Craft, Material Handling and Studio Practice
What this domain tests
Supports, grounds, media behaviour and safe, organised studio work. Marks here come from precise practical detail.
Supports and grounds
- Paper: cartridge at 150–220 gsm for drawing, handmade paper for wash, ivory board for poster work. Stretch and tape a sheet before wet media to stop cockling.
- Canvas: cotton or linen, sized with glue and primed with gesso, sanded between coats for a smooth tooth. Oil paint on unprimed canvas rots the fibres.
- Mounting: use a window mount and acid-free tape along the top edge only, so the sheet can expand.
Media behaviour
- Poster colour is opaque and flat, suited to graphic work; watercolour is transparent and relies on the white of the paper; gouache dries matte and can be lifted; oil is slow-drying and needs a primed support; acrylic dries fast and brushes must be washed at once.
- Fix charcoal and soft graphite with a workable fixative in thin coats from about 30 cm.
- Clean brushes in the correct solvent, reshape the tip, and dry them flat or bristles-up; never stand them on the bristles.
Worked example
A poster-colour wash on cartridge paper buckles and dries streaky. Diagnosis: the sheet was not stretched, the paper was too thin, and the paint went on in one heavy pass. Remedy: soak and tape the sheet, lay a thin even wash with a loaded flat brush in one direction, allow it to dry, then repeat, keeping the board slightly tilted.
Safety and storage
Ventilate for solvents and fixative, consult the material safety data sheet, and never eat in the studio. Store works interleaved with acid-free tissue, away from damp and direct sun.
Traps
- Painting oil directly on unprimed paper.
- Flooding fixative in one pass, which blooms the surface.
- Leaving brushes standing bristle-down in water.
- Trimming a print without checking trim and bleed marks.