’s baren has a thick, easy-grip wooden handle and a bottom that smoothly glides over paper while delivering proper, evenly … Read the rest