Cowan's Art Knowledge & Know How

From 9H to 9B: Join us for a simple explanation of graphite grading scales.

Inks are a very diverse family of art materials. There is an ink for every purpose it seems, join us to learn how to determine which is the right ink for the job

Deciding which brand of acrylics to buy is not always an easy choice. Most of us are shopping on a budget so value and volume always seems to play key roles in the decision-making process.  There's a lot of smoke-and-mirrors deception going on when it comes to acrylic paint labels.  It seems every paint manufacturer would have you believe that their product is high grade. When it comes to buying paint, the best value isn't always obvious, and volume isn't what it seems.

For generations Gouache has been used by illustrators, animators, and watercolourists and the contribution of it's seamless beauty has gone largely unrecognized by the general public. As an artist, Gouache may be just the thing you're missing!

The world of spray paint has grown from primarily being used for murals and street art, to all kinds of art applications

Deciding whether or not to apply varnish to an oil painting can be an uncertain experience at best, and a terrifying or devastating experience at worst.  Our aim is to simplify the options and help you establish what is the best finishing process for your oil painting (if any!).

There is such an abundance of different hair types used to make paint brushes that selecting the correct brush can be a confusing task. Each hair type has specific qualities and applies to different techniques and types of paint. We'll outline the different brush fibers and their intended applications to help you purchase the best brush for your needs.

Come and explore a relatively new addition to the world of art supplies - archival art papers that are plant-fibre-free and offering incredibly unique and versatile qualities.  We are going to look at how best to use two specific products: YUPO made by Legion Papers, and Mineral Paper made by Yasutomo.

The world of acrylic mediums has become a vast and sometimes confusing place.  Our aim here is to simplify the basic options in acrylic mediums to help you make the best choices for your artistic needs.

Washes have always been an integral part of watercolour painting, but the technique is most certainly applicable to other media.  It's easy to do and costs you very little in paint because you are diluting at least 2:1 (water:paint).  In this article, we're going to explore a bunch of low-tech ways of creating vastly different effects using diluted acrylics, gouache or tempera, and of course, watercolours.

If watercolour paper has always been a bit of a myster, then join us to learn all the basics about watercolour papers to help you make the best decisions for your painting needs!