I think the best materials will depend greatly on your skill level and your financial situation. High quality art supplies are very expensive, and may not be necessary for a beginning student. That being said, you do get what you pay for in most cases. I use Old Holland oils because they are the only brand I have found that uses pure pigment in linseed oil with no modifiers. They cost a lot more, but the colors are brighter, the pigments go much further, and the finished painting will last a lot longer. I paint on linen as opposed to other canvas supports for its superior archival qualities and its richer, more interesting texture. Cotton canvas just looks cheap to me. I stretch and prime my own canvasses both because I haven’t found a manufacturer that offers a product of the quality I can produce on my own and because I enjoy it. Also, I tend to paint compositions that are not standard sizes. I size the linen with rabbit skin glue, and prime with a mixture of white lead in linseed oil and turpentine with the occasional addition of a little burnt umber. When I want a very smooth surface I will go over the primer coat with a 2 inch rubber brush such as can be found in most art supply stores. (A smooth canvas is very hard to sketch on.) If I am working on a less serious piece or a study I will occasionally prime the canvas with acrylic. For an exhaustive overview of art materials and archival painting techniques including canvas preparation and pigment selection I recommend The Artists Handbook by Ralph Mayer.

As for techniques to produce clean, sharp work, I suggest the following: Carefully plan the painting before you touch the canvas. Sketch the canvas in detail. Work carefully and patiently and expect to spend as much as two or three months on a complex painting. Always work from reference material. And, of course, practice… a lot. I would be happy to go into greater detail or answer any further questions.

Thanks, and good luck with your work.

I agree with your estimate on sketch b for New Year’s Eve.

I am learning to draw and paint and am seeking information on the best sources for the best art materials and the best techniques for pastel, water color, oil and acrylic for clean and sharp (e.g. your work, such as How Far We’ve Come, The Explorer, Young Builder) rendering of the human figure using a variety of backgrounds. Do you have any suggestions?

What kind of oil primer are you using as your ground for New Year’s Eve and what technique do you use to render it smooth? And you mentioned you are using canvas for this work (do you mean canvas as used as a generic term for fabric?) or as opposed to linen or board. Why did you choose this particular support for this particular work?

Thanking you in advance and any advice will be welcome.