Alex Venezia (b. 1993, Virginia Beach, VA) is a representational oil painter currently living and working in Old Lyme, Connecticut.Drawn to drawing from a young age, Alex’s path toward painting sharpened in high school, where a lesson on Caravaggio's tenebrism, paired with a classroom poster of Waterhouse’s The Lady of Shalott, ignited a fascination with oil painting’s emotional depth and narrative power.Largely self-taught, Alex sought out mentorship from a range of artists across traditions and disciplines, forging a personal approach rooted in observation but open to evolving. His process has developed from straightforward transcription to a more inventive, compositional practice.Recurring through his work is a quiet sense of nostalgia, healing, and hope, a search for images that are at once emotionally resonant and compositionally refined.Now based at the historic Lyme Academy of Fine Arts, where he teaches figure and portrait painting, Alex works from a north-lit studio that has subtly shaped the character of his recent work. He is represented by Arcadia Contemporary in New York City, and his paintings have received numerous national awards, including multiple first-place prizes from The Portrait Society of America. His work is held in private and public collections, including the New Salem Museum.Alex Venezia
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Organic, Natural Earth – Raw Umber is one of the fundamental Earths used as an imprimatura pigment to draw out compositions as a ground, as many Rubens sketches prove. Depending on the degree of transparency, it exhibits greenish undertones.
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Organic – Napthol Red is a well-established, organic pigment that can be used transparently or opaquely, according to choice. In an unmixed state, it is a pure and slightly fiery red with high tint power and a range of yellowy-orange undertones. These undertones become noticeable when brushed and produce much brighter and warmer pinks than are attainable with the Cadmium Reds. When mixed with white, Napthol Red will appear almost fluorescent.
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Organic – Alizarin Claret has a slightly lighter mass tone than that of Alizarin Crimson, and yet it has greater resistance to UV light than Alizarin Crimson. I specifically formulated this beautiful, full-bodied colour for those artists who are reluctant to use Alizarin Crimson. With its versatility and beautry, Alizarin Claret is perfect for portraitures, landscapes, and non-figurative works, and it’s a delight for mixing with other transparent colours.
Artefex Lead White Oil-Primed ACM Panel is a professional oil primed art panel with Rublev lead white oil priming on a two-sided aluminum composite panel, consisting of two aluminum sheets laminated to both sides of a black polyethylene core.
Gamsol is the safest solvent that allows oil painters to utilise all traditional painting techniques without compromise.
Primary Uses for Gamsol:
Thinning oil colours. A little goes a long way; stiff oil colours relax immediately when a little Gamsol is added. Be careful not to thin oil colours too much with solvent alone, this can compromise the ability of the paint to form a paint film.
Modifying painting mediums. Gamblin's Galkyd line of painting mediums is formulated with Gamsol, so they readily accept Gamsol as a thinning agent. Note: Gamsol should not be added to painting mediums made with natural resins (dammar, copal, mastic). They require strong solvents such as turpentine.
Studio clean up: brushes, palettes, palette knives, etc.
How does Gamsol achieve this level of performance and safety? Most solvents available to artists come from the industrial paint industry where solvent power and cheapness is prized. Gamsol is special: it is made for products and processes that come into more intimate contact with the body such as cosmetics, hand cleaners, and cleaning food service equipment.
Gamsol is a petroleum distillate but all the aromatic solvents have been refined out of it, less than .005% remains. Aromatic solvents are the most harmful types of petroleum solvents.
These facts are detailed in the MSDS for Gamsol, this document shows that it has an Exposure Limit Value higher than most solvents available to artists.
All of these factors have lead to Gamsol being used widely in oil painting classrooms; in those classes there are no solvent odours, only the wonderful smell of oil colours.
POSH® Glass Palettes live up to their name, offering a sleek and durable surface for your work. Currently available in a 12" x 16" size with a grey finish, this palette is made from 1/8" tempered glass for enhanced strength and safety. It also features custom corner guards for added protection and stability during use. The edges are smoothly finished, and the underside is coated with a dense, solvent- and water-resistant layer for long-lasting performance.
Organic, Natural Earth – An impure, amorphous Carbon in Calcium Phosphate, Ivory Black is no longer made from burnt ivory scraps but from charred animal bones. It is denser in shade and cooler than Lamp Black, with stronger tint power. Ivory Black, the blackest of the blacks, is the most frequently used black in the range.
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Organic – Alizarin Claret has a slightly lighter mass tone than that of Alizarin Crimson, and yet it has greater resistance to UV light than Alizarin Crimson. I specifically formulated this beautiful, full-bodied colour for those artists who are reluctant to use Alizarin Crimson. With its versatility and beautry, Alizarin Claret is perfect for portraitures, landscapes, and non-figurative works, and it’s a delight for mixing with other transparent colours.
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Inorganic – Yellow Ochre is a higher-keyed and more green-gold shade of manufactured Iron Oxide. Its hues yield mustardy yellows quite close to Genuine Naples Yellow Dark. No. 119 possesses an almost viscous texture and is a lovely colour for flesh tones, landscapes, and non-figurative works.
Artefex Allinpanel is a professional art panel for oil painting with 100% linen canvas lead oil-primed and adhered with BEVA 371 film to a two-sided aluminum composite panel, consisting of two aluminum sheets laminated to both sides of a black polyethylene core.
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Inorganic – No. 113 is an obviously beautiful mid-blue. The discovery in the 1820s of a Sodium Sulphosilicate compound, which had appeared as a mysterious blue deposit on soda-ash furnaces, was a liberating moment for financially challenged artists everywhere. Up to then the only available version of this compound was the often-unobtainable Lapis Lazuli ore, mined in Afghanistan. Ultramarine has a high tint power, and our chosen shade produces strong green shade blue hues and makes wonderful violets with Magenta and the red Lake colours. It is also useful in greens and greys. The only chemical weakness is a recorded sensitivity to atmospherically borne acids, which can bleach it out. Ultramarine Blue is one of the more difficult paints to make, as it forms an intractable runny syrup when first ground into oil, which must then be stabilized with a small amount of wax.
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Inorganic – This Iron Oxide has been used as a wood dye, and its capacity to enrich hardwood grain makes it a wonderful candidate for paint making. It has great warmth, with gingery undertones quite different from those seen in the Indian Yellows. Because the pigment particles are small, it could almost be mistaken for a Lake. It has huge tint power that pulls whites and other yellows into a golden, rich, Titianesque zone of warm, low tones. Try it with Aureolin and the Earths.
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Inorganic, Natural Earth – Raw Sienna is powerful to use as a ground tone and for underpainting. Its origins date back to the 17th century, and it’s one of the indispensable Earth Iron Oxides! As the name suggests, the best grade comes from central Italy, where I acquire my pigment.
The Nitram Charcoal Sharpening Block is an excellent tool for sharpening your Nitram charcoal or other drawing materials. It has a long wooden handle with a sharpening pad attached to the end. The sharpening pad has a grit of 180. A spare set of two replacement pads is also included.
Approximately 230mm in length, including the handle
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Inorganic – Introduced at about the same time as Ultramarine, Cobalt Aluminate is a synthetic, inorganic pigment. It is more greenish-blue, with a heavier, more mineral appearance when seen as a dry pigment. The hues formed from it are correspondingly heavier and greyer. But it has a certain shade that the less expensive ultramarine cannot quite match. The paint film, when cured, is quite soft.
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Inorganic – This Iron Oxide has been used as a wood dye, and I realised that its capacity to enrich the grain of hardwood made it a wonderful candidate for paint making. Michael’s Transparent Red Oxide is an Iron Oxide manufactured to such a small pigment particle size that like its yellow counterpart, it possesses Lake-like characteristics. No. 220 has terrific tint power that produces wonderful results in mixes with yellows and brings gravity to mid-red tones. Mix it with phthalocyanine blue for an interesting surprise!
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When mixed with oil paint, Michael Harding’s linseed oil increases the gloss and transparency of the paint, thins the paint for easier flow, and reduces visible brush marks. It also slows the drying time of the paint. However, using too much can cause yellowing due to the natural color of the oil and can lead to defects like wrinkling if layers are applied too thickly.
Alkali Refined Pale Linseed Oil, a pale oil extracted from flax seeds, is used in many of Michael Harding’s paints. This oil ensures a strong paint film during drying, contributing to the longevity of each painting. It is also suitable for use with dry ground pigments.
Please note: Soft materials soaked in linseed oil should be stored in sealed containers to prevent oxidation, which can generate heat and potentially cause spontaneous combustion. Ensure the container is securely closed and stored in a cool place. Brushes and tools used with linseed oil should be cleaned with white spirit.
Michael Harding’s Refined Linseed Oil is crafted from the finest materials. Michael Harding continually develops, tests, and releases new artist supplies, maintaining a commitment to sourcing the highest quality materials. Using Michael Harding products means working with materials that meet the standards of the Old Masters, combined with modern innovation.
(Hard) 5mm
Each package contains five (5) batons.
Nitram H can be sharpened to an extra fine point for creating fine detail in your drawing. Also, the unique hardness of Nitram H makes lighter and mid tones easier to attain.