Re: Gum Chemicals - starting out question

Perhaps I'm assuming too much in assuming that the B&S kit contains
their best gum; you should probably ask just to be sure, because they do
also carry a lower grade of gum, or did last time I looked.
kt

Katharine Thayer wrote:
>
> DWAYNE SANDALL wrote:
> >
> > Hi all,
> >
> > I am, after much time and agonizing, finally going to start some gum printing this fall. I have a question about some kits out there in the market, namely the one from Bostick & Sullivan and the other from Photographers Formulary.
> >
> > I am mainly interested in the raw chemicals in each kit, is there a difference in quality or some other intangible? or am I better off to pick up the chemicals seperately? The paper and pigments aren't as much of a concern as the chemicals, as I am a failed painter from my university days :-)
> >
>
> Dwayne,
> There's a difference in the gum. The B&S kit includes a high-quality
> pure gum arabic, one of several good pure gum arabics you could choose
> from, while Photographers' Formulary, last I knew anyway, has gone to a
> dark lithographers' gum. I write about the difference between the two
> types of gum on this page (scroll down to the heading Gum Arabic):
>
> http://www.pacifier.com/~kthayer/html/materials.html
>
> If you have been a painter, you might like to mix colors by eye as I do,
> and in that case you may prefer a gum that allows you to see the colors
> as you mix. One type of gum is not inherently better than the other;
> it's a matter of personal preference which you choose, but it's good to
> know what you're choosing between.
> Katharine Thayer
Received on Wed Sep 8 12:41:04 2004