What art supply made the difference in your OP work?

[Pat Isaac]

Thanks for your nice comments on my work.
You really do need to put some kind of prime between the paper and OPs to stop the solvent from going through. A heavier paper might work better and I'd put at least 2 coats of prime down. Hope you'll post some of your work.

Pat

[truck driver]

Hard work. Is my only answer. Studying Perspective, Studying composition.

I guess the thing thats made the most difference.... is Patricia Isaac.

RG

[Pat Isaac]

Thanks, RG...

Pat

[Shade64]

Great Question..

I would have to say priming my own supports (paper, card, wood, canvas etc) with either 'gesso' or 'texture paste', to get a sufficient, and specific 'tooth' to aid me with my love of blending layers.

[RainySea]

Originally Posted by robertsloan2

I put "switching to a mix of pastels" but for me it was the leap from cheap ones to artist grade with a 12 set of Neopastel, and then some Erengi and some Sennelier. The firm Colour Shaper and using Colourfix paper helped too.

I have to agree on two points with Robert . . . when I used the Neos the first time, I fell in love with them (had Pentels before that, ugh!). AND also when I first used Colorfix which I also love

[truck driver]

I've got something to add to this, understanding the senns a bit better and how to use the more transperant pigments in the set. opens up worlds of possibilities to a op painter. The better I understand the materials the more I am able to do.

RG

[Jazicat]

I'm just finishing a class in Art and Design and OPs were a wonderful discovery but the cheap brands I bought didn't give the results I thought they should. I just got the same set of Senneliers and love them. For this reason I put using different brands.

However I am now going to experiment with papers, primers and gessos because it sounds like this can be very important too.

After that practice, practice and more practice since I at the beginning of my fine art experiments.