Written by Hello! It’s been over a month since my last supply review. As things tend to, something’s popped up for review. Today’s post is on Anthesis Arts handcrafted watercolors out of Gainesville, Florida, USA. Feast your eyes on these! Seriously.
If you’ve been following my reviews, you’re used to me telling a little info about the people and/or company, as well as the product presentation and info, and sometimes little odds-n-ends here and there. It’s the people with their unique experiences and artistic vision that make a product special. This is not a short post, and there are lots of photos. So here we go!
Angelique Bochnak, the creative force of Anthesis Arts, is a Renaissance woman! After being inspired by the texture and depth that comes from painting with beautiful Greenleaf & Blueberry handmade paints, she decided to start mulling her own. Anthesis Arts launched their line of handcrafted watercolors on March 5th 2017. The shop also carries hand carved brushes, and will carry hand turned calligraphy pens and, hand bound art journals. As a girl, Angelique’s grandfather taught her how to carve and turn wood, and she continued on with that skill into adulthood. A little more about Angelique:
“I am an environmental scientist and chemist (partly why I love making paint, it’s like running a lab at home). I grew up in the hills of southern Ohio, running the woods and splashing in the creeks. My love of the outdoors led me down my career path as an environmental scientist. I spend a lot of time outside for both work and recreation. I love plein air painting, especially landscapes and flowers. I never leave home without a camera, I never know where inspiration will come from. The best part about living in Florida now is the range of tropical flowers I can grow. I am an orchid collector as well. My love of orchids is how I came up with the name Anthesis. Some flowering plants can be so ugly without their blooms, but once that blooming period begins (anthesis), their true beauty emerges. My goal as an artist is to take something simple and ordinary and turn it into a beautiful work of art. I view my paints as a work of art.”
First, I have a few unboxing photos to share. They shipped quickly and came in a nice little box.
I came across pre-shop opening posts for these on Intstagram- @anthesisarts. The presentation, product photos and swatches are all beautifully done and that is what initially attracted me to them. I offered to review, and Angelique generously sent some for me to try. As far as I know, to date, this is an exclusive review, so a sneak peek of sorts. Generally, handcrafted watercolors go quick once people find out about them. If you are interested in these, I recommend getting them sooner rather than later. Just like a few other handmade watercolors out there – I predict these will be something one has to stay vigilant for an update to obtain.
Not only did these arrive with a hand painted swatch card of all three sets available, each set comes with a hand painted removable swatch card in the lid. I really liked this and it saved me from having to cut paper to size. The package also included a information card about the paints. A little piece of natural sea sponge came in each tin as well as desiccant packet to keep moisture to a minimum. Remember these ship from Florida, it’s humid there. I thought it was smart and caring to add these little packets. I left all images full size so that you can get a good look. They can also be clicked on to enlarge.
The wrapped paints look like little candies. Pans come individually wrapped with the color name printed, and hand painted on the wrapper band. The name is written on the bottom of the pans and there is a little magnet attached to secure them to the tins.
The three different watercolor palette sets that they carry are Coastal, Meadow, and Forest. Each palette comes with eight unique paint colors, so no cross over between palettes. I will be reviewing the first two listed. If you haven’t seen or experienced handmade watercolors that use earth pigments and minerals, I’ve found that they always lend depth and texture to painting. All of the the “Petal Cap” pans were nicely filled, with a little muffin top action going on.
They are sold in four different sized sets- whole pans, half pans, or the “Petal Cap” sets with small round caps- slightly less than a half pan, and large round caps- slightly more than a full pan. They also carry Pocket Pearl Duos and sets, which are luminous pearl paints. No individual pans sold at this time, but I believe they have plans to add them later. The presentation of the sets is lovely. The small round Petal Cap sets I have here go for $58 each, the larger sized pan sets of course, go up from there.
Coastal Palette– Horizon Blue, Breeze Light Blue, Cordgrass Earth Green, Sea Salt Grey, Dusk Earth Mineral, Driftwood Natural Umber, Lemongrass Light Yellow Ochre, Sand Dune Titanium Buff.
All swatches and paintings were done on Fabriano Artistico 140lb/300gsm cold press watercolor paper, unless otherwise noted. I tear full sheets to the sizes I want. To give some info on what I did on the swatch below- the top black line is drawn under the undiluted paint and the second one over the dried paint, these are to show opacity. The white spot of missing paint is to show how well it lifts. They all lift easily. All handmade watercolors that I have tried lift easily. I added a little too much water when I washed out the Horizon Blue swatch and it resulted in a back flow. I’m sure most of you are familiar with this occurrence.
Meadow Palette– Tulip Mayan Red, Daffodil Mayan Yellow, Monarch Colonial Yellow Ochre, Foliage Green, Danselfly Mayan Blue, Iris Mayan Violet, Amaryllis Earth Mineral, Chestnut Warm Umber.
Pans take a long time to dry, up to three weeks for some colors. Above, I left one wrapper in the photo because some paints remain tacky, so unwrap carefully. I kept the wrapper for the Foliage Green so that I could use the small amount of paint that stayed on the wrapper. The Horizon Blue above was also tacky, but it didn’t leave much on the wrapper.
The third set sold is the Forest Palette– Stellar Mayan Indigo, Conifer Mayan Green, Lichen Turquoise, Sulphur Yellow Ochre, Purple Heart Earth Violet, Rust Earth Red, Bark Dark umber, Shadow Black.
All pigments used are artist quality. All are single pigment, with the exceptions of Horizon Blue and Driftwood Natural Umber. Those two colors list two pigments on the color index on the actual pigment label. Anthesis makes their binder from raw products- gum Arabic, honey and other natural ingredients- no fillers. The lightfastness of all of the pigments they use are Good, Excellent, or Permanent. The pigment and lightfast info is provided in the description on the shop listings.
With what I’m about to say in the next few paragraphs, I’m inserting this swatch from the shop in here so it can be referred to if needed. I’m not commenting on the paints in the middle section because I don’t have those.
These are indeed highly pigmented, I was surprised how much so. Tulip Mayan Red, Iris Mayan Violet, Daselfly Mayan Blue, Cordgrass Natural Green, and Driftwood Natural Umber have some granulating properties. They all rewet nicely. Beautiful paints. The shop and Instagram feed have some really nice swatch photos that show four gradations of each color.
The day these arrived I wasn’t feeling my painting mojo very well, so I did the above swatch. There’s a lot I’m saying here- so bear with me. The large middle columns are wet in wet that I let blend together. This swatch also helped me to see possible similarities in colors. At first glance, the two red earth pigments appeared similar wet in wet, but they are in separate palettes. The Dusk Earth Mineral in the Coastal Palette on the right, has more depth and texture, there is an interesting dark undertone that comes out when used in a wash. I used the Amaryllis Natural Mineral from the Meadow Palette on the left, in my sunny skies to give them a warm glow (see below). It wasn’t easy to distinguish between the two blues in the Coastal Palette when they washed together using them wet in wet. There is a definite delineation when they are not as diluted, seen on the top right corner, where they compliment each other. I used both blues in that palette when painting the sea and they worked nicely together (see below). The darker blue- Horizon, and Dusk Earth Mineral in the Coastal set mixed nicely to make a dark cloud color for stormy skies (see below). I like how the bottom three colors in the Coastal Palette- Driftwood Natural Umber, Lemongrass Light Yellow Ochre, and Sand Dune Titanium Buff blended and washed together. And that bit of rainbow action happening on the left from the Meadow Palette, I like that too.
Top left I used only the Meadow Palette. Top right I used only the Coastal Palette. Bottom two I used both palettes to get what I wanted. That Iris Mayan Violet- yowza! I love it…and the yellows and earth red used in the skies. I love the warmth I was able to obtain in the desert painting. I had a lot of fun painting these. I found each exercise to be an interesting discovery.
The set of four small sample paintings, were inspired by David Bellamy’s book- Skies, Light & Atmosphere in Watercolour.
I did a couple other paintings that are not fit for sharing. This is always the hardest part of a post. But I will show this one. I was practicing water, and painted from a photo I took looking out at an intense sky over the Kilauea lighthouse from Anini Beach, Kauai. I’ve taken to keeping the paints in the lids until I put them away. The lids can be mixed in, but I used a separate mixing dish. The little hand bound leather watercolor book is filled with Arches 140lb/300gsm cold press hand torn watercolor paper, and was made by The SpeckledKat. I’ve really enjoyed this journal, it has a lot of pages and I paint on both sides. Lots of lovely journals in her Etsy shop.
Since the dawn of expressing ourselves, humans have been using ochres and earth pigments to paint on rocks and cave walls. While painting with them, I think about this, and the connection that using them brings with our ancestors. Handmade watercolors handle and feel slightly different than commercial brands, they have a natural depth and character. I consider handmade watercolors to be a creative investment. One of the best things I’ve ever done for personal growth, is invest creatively in myself. I have learned so much from this investment. This doesn’t have to mean expensive supplies, it could mean to simply honor your creative process, practicing deep listening, or setting aside time, connecting with other creatives, or using what’s at hand. Which could be paints, a pencil, or a stick to draw in the sand with. As always, the spirit of my reviews is to share what I learn with the intention that it helps you make a more informed decision about a medium or supply, and to help you invest in you, and your growth. When I can, I like to feature and support small business makers that create lovely products. Thank you, for spending the time it took to read this review. It exists because of you.
From corresponding with a few people that make and sell handmade paints, I’ve come to learn that a lot of research and trial and error goes into figuring out the right formula to mix and make artist quality watercolors. It is a time consuming process. It takes dedication and really is a labor of love for those that make them. I’ve reviewed handmade watercolors from three other small women owned businesses- Greenleaf & Blueberry, Pfeiffer Art Supply, and Redwood Willow, all of which, I think are wonderful. Many other art supply and watercolor reviews can be found under “Reviews.” Presently, new art supply reviews happen when they happen, but always post on a Saturday.
A quote that I came across recently that I appreciate. It’s from Blessed Are the Weird: A Manifesto for Creatives by Jacob Nordby.
“The highest value currency is not money or faster machines; it is the ability to see and see and keep seeing the world through different eyes- and then do something with the unique way you see it.”
Cheers to the creative visionary, visionary, visionary in you.
Happy painting, sketching, and creating!
I can be found on Instagram @jessicaseacrest, where I’m generally up to something and sharing whatever that is.
Join us for World Watercolor Group! It’s a group for everyone who enjoys watercolor. It is a very active group. There’s also the #WorldWatercolorGroup tag to use when sharing your work on social media. More info in the link above, or click here.
I didn’t even know handcrafted paints were out there! Wow, thanks for the detailed post.
Thank you for your comment Eileen! 🙂
Wow they are super, I really struggle to find a good brand of handcrafted watercolours in the uk….I wonder if they will ever supply over here, I would buy some for sure, stunning colours, and a great review post, thank you so much 😀
Hi Rebecca, thanks for taking the time to comment. I hope you can try handmades. Somehow it is becoming big in the US. I’ve come across one company in Australia.
Checked for uk suppliers of other handcrafted…only one found, easier to make my own I think, gave it a try last night, basic but it worked 😀
Yay! That’s exciting!
Messy! But fun 😀
A beautiful review Jessica. I love that you are so honest and personal in all your reviews! Thank you.
I bought the ‘Coastal’ set and tried them yesterday and totally love them! The colors are beautiful and yet soft. I love that they are handcrafted and applaud her for creating these for us. I did my test on Arches and Stonehenge paper. That little tin is great to carry and use.
Did I mention I love these paints?! 😄. I may have to get the other sets too.
It’s been fun sharing these with you Teri. I love your adventurous spirit! 🙂
I must say Jessica, I bought a set from what I saw on your Instagram feed knowing you would probably review the paints soon. I have not even read your review yet. Just from the pictures I ordered another set. I ordered the Coastal set today and ordered the Pocket Pearls the other day. Thank you for this review and finding this artist for us.
I hope you enjoy the heck outa these! 🙂
Great post Jessica, thank you for all that you introduced in this post. I will refer back to it more than once.
Thank you 🙂 I’m glad it was helpful.
I love your reviews..I just recently found you in the last few months at Doodlewash and then IG.
How can someone not want these..so artisanal..special and the colors look so rich..that coastal set is just beautiful.Thank you for this glowing review🎨
Thanks so much Monique. It’s been great interacting with you on IG. Your baked goods are so beautiful!!!
I really enjoyed your review. My paints are arriving Monday and I’m very excited! This will be my first handmade watercolor set! Another handmade watercolor artist that I just found is RubyMountainPaintCo, Kate is based out of Colorado. I’m excited to try her paints as well! I would love to try Greenleafs but I can never snatch a set quick enough! Thank you for sharing my etsy shop and journal! I love your painting that you didn’t want to share and said didn’t come out the way you hoped, story of my life! Haha. But I really like your painting, especially the sun rays and the sky color 💕
Thanks so much Katie. Hehe, there where other paintings that I did initially that I definitely didn’t share. That’s how it goes sometimes though. I hope some people stopped by your shop!
They look lovely but at $143. Canadian for 8 colours, they are beyond my price point. i’m assuming there would be international shipping on top of that. Too bad, I would have loved to try them.
The smaller sets all sold out. She may have less expense sets in her shop when there is an update this week. Typically shipping to Canada isn’t much more than it is in the us. If you click on the shipping tab on the Etsy product page to find out how much that is, it calculates ahead of time so you know the amount.
Probably the best review of any product I’ve ever read, Jessica. Thank you for a very personal explanation about why you do these reviews. It’s the personal touch that makes each of your reviews so compelling. You’ve helped me choose new paints and a new journal, but even when I just read with no purchase, I’m still drooling.
And these paints sound like they are well worth the expense. Hand made watercolors are my dream – someday.
Sincerely- thank you Sharon for your comment. I’m so happy that you have found these reviews to be helpful to you! 🙂 <3
excellent review, information and photographs and artworks! it is great to know what other options are available for people to choose from. 🙂
Thank you Debi 🙂
🙂
awesome !
I ran across Jessica’s feed on Instagram and it is nothing more than cutesy overpriced items for people that like to brag about the supplies they buy and own. Nothing of substance whatsoever. I ordered two pans of this supposedly ‘superior’ watercolor out of curiosity and I have tried student grade paint that is much better than this. Save your money folks, this paint is a waste of money and there is nothing at all superior about it. It is chalky, and the colors are horrid, bordering on muddy.
How about hiring a real artist to do these reviews instead of someone with more $$ than talent?
Gee thanks Stan. I was going to delete your comment, but your assessment of the paints is a fair opinion. And to be fair, I would like to point out that I never called them superior. Charlie and I don’t get paid to do this blog, we do it to share, support, and interact with others who have similar interests. Seems like this isn’t the blog for you. There are plenty of “real” artists out there to check out, you’ve probably run across them in your search. And yes, some of my stuff is cutesy, it fits my sweet disposition. As far as overpriced art supplies- boy do I enjoy the heck out of them! And they’re better than overspending on Cable TV, fast food, booze, or cigarettes. It takes courage to put your heart and writing and art out in a public forum and risk this type of heckling. Good day to you sir.
Hi there! I just wanted to drop a line saying that thanks to this review I bought a set of these paints. A limited edition 10 colour set called the “Maker’s Choice”. I really look forward to trying them out. Thanks so much for your review!
Thanks for dropping in and leaving a comment April. I hope you enjoy them!
Very interesting review – I’ve never tried handcrafted paints.
Handmade watercolors seem to be all the rage these days 🙂