Student vs Artist grade oil paint brushes?

I've never oil painted before and need to buy some art supplies. I'm a college student, so I'm on a budget...but is it worth it to buy artist grade paint brushes vs. student? What's the difference between them?





What are you using? Do you have any brands to recommend?





tia!Student vs Artist grade oil paint brushes?
Don't let anyone sway you from oils with the notion that acrylic painting is easier and dries way faster. They are different paints requiring completely different approaches. You simply cannot achieve certain results with any other medium than oil paint.





As for the brushes, always use the best tools you can afford. Painting is not cheap. Skimping on supplies will lead to skimping on crucial decisions during the creation process. You do not ever want to allow yourself to make choices based on economy of paint, for example. Your decisions should be based on the integrity of the work and nothing else. That means you want to use a color and as much as is required for an effect when appropriate. You do not want to choose a different color or use less than required simply because it is too expensive. These types of decisions result in poor quality work. Definitely not your best work. This is a bad habit to cultivate.





ASW Express and Jerry's Artarama frequently have good sales.





The lowest to go are the Creative Mark Pro Stroke brushes. They are a bargain and they are often 2 for the price of 1. You can also get a deal on sets.





When I started out I stopped using the cheap brushes the moment I tried a better brush. The differences were obvious. Eventually I found my favorites.





In addition to the craftsmanship a great brush is balanced and feels like an elegant extension of your hand. I do not like any synthetic bristle brush. Oil paint behaves differently when used with natural bristles. I prefer Robert Simmons Signets and The Italian Art Store's Israel Kolinsky Sables. I use the Langnickel Royal Sables a lot as well.





Creative Mark Pro Stroke


Red Sables


http://www.aswexpress.com/discount-art-s鈥?/a>


http://www.jerrysartarama.com/discount-a鈥?/a>


White Bristle


http://www.aswexpress.com/discount-art-s鈥?/a>


http://www.jerrysartarama.com/discount-a鈥?/a>





Robert Simmons Signet Bristle


http://www.aswexpress.com/discount-art-s鈥?/a>


http://www.jerrysartarama.com/discount-a鈥?/a>





Langnickel Royal Sable


http://www.jerrysartarama.com/discount-a鈥?/a>





Italian Art Store Kolinsky Sable


http://italianartstore.com/store/Kolinsk鈥?/a>Student vs Artist grade oil paint brushes?
I have used both the cheaper ';student'; grade brushes and paints. After I learned which brushes best fit my painting style I found I have no problem with the cheaper brushes for a lot of my work. However, the professional grade brushes are much better, last longer, the ferrules don't rust, the bristles don't fall out, and they are easier to clean.





To make student grade materials pay for you, do lots of painting. That way, when you can begin to afford some of the more expensive materials, from canvas to brushes to paints, you'll really have gotten your money out of the low quality materials. And then you will really appreciate the high quality brushes, etc. Your experience will tell you when it's time to change qualities, and that's when you'll really understand the difference in the materials.
bristle brushes, those made from hog bristle are harder and give less against the canvas. white bristled ';acrylic'; brushes have a nice mid-strength flex, good give without being floppy. when you go to the store rub the brushes youre considering between your fingers lightly to break the gum arabic (that acts like hair styling gell to keep their shape) and then rub your thumb over the bristles and see which one's stiffness or ';give'; you respond to most. the cost does not matter a whit! A rotten painter can make crap paintings with 300.00 Siberian sable brushes and a fine painter can make do with a chewed stick! pay as much as you have to and nothing more. your taste in brushes will change as your skill and understanding developes so wait till later to make committed investments. Check Michaels, and craft stores...often they will have coupons or sales that are better than traditional art supply stores for the same brands of brushes. I use mostly Win%26amp;Newt. and Princeton, don't care whether they're marketed as oil, arcylic or watercolor. I prefer hog bristle for composing, sketching and underpainting, sable, sabline (artificial) and acrylic white bristle for interim and late stage painting and glazing. I use almost exclusively ';flats'; and ';brights'; with only one or two rounds and no filberts.
Buy student grade. They might not last as long or be as carefully crafted, but for the price I think the student grade brushes are a great deal.





I'm an artist, and I almost always buy cheap brushes. I'll occasionally splurge on one or two nice brushes, but I'd rather not be overly concerned about keeping my brushes pristine when working. If you only spend a few dollars on brushes, then you're not upset when they get gunked up or break.





Additionally, you can always make adjustments to your brushes to fit your needs. Trimming, sanding, shaping, pulling out bristles--it's not hard to make cheap brushes do anything you want them to.





Rose


http://www.rosebriccetti.com


http://effartblog.blogspot.com
This is like asking a mechanic if it is important how good his tools are! You should select the best quality brushes you can for the money. This may mean you end up using a mixture of cheap, good, and exquisite quality brushes. Some very high quality brushes are sold for a reasonable price without being labeled ';student grade.';





What you need to look for are the durability of the bristles. Will they break off or fall out easily? This is something every artist detests seeing in a finished painting. . . stray bristles! All poorly made brushes are capable of shedding all over your work, so testing a number of brands might be the best solution, rather than buying a huge supply of one kind all at once.





I would consider DaVinci, Winsor %26amp; Newton, Isabey, and Grumbacher to be good brands, and Princeton, Winton, and Loew-Cornell to be of less quality. I stay away from multi-packs of assorted brushes, as usually they are not very useful or durable.





It is appropriate to use hog bristle, sable, synthetic, Taklon, and mixed-bristle brushes when doing oils. However, it is wise to choose brushes made just for oils, as they are constructed to withstand solvents but not standing in water, whereas acrylic brushes are able to be in water longer. A variety of rounds, flats, brights, and filberts in varying sizes is recommended. I have a friend who does professional and official portraits and uses mostly filberts made by Qualita: http://www.aswexpress.com/discount-art-s鈥?/a>





And don't let anyone discourage you from using oils. But I will encourage you to keep studying how they are best mixed, applied and preserved. Learn color-mixing . . . that seems to be the number one issue that separates the good from the best.
What do you need brushes for? A real artist can work with a stick. I gave up brushes years ago; I use a cloth wrapped around my finger and I get the best results ever.


Seriously, buy cheap and show absolutely no respect for your equipment. Remember, it is the work that people will see, not the things you used to make it.
Oh! I recommend not waisting your money on oils (if you don't have to) and going for acrylics! its much cheaper, it dries WAY faster, and looks practically the same :)


And as for brushes... its hard to describe. Just look, compare, and choose the one that feels the best? (I know, that's weird, but painting... its above any words)
You can use regular paint brushes, students taking my art teachers Painting 1 class oil painted using normal paint brushes. I dont think it there is a big difference between them.