Choosing a paintbrush is highly personal. It all depends on what you wish to create with it. This series of exercises prepared by our ambassador Lysa Jordan will help you get familiar with your brushes and learn what kind of brush stroke you like most. Get your brushes out, here we go!
LINES WITH A PRECISION BRUSH
Take a small round brush. In this case, I am using the Winsor & Newton #6 Cotman round brush. Draw a few lines to get to know your brush. It’s very important to practice with a new brush to get to know it well and master it. Explore with your brush! Let’s do some testing. Personally, I like to do lines and dots. I vary the tones and have fun making lines with precision and then moving my hand back to create less precise lines. See if you enjoy working with this type of brush.
FLAT PAINTBRUSH
With the flat paintbrush, I have fun painting a few different kinds of strokes: lines using the entire surface of the brush, thinner lines with the side of the brush, and some curves. The goal here is not to create something beautiful, but rather to explore what we can do with our brushes.
LINES AND CURVES WITH A WASH PAINTBRUSH
With the wash paintbrush, I make thin lines and then press down on my brush to make the line thicker. This will give you a better idea of what is possible with this one. Explore other types of lines, circles too, using a lot and a little water.
LINES AND LEAVES WITH A ROUND BRUSH
With the round brush, I enjoy making a few lines using all the surfaces of the brush. I also create a few small leaves using the tip and the center of my brush. Now it’s time to get creative!
