DVD Review: Lucian Freud Portraits

DVD: Lucian Freud - Portraits [DVD] (released 18 April 2005)

Summary: A film portrait of Lucian Freud produced by people he knows well and based on interviews with people who have sat for portraits by Freud. Most of the sitters are also relatives or friends of Freud.  Images of the portraits discussed and other portraits are interspersed with film of the interviewees. I personally found it fascinating and recommend this DVD.

Technical Details: made by film-maker Jake Auerbach (son of Freud's long time friend Frank Auerbach and best known for his documentary films about artists) and  Freud's biographer William Feaver.  Feaver is a painter, critic, writer, and curator. He has curated the following exhibitions: Lucian Freud (2002 Tate and tour), Freud (2005 Museo Correr, Venice), and Freud & Auerbach (2006 V&A). He is the author of the exhibition catalogue, Lucian Freud (Tate, 2002).

Who should buy this?  fans of Lucian Freud portrait artists aspiring portrait artists

Who should not buy this? artists not interested in portraiture people wanting to see/hear Freud himself

Highlights: the range of sitters/interviewees who include: his daughters, Bella Freud and Esther Freud, and granddaughters the late Duke and the now Dowager Duchess of Devonshire  fellow painter David Hockney - a particular highlight for me! friends - Louise Lidell and Andrew Parker-Bowles ex-lovers professional models: the wife of performance artist and model Leigh Bowery and "Big Sue" - Sue Tilley (the Benefits Supervisor) the range of different people's perspectives - all of whom seem to agree he was a man with a lot of stories who could be great fun. Which seems surprising given that all photos seem to be of somebody who is apparently quite sombre and serious. They all provide insight into the process of the sitting - and an appreciation that the "getting to know the sitter" involved dinners and conversations outside his studio the level of apparent intimacy ie these are people who know the man well and hence talk with the confidence that their interviewer understands what they are saying

Think Again? I think most people will find it leaves them thinking about what Freud's grandfather - Sigmund Freud - would have made of Lucian Freud painting his daughters and granddaughters in the nude, particularly given the fact that he had been a very distant parent! Region 2 DVD - meaning it's only playable in the UK, Europe, Japan, South Africa and Middle East

Producer:  Jake Auerbach Films Limited

Suppliers:   available from Amazon UK and a variety of other online distributors as a Region 2 DVD  has been seen in the shop at the National Portrait Gallery

Link:  Lucian Freud - Resources for Art Lovers

Product Review: KUM Automatic Long Point Pencil Sharpener

Product:  KUM Automatic Long Point Pencil Sharpener

Summary:  An excellent manual pencil sharpener for those who like their pencil leads to have a long point.  Made by a manufacturer with lot of experience in the manufacture of manual pencil sharpeners.  Recommended for occasional use.

Technical Details: Two stage pencil sharpener the first stage involves sharpening the wood in the left hand hole - this shapes the wood and produces a blunt point and an automatic brake prevents over-sharpening The second stage involves sharpening in the right hand hole - this produces a fine and very sharp point The best method for getting it to sharpen effectively is to hold the sharpener and the pencil horizontally

Who should buy this? Pencil artists working away from home and in need of a small instrument to produce a sharp pencil point.  As it's manual, there are better pencil sharpeners to use at home eg electric sharpener.

Who should not buy this?  people who find manual sharpening tiresome people wanting a heavy duty pencil sharpener (buy electric instead)

Highlights: efficient process despite the two stages as it avoids repetitive sharpening to try and achieve a long sharp point includes an auto-stop which prevents over-sharpening in the first stage includes two spare blades Top flips back easily to reveal pencil shavings

Think Again? the container is not big and the design means it fills with wood shavings very quickly - which in turn compromises the sharpening.  If sharpening more than one or two pencils you'll also need a bag or another container for the shavings.  I'd recommend emptying after a couple of pencils. watch out for very different prices quoted by different suppliers (ranging between $27.06 and £3.99 inc VAT).  If it looks too expensive try shopping online to find cheaper prices. I've read some reviews of this sharpener which suggested that the second stage starts to break the lead after a while.  However since some of those reviews were also pitching other products I'd take this feedback with a pinch of salt.  I haven't encountered any problems so far - however it only gets occasional use (away from home) as I usually use my electric sharpener for heavy duty sharpening.

Manufacturer / Distributor:  KUM GmbH & Co KG Kunstoff- & Metallwarenfabrik - a leading supplier of school and office supplies Essenbacher Str. 2, 91054 Erlangen, Germany Email: kum@kum.net Web: www.kum.net

Suppliers:  purchased from independent art shops Online Retailers include: Artifolk

Link:  More reviews of pencil sharpeners including recommended pencil sharpeners

• Product Review - Round Solid Brass Double-Hole Pencil Sharpener 
• Product review: Jakar Electric Pencil Sharpener

Places to buy Pochade Boxes in the UK

In my new guise of "about to start learning to paint in oils" (see Learning how to paint with oils in Provence),  this is a quick reminder for me of the places in the UK which sell Pochade Boxes online. 

Julian Large Paint Box

There's nowhere near as many places as there are in the USA. However these ones looked like they'd be worth investigating.

The PochadeShop UK

• Julian (UK) -  Julian Paint Boxes and the Julian Pochade Thumb Box (see video below).  These are also available on Amazon. 
• Antony Bridge's The Pochadeshop UK - Pochade Boxes
• Artefacts for Artists by Abby aka Abbeys easels (run Angela and Rowley Abbey) - Pochade Boxes - they're at these shows this summer

These all vary in size and design but all work principally to the same principal of providing a compact way of providing a way to paint plein air at the time as transporting paints, brushes and other relevant material.

You can see a video of the very small Julian Pochade Box below

Note also that Julian also sell in Julian - Accessories

• a carrying case with adjustable dividers
• the hard to find painting umbrella

Prismacolor announces new Scholar colored pencils

Prismacolor have just sent me an email announcing they have introduced a new line of art media for aspiring artists with the brand name Scholar(TM)

Three points which any aspiring artist needs to bear in mind

1. It's good to have more economical supplies available for children and those who aspire to be artists.  That's the way a lot of artists start - with lots of drawing in colour when they are younger.
2. Serious artists will appreciate that serious art requires professional quality supplies and they need to move beyond a student range.
3. Student ranges and professional ranges also don't work in quite the same way as their composition differs (ie there's a reason for the price difference!).  This often means needing to relearn how you use your pencil as you graduate from student level to professional level pencils.  Many people are amazed at the difference

new Scholar(TM) products

The new Scholar(TM) range by Prismacolor comprises

• Scholar Colored Pencils: The Scholar Colored Pencils contain harder cores designed for the developing art student and crafters, but they are still soft enough to learn blending.  The range also includes new erasable coloured pencils
• Scholar Art Markers: Scholar Art Markers are easy to use, water-based ink markers ideal for idea development, rendering and mixed media. Available in both a brush and bullet tip.
• Scholar Graphite Pencils: The Scholar Graphite Pencils feature a specified range of hardness for shading and detail line drawing for the aspiring artist.

New Scholar accessories include

• a new pencil sharpener designed for the Scholar pencils (That had me wondering how it varies from most standard pencils and whether the dreaded Prismacolor breakage problem has been addressed!) and 
• a new eraser - which is black and left me wondering whether it would mark the paper.

Now - obviously - I haven't seen of these products.  Comments are based on known issues with existing pencils.

My final point - I'm left wondering how much this new range might cannibalise existing use of Prismacolor pencils which has been declining of late as more people become aware of other quality options.

Product Review: Daylight Professional Artists Lamp

Daylight Company: Professional Artist Lamp

Jana Bouc (Jana's Journal) has done an independent product review on her blog of the new Daylight Professional Artists Lamp made by The Daylight Company in the UK.

I've used The Daylight Company's daylight bulbs for years (even to the point of favouring art stores which stock them!).  This particular lamp is one I had already highlighted on my Art Equipment - Resources for Artists website - purely on the basis of my experience of their product quality over the years.

I was really interested to see what an American artist made of the lamp.  The important point is that Jana is a person who is most concerned about having good light

I’d bought and returned many other “full spectrum” or “daylight bulb” lamps in the past that were total failures because the light was too weak, too blue, or both.

It's very evident that Jana is very impressed!

Hence I've created a summary review below based on:

• the technical product specification and 
• the review done by Jana Bouc
• this is being updated as additional comments are received

Do check out:

• Jana's blog post for the full text of her full review Reviews:  Daylight Easel Lamp and...  
• plus Jana's article about lighting and color temperature.  
• Plus see also Jana featured on The Daylight Company website.

Product:  Daylight Artists Professional Lamp

Summary:  "The difference is amazing" - recommended by Jana Bouc

Technical Details (as per website's technical specifications) 360° head joint to direct the light exactly where you need it Bright 18w Daylight™ tube (100w equiv.) reduces eye strain and glare  Flexible arm and multi-position joint allow easy positioning Supplied with two clamps Easel clamp: Attaches to all floorstanding metal & wooden easels up to 5cm/2" thick Table clamp: Attaches to all tables and work benches up to 5.5cm/2.25" thick Height: 50cm (19½ inches) Weight: 2.4kg (5½ lbs) Arm length: 70cm (27½ inches)

Who should buy this?  artists producing studio paintings/drawings artists working at a studio easel artists working with a table easel

Who should not buy this?   plein air artists who do not work in the studio

Highlights: light quality is amazing according to Jana and helped her create better colours in her paintings fully adjustable - works well can be used for painting and for photographing paintings

Think Again? availability of replacement light bulbs via some suppliers (see comment received)

Manufacturer / Distributor:  The Daylight Company Ltd, 89-91 Scrubs Lane, London, NW10 6QU. Phone:  020 8964 1200  |  Fax  020 8964 1300  | email  info.uk@daylightcompany.com The Daylight Company was created in the early 90s and is now the market-leading brand of speciality lighting technology for the hobby industry across Europe.  It aims to become the No.1 brand for Craft Lighting.

Suppliers:  Full price it retails at £109.99 / $159.99 (May 2011 prices) however it's possible to buy it for less. available from various good art supply stores in the UK also available on  Amazon (USA) Daylight Company Professional Artists Lamp with 2 clamps and Amazon (UK) Professional Artists Lamp

For those who love the technical aspects you can also refer to their FAQS section (click the links to go to the FAQ):

All you always wanted to know about lux, lumens, spectrum, CRI, SAD...

• Why is Daylight so good for you!

• How Compact Fluorescent Bulbs & Tubes work?

• What is the difference between energy saving and tungsten bulbs?

• What is the Colour Rendering Index? (CRI)

• What is the Light Colour Temperature(°K)?

• What is the difference between Lumens & Lux?

• What is the difference between Diopter and magnification?

• Do fluorescent bulbs & tubes contain mercury?

North Light Shop - Digital Download Deficiencies

Going round in circles - trying to download to no avail

This is all about how the North Light Shop makes it difficult for international customers trying to download a digital copy of The Pastel Journal

I've become a big fan of digital downloads of books and magazines - but while iTunes and Amazon work fine for me (and sync between my Mac and iPad beautifully)  it is possible to encounter difficulties when trying to buy/download from suppliers who are less well attuned to digital downloads.

Art Magazines from North Light Shop

I used to subscribe to various American Art Magazines but gradually got fed up by the time they took to arrive and the cost relative to the content - given the amount of content available for free online which was of comparable quality.

The other major problem was the massive postage cost for international customers which made a journal which is available for a reasonable cost in the USA a very expensive proposition when buying as an overseas customer.

It's a challenge that a lot of publishers of journals and magazines face.  It's also a challenge which must be losing them custom and customers.

One of the delights of the Internet is that it is now possible to order individual copies of magazines as digital downloads.   That means I can get a copy as soon as the magazine is published.  It's all very fast - see/buy/download/receive.  The admin process is extremely speedy on other sites.  The only time I have to wait is the time to receive the download.

This is why some of the publishers of art magazines now make digital downloads available from their website stores.

Which is fine - so long as they work!

This is the story of trying to buy the April 2011 copy of the Pastel Journal which has the Pastel 100 winners in it.

It was always a copy I looked forward to getting and I'm very happy to try and download a digital copy for $7.99 (although I would expect the publishers to realise at some point that they will achieve a lot more sales when they start relating the digital file to cost ie there are no paper or printing costs involved with a digital file)

This is the process I followed - which ended up in this blog post.

• Read Pastel Journal Blog - see article about the Pastel Journal 100 edition and click the link to the 12th annual Pastel 100 competition
• Arrive at North Light Store 
• Bonus:  I note the following This item does not have shipping or handling fees, but does count toward your order total to receive free shipping on other products.
• Realise I need to set up an account and do so.  Get rather irritated by an antiquated American ecommerce system which assumes all international addresses work in exactly the same way as American ones.  It's something I've seen a lot of in the past but much less so nowadays hence the irritation at having to make "England" a province.  It's a country!
• Click through the North Light website menu to get to the Pastel Journal and choose the digital download option for the Pastel Journal 100 issue (April 2011)
• Next I click the link and.......

• Billing information has been automatically inserted
• Just the payment information to complete (what a pity they don't offer Paypal which is used by soooooooo many people these days for international payments)
• see the shipping information but do not complete this as they don't need it, the digital download is coming to my computer.  It's not a CD coming to my B&M address
• HOWEVER I do note that there is no option for "digital download" in the shipping information!  Which seems very odd to say the least
• Odd that is until I press "continue"
• The next thing I get is a screen demanding that I complete a shipping address.  This states the following

Invalid First Name For Shipping Address
Invalid Last Name For Shipping Address
Invalid Shipping Address 1
Invalid City For Shipping Address
Invalid Postal Code for Shipping Address
Invalid Ship Country

• So now I wonder what to do - which is never a situation I like to be in when in the middle of a transaction on a secure website
• I try choosing default and that loads my home address and announces that it's going to send me my digital download as "international printed matter"
• I try the same process twice more with identical result.  Nope I didn't do anything wrong.  The system running on the North Light Store does not appear to be one which can cope with digital downloads of files!  Either that or somebody forgot to ask the webmaster to include instructions specifically for digital download customers.
• This is the point at which I begin to "lose it" and......
• Start this blog post instead.  I give up!

So - a question for you

Has anybody SUCCESSFULLY downloaded a digital file to an international address from the North Light Store?

• If so, what did you do?  Did it arrive as a digital download?
• If not, why not?  Plus what did you next?

Faber Castell Coloured Pencils - Ann Swan Selection

Ann Swan selection of Faber Castell Coloured Pencils

I got a pleasant surprise earlier this month when attending the Private View of the Annual Exhibition of the Society of Botanical Artists (Review: Society of Botanical Artists Exhibition 2011).  In the "shop" area of the exhibition were all the usual piles of books about creating botanical art - and next to them was a stack of tins which indicated they were a brand new set of coloured pencils by Faber Castell.

Faber Castell have teamed up with Ann Swan to create a set of 24 pencils specifically selected to go with her book about creating botanical art with coloured pencils (see Book review: Botanical Painting with Coloured Pencils).  Each of the tins has a special sticker on it - as per the illustration.

The colours chosen by Ann for this starter set of pencils are:  

1. FC101 White
2. FC103 Ivory
3. FC102 Cream
4. FC184 Dark Naples Ochre
5. FC118 Scarlet Red
6. FC142 Madder
7. FC133 Magenta
8. FC193 Burnt Carmine
9. FC194 Red violet
10. FC123 Fuchsia
11. FC134 Crimson
12. FC139 Light Violet
13. FC138 Violet
14. FC170 May Green
15. FC168 Earth Green Yellowish
16. FC172 Earth Green
17. FC174 Chrome Green Opaque
18. FC278 Chrome Green Oxide
19. FC179 Bistre
20. FC178 Nougat
21. FC175 Dark Sepia
22. FC230 Cold Grey I
23. FC274 Warm Grey V
24. FC273 Warm Grey IV

You can order the sets from Ann Swan for £30 plus P&P or buy them for the same price at the last day of the exhibition tomorrow - if there are any left!

Alternatively, if you're already using Faber Castell pencils you might want to check out your colours against those selected for the tin.

Links to book:

• (In the UK) Botanical Painting with Coloured Pencils  
• (In the USA) Botanical Portraits with Colored Pencils