Visual artists, from beginning students through professionals know certain instruments (or tools) make or break a masterpiece. Fine artists who paint, know how a specific brush with a specific type of bristle, and even the shape of a brush’s tip, as well as how the bristles are fastened beneath the furuncle, affects their process of creating, as well as the final outcome. This article focuses on just the essential tools, which I have found are “elemental” to my technique of Watercolor Batik®.
At the end of this article, I will introduce you to one of my frugal art tools created from what otherwise are “disposable” objects. I hope this spurs you on to join me in thinking outside-of-the box one ways to use similar others throw-away items, to enhance your art in at least one of many, many ways.
Several simple household items (which might otherwise be discarded), for a frugal and innovative artist, can become one’s favorite tool or device. In this chapter I outline the items which I have found are useful for a Watercolor Batik.
WATERCOLOR SUPPLIES
Paints
I use professional artist quality paints that’s demonstrated in Chapter 8 of where )I delineate which colors I use from each line. You may have your own preferences for a line of watercolor, so please feel free to use what you already have, and add to your collection as needed.
With all of these brands of watercolors, I can titrate the ratio of water to paint and achieve very light washes (translucent if the paint is a translucent watercolor) as well as very dark washes. All three paint brands come from fine artist pigments, are archival, lightfast, and transparent (unless opacity, such as Titanium White, is an inherent part of their color). Due to their purity, I can remix colors fairly accurately when needed. If these colors dry out on my palette or mixing container, they rehydrate well with a drop of water and the Dr Ph Martin line occasionally will need a drop or two of isopropyl alcohol;
Brushes
The majority of my brushes are 100% nylon or a synthetic faux sable. I use a #5 sable round brush and various other sizes depending on my painting. They include a “0”, #2, #4, #6, #10 and #14 rounds for paintings up to 25 x 37 in. (the largest sheet of Ginwashi rice paper I have found, although recently I have heard it can be bought in a roll 3 x 30 feet. I also frequently use a 1-inch flat, 2-inch filbert, and a 3-inch flat for paintings between 16 x 20 in. and 24/25 x 37 in. (I have found that the paper size varies slightly from sheet to sheet). I am careful to wash my brushes out after using them and dry them flat.
Additional Supplies
I use sketching paper with an H or 2H graphite pencil to capture my inspiration, and I use a kneaded eraser while refining my sketch. Refer to Chapter 7 where I explain more about my preferred “Touch-Up” tools. I keep two water containers close by. I like to rinse my brushes first in one container of clear water, and then rinse them in the second to help remove any remaining color from the bristles.
Scrap paper is helpful for testing color mixes. It’s also helpful to have extra containers/dishes for mixing colors for large washes. That way, I do not need to keep remixing certain colors in the middle of a wash. I use cleaned containers such as those left over from purchased yogurt, cottage cheese, etc.
Paper towels are needed to clean and dry brushes. Do not use paper towels or tissue to blot the painting unless desperately needed, as even gentle blotting can tear the rice paper. Also, use an old kitchen towel for drying clean brushes.
PAPER
Traditionally, fabric has been the support for dye-based batiks, but I will be teaching you in this book how to use the wax resist technique of batik with watercolor on fine rice paper. Rice paper and other fine papers from nature come in many thicknesses, colors, and styles. Some even have silver or gold threads running through them! I like to work with two particular types of paper and have detailed them below.
BRUSHES FOR THE WAX
Designate certain brushes for waxing. I use older watercolor brushes that have lost their tip or inexpensive synthetic brushes. A “O” round is what I use for finer work, 1/2-inch flat for medium-sized arec}s , and a 3-inch synthetic house painting brush for the largest areas (for example, when I am covering the entire painting with wax in the last few steps of batiking). I know others who prefer natural hair bristles. Start by using one or two older watercolor brushes and experiment with how they handle the wax. If you like how they work for your watercolor paintings, they will probably be just fine for waxing. Aset of the three brushes detailed above will have a life of about 40 to 50 half-sheet paintings, and then they will need to be replaced because of fraying of the bristles.
TJANTING
I use the small tjanting whenever I need line work in a batik, such as when signing my name and saving linear aspects of a painting. Although batik artist friends also use the larger tjanting, I find it lets out too much wax for my style of batiking on rice paper. I also use the small tjanting when I need to apply wax in a tight comer or narrow space.
Part of the trick to using any tjanting is to dip the reservoir into the hot wax and then, as it is brought out of the wax, tum it on its side (this allows it to hold the hot wax but not let the wax pour out through the spout). Once it is out of the crock pot, I pull the tip along a short segment of a paper bag so if wax has pooled on its tip, this is wiped off before I put the instrument over my painting. If this is not done, occasionally a drop of wax will fall as I bring the tjanting to the area where I want to apply wax or a large drop of wax will settle into the first spot where I touch the tjanting down on my rice paper, resulting in a much larger area of wax application than intended.
Practice using the tjanting before using it on a batik. After I use the tjanting and set it aside when applying watercolor to my painting, I find the next time I use it I need to hold it in the hot wax against the interior side of the crackpot for about 20 seconds so the hardened white paraffin wax (remaining in the reservoir after its last use} can melt, and then new hot wax can be captured in the reservoir. When the dried wax melts, sometimes a little bubble of air will come up from the reservoir and the previously white wax becomes clear.
Called an Encaustic Flow Pen, although it was originally designed for traditional batik artists. Enkausticos Wax Art Supplies suggests that it be plugged into a temperature regulator and that this, in tum, is then plugged into the wall outlet. An artist friend who uses this instrument finds that it quickly reaches very high temperatures even with the regulator. I have only learned of this electric flow pen. I have not yet tried this tool, but will be ordering one soon to evaluate for appropriateness for this method. Because of my friend’s concerns, I plan to plug it into my outlet just prior to my using the tool and utilize it in as many areas as possible. Then not only will I turn the switch to off” but I will also unplug the device from my outlet.
BOARD
Almost any board larger than your paper will work. I happen to use either a Masonite art board which is 24 x 24 in., or a plastic art board for my smaller paintings (for my largest paintings I use a piece of Masonite board which is about 30 x 36 in.). Some of my students have used foam core boards, and I even had one student use cardboard. I do not like the ridges the corrugated cardboard creates in the painting. Anything with a smooth, flat surface works.
FREEZER PAPER
Freezer paper, plastic side up, is used as a barrier between my painting and the board. Most boards are porous to some degree and if no barrier is placed between the painting and the board, some of the watercolor and wax will penetrate the board. This is not a problem the first time around but if another painting is painted directly on the same board, I am concerned some of the watercolor from the first painting might make its way onto the new painting. Also, if one uses cardboard, the wax will penetrate the first few layers of the paper board and this makes removal of the painting from the cardboard challenging.
If I am using most of the board for my painting, I will wrap the paper around the edge of the board. If I am using a smaller portion of the board, I do not wrap the freezer paper around the outer edges of the board but cut the freezer paper so it is 2 in. wider in height and width than the rice paper painting and directly tape the freezer paper to the front of the board. The rice paper is then taped to the freezer paper.
TAPE
Tape the freezer paper onto the board with anything which can be easily removed. I use either blue Painters or masking tape.
You could also use white painter’s tape for this. Choose a tape that is easy to remove from the very fine paper once the painting is completed. The only time I use masking tape is when I am creating a painting wider than the width of the freezer paper and the second layer of freezer paper overlaps the first piece (beneath where my painting will be). I prefer the muted, pale-yellow ochre color of the masking tape to tape of another color transparent behind my new creation.
Any tape with a prominent color or pattern of colors interferes with my visual color mixing during the times I need to look directly over this area when I am painting the rice paper over this area. It interferes with my ability to visualize the correct hue and value of the paint I am placing in that area.
TARP & PAPER BAG
I always cover the table I am using with a tarp and the area where I am waxing with paper grocery bags. I do not have enough room for the crockpot at my painting table, but if you wish to have the crock pot where you are painting with your watercolors, simply set a paper bag near the crock pot.
I leave the pot of wax covered except when I am actively waxing. When I take the lid off, there is a little steam and hot wax condensation on the lid. I place the lid on one of the paper bag’s handle down on the bag, and by the time my painting is finished, the bag is very saturated with wax running off of the lower rim of the upside-down lid. Then I simply throw the paper bag away.
Remember, the hot wax will melt a plastic tarp or become imbedded in a cloth one! Thus, consider protecting your countertop with a paper product such as newsprint, or my go-to recycling standard — paper grocery bags. These bags offer a double thickness of a high-quality strong paper product, which guarantees protection of my counter. Occasionally, as in the video, I use a sheet of craft paper (when viewing the video created solely to premiere in this issue of ArtDiction, Watercolor Batik® 101, Lesson 3 “The Technique,” I mention using paper in this situation because of its importance).
I like the thickness and disposability of the paper bags, especially in the direct vicinity of the crockpot and waxing brushes. Instead of paper bags, you could use another tarp and place a paper bag or two over it, near the crockpot, for the lid and brushes to be placed on. After using the brushes to wax an area of my painting, I set them on a bag because occasionally a little wax drips off of them. Once again, I throw this bag out when my painting is complete. The remaining bags I use over again.
WAX
Many types of wax are available. Paraffin, a clear wax, can easily be purchased at your local grocery store (you can find it in the canning section) and it works well for all batiking methods. It cracks nicely when the fabric or paper is crinkled. The Occupational Safety Health Administration (OSHA) has declared it non-toxic. I notice after multiple heatings in the crockpot, the paraffin develops a slight yellow hue. This mild color change does not show when the paraffin is placed on the rice paper nor is any color from it left on the batik after the wax is ironed off.
Beeswax has a yellow hue to it and is a soft wax. It is softer than paraffin and does not crack easily when crinkled. If you have a painting where you want a minimal amount of cracks in the wax (in a little bit I will discuss why we want cracks in the wax), consider using beeswax. Despite great efforts at removing all the wax from my paintings once they are completed, there is a microscopic amount remaining. Thus, when beeswax is used, a pale-yellow hue may be noticed over the entire painting. One can purchase clear refined beeswax which has its natural yellow hue removed and has the same qualities of natural beeswax.
Sticky wax (micro-crystaline) cracks very little. “Batik wax” is a pre-made, 85/15% mixture of paraffin and sticky wax. By mixing waxes, you can control the amount of cracking.
Soy wax is water-soluble and fume-free. I prefer paraffin at this time. I like the amount of cracking it gives me in the final stages of batiking and it is inexpensive. Because it is clear, sometimes I have a hard time seeing where I place it, but I can feel its smooth texture to tell where it is.
CROCK POT
I use an 8-in. diameter crock pot (smaller ones are available too) to heat my wax. You can also use an electric frying pan, electric wok, or Bunsen burner. Whichever device you use, make sure it has a lid, can maintain a constant wax temperature of about 290°F, and may remain on for as many hours as you anticipate batiking in a day.
My crock pot has three settings: Low, High, and Off. The low heat will melt the wax, but by the time I move my brush from the pot to my painting, the wax has dried. I use the “High” setting where the wax reaches a temperature of 290°F (or 143° Celsius). If, having already dipped my brush into the wax, I pause too long before applying it, it too will harden before application. In that situation, I simply dip the tip of my brush back into the pot and roll the brush up against the inside of the pot above the liquid wax line. This causes the wax to melt off the bristles. I then dip the tip back into the hot wax and promptly carry the wax to where I want it.
If you use a crock pot as I do, consider placing it on a chopping block, which sits on top of your table or countertop covered with a tarp or paper bags. This way the bags/tarp/tabletop will not overheat. I am cognizant of this because I have my crock pot on up to 12 hours a day. I unplug it for a period of time at least every four hours and then plug it back in 15 to 30 minutes later to prevent overheating of the pot.
Make sure your room is well ventilated and the wax is not over-heated if you are using paraffin, as it is flammable.
HAIR DRYER
I use a hair dryer often (although I rarely use it, if ever, for my traditional watercolor paintings) to help dry.
SUPPORT BOARD
Almost any board larger than your paper will work. I happen to use either a masonite art board that is 24 x 24 in. or a plastic art board for my smaller paintings. For my largest paintings, I use a piece of masonite board that is about 30 x 36 in. Some of my students have used foam core boards, and I even had one student use cardboard. Personally, I do not like the ridges the corrugated cardboard creates in the painting. Anything with a smooth, flat surface works.
FREEZER PAPER
Freezer paper, plastic side up, is used as a barrier between my painting and the board. Most boards are porous to some degree and if no barrier is placed between the painting and the board, some of the watercolor and wax will penetrate the board. This is not a problem the first time around, but if another painting is painted directly on the same board, I am concerned some of the watercolor from the first painting might make its way onto the new painting. Also, if one uses cardboard, the wax will penetrate the first few layers of the paper board, and this makes removal of the painting from the cardboard challenging.
If I am using most of the board for my painting, I will wrap the freezer paper around the edge of the board. If I am using a smaller portion of the board, I do not wrap the freezer paper around the outer edges of the board b t cut the freezer paper so it is two in. wider in height and width than the rice paper painting and directly tape the freezer paper to the front of the board. The rice paper is then taped to the freezer paper.
Most major online and retail art suppliers carry these papers. They come from the Awagami Factory in Japan. Ginwashi gets its name from the hemp fibers which resemble “Gin” or “silver.” The papers from the Awagami Factory are detailed in the table below.
OLD TOWEL AND IRONING BOARD
I place an old towel over my ironing surface in case any wax leaches beyond the papers (detailed below) so it does not contaminate my board or hard surface. I either use my household ironing board or my kitchen island countertop.
NEWSPRINT
Unprinted newsprint, such as from a pad bought at an art supply store, or craft paper, is needed to assist in removing the wax from your painting once your painting is completed. Newspapers may also be used but not in place of the craft paper or plain newsprint.
I use about three days’ worth of old newspaper and about 8 to 16 feet of craft paper the width of my rice paper painting (if you are using 1/4 sheet of rice paper, which is 12 x 18 in. in size, plan on using eight feet of 24-inch width paper). Alternatively, I sometimes use plain newsprint purchased from an art supply store. In Chapter 7, I discuss how to lay your painting between the various papers for optimal wax removal and to maintain a perfect painting.
IRON
An iron is needed upon completion of the painting to iron off the wax from the rice paper. I use a household iron on the “cotton” setting. When I apply heat from the iron to the sandwich of papers (described above) with my painting in the middle, I sweep the iron over the papers, constantly moving the iron and covering the entire surface area where the painting is located. Initially, I used a lower “acetate-nylon” setting. However, one day I mistakenly used the hotter “cotton” setting and discovered the wax pulled off more readily. I now use this hotter setting but make sure I use a constant, sweeping motion so I do not overheat or burn any of the materials.
Frugal Art Tools
Plastic Lids — Use these as paint/water catch trays. If you have a brush rack to support your art brushes while being used, place this beneath the head of each brush to keep your workspace clean.
Toe Separators — Place two glue dots on the bottom edge of a clean sponge toe separator. Apply the sponge to the plastic rimmed lid, and voila! You have a brush support with a drip tray attached!
The Artist Angle — This tool teaches perspective and captures perspective/relationships of items. It was just awarded a U.S. Patent in November 2020 for being the first ever Perspective teaching instrument and capturing tool. Go to ArtistAngle.com to learn more and order for yourself and your art class!
