CSPWC Juried Exhibition 2016 A Water Based Media Exhibition

On March 20th 2016 Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour announced its award winners of its juried exhibition.

The oldest watercolour painters society in Canada invited Colors of Nature to participate in the awards ceremony which took place at the Etobicoke Civic Centre Art Gallery.

"This juried exhibition focused on all concepts of reflection from thought, consideration, contemplation, deliberation, meditation, and musing to the reflective qualities of the water based medium itself. Artists’ works explored both the abstract to the traditional in a variety of approach and style..."

The award winner of the Colors of Nature gift package valued over $180 was:

Kai-Liis McInnes, Outport Colour, Watercolour

Mid-Valley Arts League Members Exhibit 2016

MVAL 63rd Anniversary Members Exhibit 2016 had 75 artist entries and 139 paintings submitted. The award and reception was well attended by at least 90 people.

Colors of Nature provided 3 gift certificates as prizes to award winners. Colors of Nature is committed to supporting the arts and artists alike.

If you belong to an art community or an association and you think Colors of Nature would be a great addition and supporter please contact us.

We wish the award winners and MVAL all the best and great success throughout the year.

Bees: Irreplaceable Assets

“More Than Honey” Documentary Review

At Colors of Nature we make it our first and foremost priority that no animals or animal products are used in any of our paints or art supplies. We also make sure that none of our products are tested on animals. We believe in making sure that even the smallest of creatures are valued and respected through our determination to make sure all of our products meet the high standards we place upon ourselves. One particular creature is at the top of our priority list in eliminating products made from them from our shop and instead purchasing and supporting products that do not exploit the hard work and wellbeing of this creature; bees. Bees are extraordinary, extremely intelligent and communicative creatures that work every moment of the day for their queen’s wellbeing and comfort. They provide for their young, for the environment, for other creatures and most of all, for humans. According to the documentary More Than Honey, “one third” of all of our food is reliant solely on the pollination work of bees. Without these tiny insects we would not have any foods that develop from flowers; such as apples, almonds, pears and squash. Why do we care so much about eliminating bee byproducts from our art supplies? There are multiple reasons, many of which were highlighted in the exemplary documentary mentioned earlier, More Than Honey.

Many unpleasant truths were unwrapped in More Than Honey in reference to the state of honey-producing bees. Bees are dwindling in number. Their hard work and essential role in the grand, earth-wide food chain goes unnoticed. Mass production has caused the care for bees as living creatures seem outdated and overrated. Non-native species are mixing their genes with native populations around the world, causing the loss of pure genetics. Disease and parasites have always threatened bees, but the need for bees to be artificially inserted into corporate orchards in order to pollinate the crops has resulted in diseases being transported across countries and carried over to bees native to those visited areas. More Than Honey has exposed some of the reasons why using bee byproducts in any product, not only art supplies, is not acceptable; at least not to Colors of Nature.

                  

Bees as a species are under attack. Stress from all angles is contributing to the disappearance of the bee population across the globe; mass production, environmental changes, destruction of native habitats, lack of care for them as living creatures and the demand for their labour are taking a toll on these gentle insects. At Colors of Nature we don’t want to contribute to the disappearance of the bees. Instead, we make our products without beeswax, honey or other bee byproducts entirely. Other times, we use purely plant-based waxes and byproducts. Our goal is to provide artists with the ability to choose an animal and insect-friendly option when purchasing art paints and supplies. Our foremost priority is to make sure and guarantee that our products are free from animal testing and animal products and byproducts. We believe in 100% plant-based art supplies and hope that you will too.  

To purchase our beeswax-free encaustic all-plant wax pucks, visit our website at http://www.colorsofnature.com/EncausticArt.html

To learn more about More Than Honey the documentary, visit http://buy.morethanhoneyfilm.com/

Can your oil paint be used to paint on fabric?

Yes. 

You can use our oil paint to create washable designs on fabric. You can dilute the paint slightly with linseed oil, or use it straight from the tube. Do a small patch test first on the fabric you want to use to test it. Bleeding of the linseed oil around your design will occur if the paint is diluted too thin, otherwise, the paint will dry and resist washing and bleeding out. Make sure that the paint is mixed thoroughly first before applying onto your fabric.

Patch test: Paint a 1 inch by 1 inch square on the fabric you want to use, or a fabric swatch with the same fibre content (ex. 100% cotton). Allow the paint to dry thoroughly then wash it as you will wash your garment, such as in a washing machine and dryer.

Painting on Glass

Glass Painting Blog

We didn’t know our oil paint could do this, but as a result of a customer’s query to us about using our paints on glass, we discovered that it can be used to paint on glass and glassware.

Here’s how it works:

Colors of Nature Oil Paints on Glass

Paint your image on the glass. The thickness you paint will determine how opaque or transparent you want the image to be. You can use the paint straight from the tube. Nothing needs to be added to it.

Bake your glass at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for one hour in a convection oven. This will dry the paint and set it to the glass. Let it cool down completely to let the paint set as it cools down. If you notice a tiny mistake after it’s baked and cooled, you can carefully scrape it off.

Your final result will withstand hand-washing and even dishwashing. We imagine that in time, with many repeated washings, it is possible that paint may come off, but if you are careful with your painted glassware, it should last you a very long time. All of our paints are permanent to excellent lightfastness, so they will never fade, even when placed in direct sunlight.

The best part is that Colors of Nature paint is made from all natural ingredients, so it’s safe for you and the environment!

Closeup of Oil Paint on Glass

Artist Project Contemporary Art Show

We attended the Artist Project Contemporary Art Show in Toronto the weekend of February 20-22 2015, which hosted hundreds of beautiful and thought-provoking pieces of art from a variety of contemporary artists. We were pleased to see Silvia Taylor, the glass and copper artist who makes our one-of-a kind glass mullers, show her stunning art pieces:

I love all of Silvia’s pieces, but I especially appreciated the beauty of this monochromatic display of glass forms.

These pieces are equally striking in their ability to balance themselves, offering an unexpected collaboration between form and physics.

To see more of Silvia’s work, please visit her website at http://www.silviataylor.ca

To purchase glass mullers that are hand crafted by Silvia, visit colorsofnature.com

Colors of Nature's Choice for Paper

Focus on Quality: Paper

Colors of Nature is committed to the finest quality in all of its raw materials and finished products.  The additional criteria for all of its supplies to be vegan and cruelty-free further refined our search for art products that are earth-friendly and ethically produced. We searched for paper lines that meet our stringent criteria for quality and ethics.  We found EcoPaper and Hahnemuhle as two unique manufacturers and providers of exactly the kind of paper we were looking for.

Hahnemuhle:

This German company has been making paper since 1584. Colors of Nature is the exclusive distributor of Hahnemuhle art paper in Canada.  We chose to offer bamboo paper from Hahnemuhle because of bamboo’s attributes as a sustainable and quickly renewable, low impact source of cellulose fibres. We also love the paper quality itself; it’s lightly textured, high quality and smooth to paint on. The best part about this paper is that is 100% vegan, made in earth-friendly ways and is cruelty-free.

For specific information about this high end paper line, please visit:

http://www.hahnemuehle.com/en/traditional-fineart/hahnemuehle-artist-papers/bamboo.html

For general information about the quality of art paper Hahnemuhle produces, please visit:

http://www.hahnemuehle.com/en/traditional-fineart/paper-quality-parameters.html

EcoPaper:

This American-Costa Rican company has a strong ethical mission to preserve and sustain our natural environment.  In that way, Colors of Nature and EcoPaper share a common vision for our planet.  What makes EcoPaper unique is their process.  They mix post-consumer paper and agricultural waste from banana, coffee and tobacco packing to make a beautiful paper that performs really well with watercolor paint, pencil, charcoal, crayons and pastels. As artists we love everything about this paper! Colors of Nature is EcoPaper’s exclusive distributor in Canada.

To read more about how EcoPaper makes its paper, please visit:

http://www.ecopaper.com/about-ecopaper