Sizing is the process of adding
water-soluble gelatin or starch to the paper when the paper is being made. The
amount of sizing used determines how absorbent the paper is. Sizing in the
paper controls how water, and other media penetrate the surface; the
more sizing added to the paper, the less absorbent it is.
Texture The more texture a paper has, the
more it affects outcome of the technique. The texture of the surface substrate is a determining
factor when working with different media and a personal choice. Choice
depends on whether you want the substrate to be smooth or rough. Drawing
papers are generally smooth papers
Archival is a durable acid-free paper that is also PH balanced. Papers
with wood pulp contain acids which yellow and discolor,
while papers designed to last longer will be marked acid free, archival or age
resistant and are made from 100% cotton.
There are many different
kinds of papers to choose from and require experimentation to gain knowledge.
Here’s a short list to get you started.
Acrylic Painting Papers are
an inexpensive solution for acrylic painting. Acrylic paper should be heavy
weight to prevent warping, have a textured surface to assure adhesion, and have
sizing to prevent absorption. The medium must adhere to the surface, but not be
absorbed into the substrate. Use it for practice works, instruction, studies,
and sketches. If longevity must be measured in generations, and not years,
stretched canvas or hardboard panels would be more stable options.
Charcoal Papers are
any light colored papers with a slight tooth or texture. Charcoal papers can be
used as well with pastels, pencils, and other drawing media where a textured
surface is desirable.
Bamboo
Paper is
ideal for all types of printing techniques, including offset, engraving, foil
stamping, embossing, and letterpress. Bamboo’s luxurious finish and unique
surface is also great for watercolors, acrylics, and pastels, as well as for
sketching and drawing with charcoal. Bamboo Paper is made from 90% bamboo and
10% cotton.
Boards-
art
boards, illustration boards, Bristol boards, multi-media boards and specialty
boards are boards with different types of surfaces, chosen according to the
media. Bristol Board has two working surfaces, front and back. The better
quality Bristol boards are archival. Illustration Board is only finished on one
surface and is intended as a surface for creating artwork that will reproduce
onto other mediums. Art boards are a fine art paper mounted on an acid-free
museum board, ready for framing or mounting.
Drawing and Sketching, Sheets, Books and Rolls
Some sheets features two deckled
edges and two distinct surfaces, one smooth and one slightly textured,
providing exceptional versatility for printmaking, drawing, and multi-media
expression.
Lutradur is a unique spun
woven polyester
material, similar to interfacing, which combines the strength of fabric with
the body of paper. It doesn’t fray, has a slight sheen, translucent and
can be painted, dyed, distressed with a soldering iron or heat gun, glued, or
stitched. Its
translucency adds interest to fine art, collage, rubbings, stamping, stitching,
stencil making, layering, quilting, and more. It comes in a variety of
different weights. Lutradur also accepts inkjet printing and image transfers.
Marker
paper is
for markers, pens, ink, and paper. It’s smooth, non-bleeding and translucent. It
has an extremely smooth surface, the ideal finish for a
medium in which sharp lines and transitions are needed. The paper is sized to
resist absorption of color, to prevent lines from bleeding.
Printmaking Papers
The unique feature of a good
printmaking paper is its ability to take a soaking, to absorb a lot of ink,
often with multiple runs through a press, without disintegrating or deforming. Use it for any
printmaking application, drawing or mixed media techniques. Made in a mold of 100%
cotton, it has a neutral pH, is chlorine free, internal and surface sized, and
has 2 natural deckles, and 2 tear deckles. Select from Satin finish or Velvet
finish. Aches have a long-standing line of quality papers. Rives is very popular, fine
printmaking paper and has a smooth, absorbent surface.
Water
Color Paper
There are three types of watercolor
paper: rough, hot press, and cold press. Winsor-Newton, Arches, Frabriano, and Lanaquarelle are examples of
excellent quality watercolor papers and can be purchased in sheets, blocks or pads.
Rough
paper is rough textured surface with even more tooth than cold-pressed paper. Holds up to
repeated applications of water and pigment removal. It is suited
for dry brush and techniques that require texture. This makes correcting
mistakes easier than with any other watercolor paper.
Cold press paper has a medium tooth texture, but
not as deep as rough paper and the texture varies from manufacturer to
manufacturer. It absorbs more water and media than hot-pressed paper.
Liquefied pigment can be removed from these papers by “scrubbing” with water
and a brush, blotting or sponging. It is strong enough to stand up to a fair
amount of re-wetting and re-working. Choose this paper if you want a reliable
general all-purpose paper that will suit most techniques and subject matter
Hot
press is pressed with heat during manufacturing to give it a very smooth
surface. It
isn’t porous, which causes resistance to media, but is excellent for detailed
paintings with crisp sharp edges.
Watercolor
paper comes in 90, 140, and 300 lb. weight. The weight of a watercolor paper
describes its thickness.
90-lb. paper
is the lightest and is good general lighter works such as book pages. It
buckles when wet so must be stretched or taped to a surface for working.
140-lb.
paper is heavy enough for stand-alone media work and various acrylic media for
mixed-media work. 140 lb. paper is a good choice for a beginner.
Heavy
and strong, 300-lb. paper is great for a base for collage work.
Tearing a Sheet of Water Color Paper
Cutting is always an option but if you want lovely torn edges,
Try this technique. Take a ruler and place where you want the torn edge, Crease
slightly by bending the paper over the ruler. Next, use a water soaked brush
and ‘paint’ along the ruler crease. Do this several times until the water to
absorbs. Pull the paper toward yourself for a beautiful torn edge.
Decorative and Handmade Papers
Joss
Papers
Chinese Ritual Papers or Gold
Money Papers
The first mock
money was probably made in imitation of round metal coins pierced with square
holes for stringing. There are three types of gold money paper. In all cases
the gold is intended for the deities, whereas the silver is burned for the
deceased. These plain gold papers come in many sizes and vary in appearance and
name. The importance of the divinity determines the size and decoration. The
more important the god the bigger the paper.
Lace Papers can
be made from a variety of different materials, but the main feature of this
paper is its openness. Made by using heavier fibers or by spraying water
through the pulp, holes are created in the paper making it have a lace-like
quality. These papers are commonly used in card making and collage
applications.
Mango
and Banana Paper
Laced with inclusions, these Banana and Mango
Papers are a beautiful and durable addition to your paper collection; ideal for collage, book arts, card making, decoupage,
origami, stamping, scrapbooking. They are also an environmentally
conscious paper. Banana trees and Mango bushes produce fruit only once a
year and are then cut down, leaving abundant waste or by-product.
Recycling the fiber from this by-product, into paper, helps to prevent the
eco-system’s rivers and forests from becoming polluted with waste.
Marble Papers can
either be mold made or handmade. After it has dried, the paper is marbleized
with paint on the surface or with different colored pulps that are mixed to
form the paper itself. Each sheet is different due to the hand made process.
These papers are generally used for card making, collage, or bookmaking.
Nepalese Papers,
sometimes called Lotka papers, are made from the interior bark of the Lokta
bush. Once these handmade papers are dried, they are then dyed, marbled, or
screenprinted. The long fibers of the Lokta bush make for a strong paper that
is resilient to deterioration, pests or insects, and water.
Vellum Paper
This paper is extra smooth and very
translucent. It’s resistant to scratching and erasing so it might not be viable
for mixed media is those are the techniques you use. It’s a beautiful paper
though for tracing, design, penned calligraphy and even drafting.
Japanese Printmaking
Papers are like no other papers in the world. Often, they are
handmade under centuries-old traditions, using the finest-quality fibers from
plants found only in the Far East.
Japanese papers are
prized for lino and wood block printing, sumi painting, brush calligraphy,
bookbinding, interleaving, and flyleaf and end leaf applications, as well as
for many decorative purposes.
Kozo
Kochi Paper
Made primarily of Kozo fiber, Kochi is a durable
paper that's known for fiber length, strength, and fineness. Kochi features
excellent shape retention when dry, ideal for woodblock printing as well as wet
processes such as stone and fish rubbing. Handmade with a deckle edge, it's a
heavier 34 lb paper with no sizing and good absorbency.
Lokta
Paper
Deep, rich earthtones in a variety of solids and
patterns are the allure of Lokta Papers from Nepal. Strong and durable.
Handmade by village artisans of Nepal's rural and urban areas. Eco friendly
resource from the fiber of the "Nepal paper plant" or Lokta bush.
Mulberry paper is made in many different varieties
including: lightweight (Unryu Paper), text weight (smooth mulberry
paper), heavy weight (Kozo Paper) and even hand-marbled varieties. Mulberry Paper is
handmade from the inner fiber of the mulberry to produce an exceptionally pure,
translucent paper, used by paper and painting conservators in repair and
lamination. It is very strong, despite its lightweight. Having a neutral pH, these papers also make
wonderful art papers for all projects.
Masa Paper
Masa is machine made in
Japan of sulphite pulp, is versatile and very reasonably priced, a strong paper
with an even formation. It’s
great for drawing applications as well all kinds of watermedia, digital
imaging, silkscreen, woodcut, linocut, letterpress and collage. Masa rice paper
is thin but is also extremely tough because of its interlocking fibers. These
fibers give this unique fine art paper one smooth side and one textured side
with no deckle.
Sumi Paper
The Yasutomo Sumi-e fine art paper is
ideal for practicing your oriental painting and brush strokes. This Unryu rice
paper is suitable for painting, ink or drawing. Each sheet of this Asian paper
is thin and absorbent, so it is best if you remove a sheet from the pad before
you begin painting. This paper is available in either a pad or a roll.
Unryu paper
Commonly referred to as lightweight
mulberry paper or rice paper. Meaning "cloud dragon paper" in
Japanese, unryu is characteristic of paper containing strands of fiber that are
added to the sheet to create contrast and texture. Light filters
through this beautiful, translucent paper, displaying each swirling fiber. Tear the paper in any shape you desire
to create a soft, feathered edge.
Care must be taken when it is wet
with media as the paper will shred or tear.
Japanese
Washi Paper
The term Washi means Japanese paper. Washi is
fine paper made from fibers of the gampi tree, the misumata shrub, the mulberry
bush, bamboo, hemp, rice and other materials. Washi paper is stronger
than most ordinary paper providing a great base to use in arts, crafts and
everyday writing. The fibers, bark, flower petals and other inclusions
provide great texture and character to these washi papers.
Chiyogami
(Yuzen) Paper
Striking and intense color patterns with gold
overlay are silkscreened by hand on our Japanese Chiyogami Paper, also known as
Yuzen Washi Paper. The durability and strength of Yuzen Washi Paper is
superb. Chiyogami Paper starts as a base sheet of high content
Kozo. Each color is then silkscreened by hand onto the paper requiring
considerable time as each color must fully dry before the next color is
applied. A final layer of sparkling gold outlines the patterns,
accentuating the regal beauty of the paper.
Note- Often you can buy an assortment
of different papers. This is a great way to become acquainted with several
different types. Explore and have fun.
There are many places to search for
papers and information on line. Here are a few suggestions.
Dick Blick has lots of papers with
great information http://www.dickblick.com/categories/papers/
The Japanese Paper Place “we have a warehouse
full of machine made and decorative Japanese papers which we ship around the
world, our particular passion is for sharing traditional Japanese handmade
papers with the world while they are still being made.”
Fineartstore .com
http://www.fineartstore.com/s-1211-paper.aspx
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