I made some period paint brushes, shown below.
Instructions : Sources used: "The Craftman's Handbook, Il Libro dell' Arte", Cennino d'Andrea Cennini, and picture of artist done by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, The Painter and the Connoisseur. c. 1565. Drawing, 25.5 × 21.5 cm. Graphische Sammlung Albertina, Vienna. Portraits of artists from Workshop of the Bedford Master, French about 1440-1450, and portrait of painter Thamar in miniatures of the Boccaccio manuscript.
Tools and materials: Wood and bamboo, waxed cotton thread, fox pelt, feather quills from variety of birds. Cennini on Page 40 of "The Craftman's Handbook, Il Libro dell' Arte" mentions using minever (short tailed weasel) or hog bristles, using the tails of the minever. I used available pelts of fox. Cennini mentions use vulture quills, goose quill, hen or dove's feather. I used available variety of quills. Cennini mentions using thread or waxed silk, I used available waxed cotton thread. Cennini mentions maple or chestnut or other good wood, I used maple wood, and dropped small branches available in my native area of New England because they were available and bamboo.
Procedure: Using Cennini as a guide, I wet the pelt, tied the waxed thread in a bow around it, wrapped it four times. I then cut the hair from pelt and continued to wrap it with the waxed thread. I cut a quill and formed it around the hair and continued to wrap it with the waxed threads. I put a hole in the wood and placed the bristles there, continuing to wrap the hair and the wood until it was affixed. I then mixed up a batch of rabbit skin glue (I'll explain in a different post) and adhered the hair, thread, and quill onto the whittled stick.
Things I might do differently in the future - I'm working on getting hog's hair, as well as a substitute for the tail of a stoat or minerver. Someone suggested buying a hog's hair brush from a commercial outlet and then just taking the paint brush apart. I'm concerned that there may be some things done to the hairs in the manufacturing process that will effect the outcome, but I'm going to think about it. I'm also going to see about getting some fish glue, because that might hold up better than the rabbit skin glue.
Tools and materials: Wood and bamboo, waxed cotton thread, fox pelt, feather quills from variety of birds. Cennini on Page 40 of "The Craftman's Handbook, Il Libro dell' Arte" mentions using minever (short tailed weasel) or hog bristles, using the tails of the minever. I used available pelts of fox. Cennini mentions use vulture quills, goose quill, hen or dove's feather. I used available variety of quills. Cennini mentions using thread or waxed silk, I used available waxed cotton thread. Cennini mentions maple or chestnut or other good wood, I used maple wood, and dropped small branches available in my native area of New England because they were available and bamboo.
Procedure: Using Cennini as a guide, I wet the pelt, tied the waxed thread in a bow around it, wrapped it four times. I then cut the hair from pelt and continued to wrap it with the waxed thread. I cut a quill and formed it around the hair and continued to wrap it with the waxed threads. I put a hole in the wood and placed the bristles there, continuing to wrap the hair and the wood until it was affixed. I then mixed up a batch of rabbit skin glue (I'll explain in a different post) and adhered the hair, thread, and quill onto the whittled stick.
Things I might do differently in the future - I'm working on getting hog's hair, as well as a substitute for the tail of a stoat or minerver. Someone suggested buying a hog's hair brush from a commercial outlet and then just taking the paint brush apart. I'm concerned that there may be some things done to the hairs in the manufacturing process that will effect the outcome, but I'm going to think about it. I'm also going to see about getting some fish glue, because that might hold up better than the rabbit skin glue.
RSS Feed
