Winsor & Newton : Artist Oil Paint

<p>Winsor & Newton Artist Oil Color is known for its purity, quality and reliability, reflected in its world-wide reputation amongst professional artists. There are 100+ rich and bright colors in the range.</p>

<p>Every Winsor & Newton Artist Oil Color is individually formulated to enhance each pigment's natural characteristics. By exercising maximum quality control throughout all stages of manufacture, selecting the most suitable drying oils and method of pigment dispersion, the unique individual properties of each color are preserved. </p>

<p><strong>Covering Power</strong><br />Covering Power not only comes from pigment strength, but also from the greater thickness of color, which results from the stiff consistency associated with Winsor & Newton's Artists' Oil Color. Covering power is particularly linked to the most opaque colors like Titanium White and the Cadmiums.</p>

<p><strong>Pigment Purity</strong><br />Like all raw materials, pigments are available in various grades. We use only the purest of pigments ensuring the cleanest, brightest colors, which in turn produce the best color mixtures.</p>

<p>Winsor & Newton's quality standards include the use of single pigments wherever possible to create individual colors. Combined with strength of color, single pigments provide a wide color range in themselves and offer cleaner, brighter mixtures with an infinite range of hues. This is particularly important for greens, violets and oranges. Single pigment 'secondaries' considerably broaden the artists' available spectrum. There are 80 single pigment colors in the range.</p>

<p><strong>Color Series</strong><br />As the cost of the pigments used varies, so does the price charged for the color. Therefore Winsor & Newton have grouped colors together in 'series'. The higher the series number, the higher the price. You can find the series number both on the color chart and on the tube.</p>

<p><strong>Transparency & Opacity</strong><br />Pigments vary in their transparency by nature. On the Winsor & Newton oil paint Color chart, the transparent colors are marked with the letter 'T', and the semi-transparent colors with 'ST'. The relatively semi-opaque colors are marked with 'SO' and the opaque colors are marked with 'O'. Remember that the level of transparency of a color is relative to other colors. Transparent colors are used for glazing and tinting, providing optical color mixtures and depth of color to the painting surface. Opaque colors cover well, give flat areas of color and obscure the under-layers of the painting. Winsor & Newton oil paint is formulated to reflect the characteristics of each of the various pigments, ensuring that synthetic organics such as Phthalocyanines and Quinacridones (ie. “Winsor“ or “Permanent colors“) deliver maximum transparency, whilst Cadmiums and Earth colors offer excellent opacity.</p>

<p><strong>Viscosity/consistency</strong><br />The buttery consistency of Winsor & Newton artist oil paint, together with the smell of linseed oil, are the two characteristics most admired by oil painters. The stiff consistency of Winsor & Newton colors can retain brush or palette knife marks or it can be thinned to the very finest of glazes. While Artist Oil Color is formulated to provide as even a reflective surface as possible, it's important to note that the reflective quality of the oil film is affected by a wide variety of factors. Because each pigment requires differing volumes of oil in formulation, the surface sheen may differ from color to color. The addition of solvent and the use of additive mediums will alter surface sheen as well as the ground used. </p>

<p><strong>Permanence</strong> <br />Since 1832 Winsor & Newton have been developing permanent alternatives for the less durable traditional colors, without compromising the handling properties of their oils. As a result, the permanence of the color range as a whole has been greatly improved. All colors are classed as 'permanent for artists' use' (AA or A ratings from Winsor & Newton) which results in the longevity of paintings. Although Alizarin Crimson is only given a “B“ rating (moderately durable), it has been part of Artists' Oil Color for over 130 years and is still considered a key color by many contemporary artists. </p>

<p><strong>Drying Times</strong> <br />The long drying time of Winsor & Newton Artist Oil Color is a key feature of oil painting. The color remains soft and wet for a few days and therefore allows alterations to be made from day to day. All colors will become touch dry in thin films in 2-14 days. The different reaction of each pigment when mixed with oil results in the different drying rates. Each color is individually formulated to optimize its drying rate, which helps artists to avoid the problems of slow drying underlayers.</p>