I love new art supplies. Sometimes something looks good but doesn't work out, but it's still fun to try new things. This week I finally got a Pentel Brush Pen. I have seen other artist on-line use them but have never seen one in the wild. Not even at my local art store. So I ordered a couple with a couple of refill cartridges. The Aquaman piece below is my first real attempt at using the brush pen and I am very happy with the results.
Aquaman © DC Comics
Below is a shot of the brush pen. There are some key advantages with this tool. First, the brush is nylon and it holds a very nice point. The Aquaman art is only 4" x 5"and I managed to get some nice delicate lines on it. The Pitt brush pens I have used are made from felt and they tend to get soft pretty quick. And even brand new, it's hard to get a real delicate line using them. There are two advantages for me in using the Pentel Brush Pen over a regular brush. The first being that the Brush Pen has an ink cartridge that feeds the ink to the brush as needed. In the picture below, the black area that makes up the body of the brush pen is the cartridge. I don't have to clean my brush or keep going back to the ink to dip. The other advantage is the thickness of the brush pen. When I use a regular brush, I tend to hold it really tight. So tight that I get an indentation on my finger. The brushes are skinny and I have tried wrapping them in tape or putting things around them to make the grip area thicker but it never feels right. This brush pen has a nice natural feel to it and is very comfortable to hold.
I will be playing with these more as time allows. I'm sure I will find some drawbacks to them, but as of right now I am very happy my purchase and the results.
This is Post #1120
5 comments:
Gene-
I've got a couple of these and have yet to try them. I also have the other brush pen a lot of people use, also made by Pentel, waiting for me to open!
I agree with your comments on the Pitt brush markers, they are good for about ONE piece and then they just don't hold up. I'll continue to use them for some sketches, etc, but am looking forward to getting back to something that's more of a "real" brush!
I'll have to find some time to give my Pentel brush pens a bit of attention!
They seem like a very useful tool.
This is the other Pentel brush pen:
http://www.dickblick.com/products/pentel-pocket-brush-pen/
Dave Johnson swears by them...
...or is that at them?
Anyway...I need to give it a try...looks killer!
John - I started going back to my WN 7s and Rosemary & Co kolinsky sables because I wanted that snappy line again. But the things I mentioned in the post are a pain. I've seen the pocket brush pen but haven't heard anything about them. I will have to pick one up. I read one review and it sounded like the person uses his own ink. That would be a plus. Thanks for the info!
ooh lovely butt ;)
Well, if this first piece is any indication of what we can expect, we are in for a lot of great blog posts with this new pen/brush Gene! Nice work and great review of the pros and cons of using the pen.
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