WHAT TO BRING —- Paints and Supplies

This is Stefan Baumann personal painting backpack

A wet canvas carrier is highly recommended for carrying your paintings home! (Raymar workswell but be aware that it only carries boards, not stretched canvas.) Please ask Stefan if you are unsure about an item you need to have on hand! There are 5 art supply stores in Florence, so if you find that you arrived without something critical, you will easily be able to find it in Florence (although you may not have it on the first day of painting). However, be advised that the prices are more expensive than in the U.S. You do not need to bring oil painting supplies such as solvent (thinner), brush cleaning materials, and the various small necessities like tape, small plastic cups, and paper towels. These things are provided for all participants. We will also have wax paper on hand for use as canvas paper. You will need to bring your own easel! Stefan also recommends bringing an umbrella as the sun can be intense around mid-day. He recommends a Thumb box for afternoons in Florence. Utrecht sells one that is quite small and reasonably priced.

Brian Butters on the streets of Tuscany during the Baumann Tuscany plein air tour Italy

Stefan’s recommended paint colors:

• Alizarin Crimson or (Permanent red rose or Thalo red rose)
• Ultramarine Blue
• Cerulean Blue
• Winsor Lemon (lemon yellow)
• Winsor Yellow (cadmium yellow)
• Titanium White
• Optional, additional colors:
Permanent yellow green or Thalo yellow green
Viridian green

Stefan’s recommended brushes:

• Your favorites brushes always recomemded• Filbert 2, 4,6,8
• Flat 2, 4, 6, 8 • Fan Black Gold   # 2 and #4 ,  Round sable 1, 2, 4

Palette Knives:  Your Choice

Canvas:
• Your choice. But remember that you have to carry your paintings home, so makesure  your transport tool of choice

Raymar Wet Painting Carriers for Stefan Baumann workshop in Tuscany and Shasta

(Ramar wet canvas carrier, for example) will accommodate your canvas sizes (and your easel, of course). Recommended is canvas on gator board because of weight.  they should be all the same size. we will be painting about four to five a day. We also spend time with thumb boxes so smaller canvas are also recommended.

SPECIAL NOTE: Traveling With Paints.  Most airlines do not allow flammable materials and require that passengers sign a

MSR White Gas container perfect to store turp for travel

notice prior to final purchase of tickets stating that no such materials have been packed. Some oil paints are flammable; others are not. Make sure that if you have any metal containers to you use to wash or store turps, that you keep the lids off of them when traveling on the plain.

tips:

1.) Call your airline and ask about their policy. There is quite a bit of variance. You might want to avoid using the word “paints” and ask about “artists colors made from vegetable oil”. Many brands do not include the word “paint” on their label for this reason.

2.) Pack the paints in your checked luggage. Use bubble wrap or baggies (one baggie for each color so that if one tube leaks, the leakage is contained in the individual baggie).

3.) Put all the small baggies of paint tubes in a large, clear plastic bag. Label the bag “Artist’s Vegetable Oil Colors”

4.) In the large, clear plastic bag, include the Material Safety Data Sheet for each color in the bag (Google “material safety data sheet” for your brand and color). THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. The US Department of Transportation defines “flammable liquids” as those with a flash point 140 degrees F or below. So many oil paints do NOT qualify as flammable. The key is to include a copy of the Material Safety Data Sheets so that you can show that they are below the accepted safety limit. 5.) You might also want to include a note in the bag stating that you are an artist attending a workshop in your destination.