Michael Harding Artists' Oil Colours
Not for me, I still prefer the backing of a resourceful proper Manufacturer - I experimented -...
Not for me, I still prefer the backing of a resourceful proper Manufacturer - I experimented - cautiously! - with Michael Harding oils years ago and I didn't like them. The little flakes in the tube are simply oil paint skin formed in production process or later on, inside the tube. This is a pain! It is not easy to capture those flakes, and straining tube paint is not an easy job, and defeats the purpose of having paint in tubes, which is supposed to be practical and save time.
Michael Harding, even now, is a relatively small manufacturer, and inconsistencies such as the example of the dried oil skin flakes inside the tube, are more likely to happen in small manufacturing operations. This is where I prefer the backing of a larger manufacturer, with much better resources, labs and so on. In 20 years or so using Winsor & Newton, LeFranc & Bourgeois, Royal Talens, Sennelier and such, I have never encountered a fault like the flakes in tubes. Larger manufacturers have standard, very strict industrial quality control procedures, and the reliability is just there. I never found a tube with faulty paint in any of them, the colours are always consistent, the oil paste is always the same quality and viscosity, etc. I like this reliable standard, it meets expectations all the time, every time.
Then we have the prices and the heavy metal toxic/poisonous and in some cases carcinogenic pigments used in some of Michael Harding oils. The common excuse that artists are supposed to be careful, does not wash because careful or not, when it is time to clean your brushes, the toxic waste has to go somewhere, and in most studios, a lot of that toxicity goes down the drains into the waterways. Let's face it... In the 21st Century, it is possible to produce top of the range colours using safer pigments. This brand is another case of hype and clever marketing by trying to persuade artists that only genuine toxic pigments will produce the right colours and therefore professional results. I do not subscribe to any of what I explained above.
Prices are also too high, and the main reason is because the prices have to match the hype, so they are inflated. Pigment and oil bought industrially in bulk are relatively cheap to buy and even the added extra of saying that MH are handmade oil colours is at best an overstatement and at worst, a misrepresentation of sorts. MH paints produced on this scale have to be mixed in mechanical vats to wet the pigments, and then the mixes have to be put through triple roll mill machines to grind the pigment into the oil and obtain an oil colour, as we all know it.
Save yourself some hard earned cash, don't buy into the excessive hype; there is plenty of excellent oil colour, artist grade paint out there, better than Michael Harding, more reliable in my view, colour matched, batch after batch after batch; and at a far better and more realistic price.
Michael Harding Artists' Oil Colours
not all good - The pigments in some of these paints are excellent.
There's problems...
not all good - The pigments in some of these paints are excellent.
There's problems with some batches of Titanium White. The large tubes with code 02 15 have flakes in them which appear towards the end of the tubes. I've been told by Michael Harding that the tubes have been withdrawn but GreatArt have still supplied them. I have since contacted GreatArt about this and they are aware of problem.
Michael Harding Artists' Oil Colours
Quality Oil Pigments, with wonderful colours - I switched to Micheal Hardy paints 2 years ago...
Quality Oil Pigments, with wonderful colours - I switched to Micheal Hardy paints 2 years ago after starting painting only six months previously. It became apparent very quickly that cheaper paints were like painting with butter that slipped around on the canvas. The colours are so good with Micheal Hardy paints that I find I use less paint and waste less paint too.
They mix beautifully and the tones are not harsh unlike the cheaper paints I started out with! I love the warmth of the brown umbers, The vibrancy of the orange and lemon yellow.
I paint local seaside scenes mixing lots of blue/greens and stormy purples. The rich tones of the pigments in the cobalt blue and aquamarine blue combining with the cad yellow and the beautiful turquoise tones give me all the range of sea and skies I want. I am now selling paintings, prints and cards! I am sure the comments I get about my colourful pictures is in part down to the wonderful Micheal Harding paint I use. I would recommend them to anyone beginner or experienced. I liken it to learning a musical instrument. It is not good if the instrument makes a horrid noise however well you play it!
Michael Harding Artists' Oil Colours
Wonderful Oil Colours - I'm now a total convert from W&N Artist's range to Michael...
Wonderful Oil Colours - I'm now a total convert from W&N Artist's range to Michael Harding's Oil Colours; the look, colour and flow of the Harding paints mean that they are in a league of their own. My particular favourites include the unique Red Umber (redder than Burnt Umber, so great for warm shades when mixed with Ultramarine Blue and Black), Cobalt Green Deep (I modify this colour for my landscapes: from bluish greys to rich, warm greens), Ultramarine Blue (its pigment has great luminosity and depth), Scarlet Lake (a great all-round red and can be used for the pinks in botanical subjects), Permanent Orange (the best orange I've tried - not too fiery, a good replacement for Cadmium Orange), Raw Umber (Harding's version is the most saturated I've come across with the most greenish undertones) and Burnt Sienna (leaning more towards red than orange, its great for toning down the colours in landscape painting and for producing flesh tones). All the information the artist requires, including the pigment's code, transparency, chemical formula, tint strength and oil content, is provided on the paint-tube. Moreover, for handmade oil colours, its amazing that Michael Harding offers such competitive prices.
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