Watercolor painting is not only more expensive for artists than student watercolors, but if you compare prices by volume, it is more expensive than oil and acrylic. The reason paint is more expensive for artists than for students is that it is produced to a higher standard.
Oil paints are more expensive than other types because of the pigments they contain. Most pigments in oil paints have a natural source and are not produced in laboratories, so they tend to be less readily available, and oil paints are priced to reflect the constraints imposed by their natural origins.
If you’re looking to buy art-quality paints, you’ll notice that some colors are significantly more expensive than others (though they’re still cheaper than oil paints). If you use oil or acrylic, I’m sure you’ll notice that watercolor paint looks much more expensive.
Oil paints are more expensive due to the need to add oil to their formulation, while acrylic paints only use water. Not only is a tube of paint usually more expensive than some acrylic paints of the same color, but the extra money can add to the cost even further.
Also, some pigments used in certain paint colors are more expensive than their acrylic counterparts, also due to the fact that the pigments used in water-based paints are not suitable for oil-based formulations. Some oil paints are more expensive because unique pigments can provide stronger color, but most beginners and many intermediate users usually don’t need them.
Pigment and Paint Prices Vary Widely
The cost of these pigments varies, so some colors are more expensive than others. Paints for artists are usually priced by series, where the prices for groups of pigments are the same. It is the more expensive pigments that are the most expensive component of art quality paint, which brings me to my next point. Watercolor painting is more expensive than acrylic or oil because they contain a higher concentration of pigment and often require more processing.
While oils are more expensive than acrylics given the time it takes to dry, you can often use each coat of paint more efficiently (source). Since water is used to dilute and color them, the artist does not need to have expensive bottles of oil on hand. You can paint with these colors directly, no support is required. These paints require softening before use by mixing additional oil (walnut/poppy, etc.) and using another oil, usually linseed oil, to apply the paint to the surface.
Although these oils turn less yellow over time, they are thinner and more prone to cracking as the painting ages. Professional artist oil paints tend to come in smaller tubes as they are mostly pure pigments with better oil binders and therefore stretch a lot compared to student paints. While the pigment content is not as high as other artists’ paints, Bob Ross oil paints are reasonably priced and available in 150 ml tubes.
Linseed Oils Are Often an Economical Choice
If you’re looking to make your oil paints smoother and reduce drying time, Winsor & Newton Linseed Oil is a great product at an affordable price. Because oil painting materials are more expensive than other materials, using refined linseed oil is often the best option for beginners or those looking to keep initial costs as low as possible.
A tube of the lowest quality oil paint (which is still good but contains less pigment so the artist has to use more to get a darker color) costs about the same. If you’re using acrylic paint, each decent brand of 8.5-ounce tube costs between $9.99 and $14.99, depending on the color; this price will vary depending on the brand, quality and number of ounces in the tube.
Let’s say you buy a finished canvas, four acrylic paints (white, red, yellow and blue) and three brushes (small, medium and large); this painting will set you back at least $91.45 before tax. The cheaper the paint, the less pigment and more filler.
Paint costs a lot more, their set of brushes cost a lot more, and paint takes a lot longer to dry than acrylic or watercolor. The lower price of student paints also means they can be more expensive, but they can also affect the color, which can sometimes be cloudy. When it comes to art quality paints, manufacturers often use a number or letter scale to indicate their colors, with a higher number or letter indicating a higher price due to the type of pigment used.
Oil Paintings Tend to Be More Valuable than Acrylic
Oil paintings may be valued higher and perceived as more valuable than acrylics, but the true value of paintings has nothing to do with the type of paint used, but rather with the quality of the work, the size of the painting, the fame. artist and other factors. Oil paint is extremely expensive because it must be of a certain quality to be used in painting.
The complexity of production also increases because each pigment needs a precise ratio of oil, otherwise it will absorb and then bleed oil or be too dry and brittle to paint if there is too little oil. In fact, oil painting requires only the use of a few additional materials, namely funds.
Pigments in their natural state sometimes produce short and sometimes long colors, depending on several factors such as particle size and specific gravity. Most pigments are inorganic color pigments that require chemical synthesis/modification to achieve optimal color stability, strength and saturation. Although there are more expensive brands when it comes to oil paints, Old Holland Classic oil paints are usually the most expensive due to the superior quality and ingredients in the paints.
