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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

I wrote more about water-mixable oil paints on my Substack. So go there if you want to read a longer (but still very incomplete) article with some of my thoughts. Link: artfulinsights.substack.com/p/water-mixa...

A graphic with a picture of tubes of water-mixable oil paint (Artisan, Cobra, and Duo Aqua) and the URL of the author's Substack blog.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

I want to write a big review of Artisan and Cobra water mixable oil paints, because the stuff out there on the internet is so unhelpful, but I still don't think I know enough to do the topic justice.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Brand new Princeton Dakota #2 brush, vs. the one I bought in December 2024. Look at how much of the bristles disappeared in a year and a half! I will try to be more gentle with the new brush.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Zorn+blue Landscape 5 x 7 inch oil painting on panel The purpose of this painting is to demonstrate the "Zorn" palette (white, yellow ochre, earth red, black) plus phthalo blue red shade, and practice painting on Ampersand Gessobord. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting #traditionalart

5 x 7 inch oil painting on panel, landscape with meadow, trees and distant mountains.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Gessobord Zorn Landscape 8x6" oil painting on panel The purpose of this painting is to demonstrate the "Zorn" palette (white, yellow ochre, red, black), and practice painting on Ampersand Gessobord. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting #traditionalart

Landscape with mountains in background, painted only with white, yellow ochre, red ochre, and black.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

8x6" oil painting on pre-toned canvas panel This is the finished painting on the "Sahara" colored pre-toned canvas panel. I don't think I liked it, it was very hard to judge the green colors. The "Studio Grey" color is easier to use. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting #traditionalart

Oil painting, meadow with mountains in background, on canvas panel.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Catskills in the summer 11x14 inch oil painting on polyester canvas made from recycled PET (that's polyethylene terephthalate, not cats and dogs). Polyester canvas is way more archival than canvas made from natural fibers. Why isn't it more popular? #art #painting #oilpainting #landscapepainting

Landscape painting showing meadow with tree and mountins in the background. Oil painting on canvas.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

"Mediterranean Fields" 14x18 inch oil painting on canvas Don't get into a rut of only painting tiny paintings like I did. Force yourself to paint bigger. This size was big for me. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

Oil painting on canvas, Mediterranean landscape, fields with distant hills/mountains and cypress trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

8x6 inch work in progress Oil on canvas panel I normally don't believe in posting work-in-progress photos, but I wanted to show you a "Pro-tones" canvas panel from Jerry's Artarama that's comes pre-toned in a "Sahara" color (which is an earthy orange). #oilpainting #art

8x6" canvas panel, pre-toned in "Sahara" earth orange, with only the sky oil-painted in

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

"Ampersand Gessobord Landscape" 5x7 inch oil painting on hardboard I had six of these lying around for some reason, so I thought maybe I should learn how to use them. I painted a landscape similar to my Winton v. artist-grade test. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

5 x 7 inch oil painting on Amerpsand Gessobord, landscape of field, and distant trees and hills.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

I've done it! Part I of my big review of Winton oil paint is completed! This is the most in-depth review on the internet, as far as I know. And it's only half done.

artfulinsights.substack.com

Review of Winton Oil Paint, Part I

The best Winton review on the internet!

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

These are some of the tubes of Winton oil paint that I bought for the big review that I'm still writing. Excellent paint at an affordable price. How does Winsor & Newton do it? Economies of scale and volume selling. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting

Seven tubes of Winton oil paint arranged around a 6x6 inch painting in a black frame.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

"Winton Landscape" 6x8 inch oil painting on canvas For my forthcoming review of Winton oil paint, I painted this landscape using only Winton, to compare with the experience of creating a similar painting with artist-grade paint. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6x8 inch oil painting on canvas, landscape painting with low mountains in background, field in foreground

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

Tiny New York landscape #2" I ❤️ NY 2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on paper I painted this in early May, so I was trying to capture spring colors. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting #aceo

2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on canvas paper. Landsacpe with spring colors.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

"Tiny New York landscape" I❤️NY 2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on paper Painting tiny, on paper, solves the problem of where to store your paintings. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting #aceo

2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on canvas paper. Catskills landscape.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

"Artist-Grade Landscape" 6x8 inch oil painting on canvas For my review of Winton paint, I painted this landscape using only artist-grade paints. Then I will paint another one using only Winton, to compare the experience. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

8x6" oil painting, landscape with hills and grasses.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

"Small New York Landscape" 6x6 inch oil painting on paper You all know that New York is a big beautiful state full of mountains, lakes, forests, farms and quaint small towns, and it's not just a bunch of skyscrapers, right? I ❤️ NY #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

Oil painting on canvas paper, New York landscape with field, trees, pond, mountains in background.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

Future articles for my Substack blog: Review of Winton oil paint I'm not a great painter, but I'm a great blogger, and humble too Review of water-mixable oil paints Why water-mixable oil paints stay tacky for so long The psychology of archival paintings

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

"Small Florida Landscape" 🌴 6x6 inch oil painting on paper I don't love this, I don't think I did a very good job with the sky holes in the tree. So, just an alla prima practice painting. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6 x 6 inch oil painting on canvas paper. Landscape, river in Florida with tree on left.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

"Tiny Florida Landscape #3" 🌴 2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on paper. My theory is that in these days of realistic computer-generated images from text prompts, people are responding to analog paintings like mine that look slightly amateurish, because they have a more human look. #art #oilpainting

2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on canvas paper. Florida landscape with wetlands and palm trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Working on a review of Winton oil paint for my Substack blog. Hard to believe it's the most ubiqutous brand of oil paint, but nobody has ever done a good review of it! Winton swatch is on the left, artist-grade paint swatch is on the right. #artist #oilpaint

Winton oil paint on the left, artist-grade paint on the right.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

New Substack article: how to use baby oil to clean your oil painting brushes. Only four people, max, visited the last article, so I don't know why I'm bothering. But maybe if I keep at it, something will happen. artfulinsights.substack.com/p/how-to-use...

artfulinsights.substack.com

How to use baby oil to clean your brushes

I know this topic will cause great consternation to some people who think they know about oil paint.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

In the book Alla Prima II, Richard Schmid writes that "drawing has always been very hard for me." If it was hard for the greatest realist painter of the late 20th and early 21st century, how can a regular guy like me with no formal art training be expected to do it?

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

"Tiny Florida Landscape No.2"🌴 2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on paper. I think this paper surface photographs very well. Good for paintings that you intend to share on social media. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

2.5 x 3.5" oil painting on paper. Florida landscape with tall palm trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 05/07/2026

"Tiny Florida Landscape"🌴 2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on paper. Two months ago I experimented with the concept of doing very tiny practice paintings. Not an original idea, I copied this from other artists on the internet. 😀 #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

2.5 x 3.5 inch oil painting on paper. Vertical landscape of a Florida river surrounded by trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

I can't really say what I want to say about oil painting topics with such short posts like on Bluesky, so I created a Substack! Here is my first post, about pigment load in oil paint. #oilpainting #artist #art

artfulinsights.substack.com

Oil paints and the myth of “pigment load”

A contrarian take on a loaded topic.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

5x7 inch oil painting on canvas (loose) When I paint small, I feel like I'm wasting my time instead of creating big paintings, but then I paint big and I'm not good at it and want to retreat to less intimidating small paintings. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

5x7" oil painting on canvas. Landscape, calm stream in valley, flanked by rolling hills and dark evergreen trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Misty Highlands 12x16 inch oil painting on canvas panel. I finished this painting back in March. An art influencer on YouTube said that 12x16" is the smallest size that's big enough for someone to consider hanging it in their living room. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

12x16 inch oil painting on canvas panel. Misty highlands, with cloudy sky, sparse vegetation, rocks, and a dirt path.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

This is a 9x12 inch oil painting I did a few months ago of a Mediterranean landscape. I like how the colors came out, especially the little hints of orange/red in the foreground. I recall using pyrrole red as a mixing color for that. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

9x12 inch oil painting on canvas. Mediterranean landscape with shrubs, cypress trees, a stream, rocks, and distant hills.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

My 12x16 inch oil painting on canvas panel, Fall in the Adirondacks. I painted this in November. I live in Florida now, but I used to live in New York, and I miss the beautiful fall foliage we had. And I also miss mountains. I haven't posted anything on Bluesky in a really long time.

12x16 inch oil painting on canvas panel, Fall landscape, mountains, mix of decidous and evergreen trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

When people talk about making art that's archival, they are generally talking about art that will look relatively unchanged after a hundred years. But what if you want to make art that lasts THOUSANDS of years? There's not much good advice on how to do that.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 08/09/2025

6x8" oil #painting, on Fredrix canvas. I tried to use the limited palette from the previous painting plus ultramarine blue, but wound up adding phthalo green and purple. Switched to mars black, which was a mistake; lamp black mixes better greens. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

Oil painting, on canvas. Landscape with tall trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

6x8" oil painting, on Fredrix canvas. I took way too long with the last painting, so I forced my self to start and finish this the same day. I used a limited Zorn-type palette to simplify the color mixing. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6x8" oil painting, on Fredrix canvas. Florida wetlands landscape. Zorn palette.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 23/08/2025

9x12" oil painting, on canvas paper, of a Florida landscape, with palm trees. Can't believe it has been almost four years since I moved to Florida. #traditionalart #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 18/08/2025

Hi Bluesky! Here's another 9x12" oil painting on canvas that I just finished. This time, going for a Florida vibe. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

9x12" oil painting on canvas, landscape, wetlands in Florida.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 11/08/2025

Hi Bluesky! Here's a 9x12" oil painting on canvas that I just finished. A while ago I decided I should try painting Florida scenes, but I backslid because I really like mountains. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

9x12" oil painting on canvas, a landscape (in vertical format) with mountains and clouds.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 05/08/2025

Hi Bluesky! I haven't posted here in a while. Here's a 6x8" oil painting that I just finished. I decided I wanted to experiment with doing landscapes in vertical (aka portrait) orientation. What do you think? #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6x8" oil painting on canvs, landscape with stream and mountains.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 12/06/2025

12x16" oil #painting on canvas panel Florida landscape This one was hanging around only half finished for a long time. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 12/04/2025

9x9" oil #painting on canvas paper Florida landscape VII 9x9 is kind of a weird size, but if you have a 9x12" sheet of canvas paper, and you cut it into a square, that's what you get. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

This is a cheap 6x6" frame from from Amazon, with an oil #painting on Canson Canva-Paper. Canvas paper is very easy and inexpensive to frame if you go this route. Just stick it into the frame in FRONT of the plexiglass. You don't have to mount it or anything like that. #traditionalart #oilpainting

6x6" oil painting on canvas paper in a cheap black Amazon frame

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 08/04/2025

6x6" oil #painting on Ampersand Gessobord Florida landscape VI Zorn palette + phthalo blue (red shade) I finally caught up with posting everything I painted during the last 6 months, and have nothing new to post. But there's a half-done painting on my easel. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

6x8" oil #painting on canvas paper Florida landscape V Painted alla-prima style using the Zorn palette + phthalo blue (red shade). Nobody on the internet (as far as I know) has ever talked about adding phthalo blue to the Zorn palette. I'm the first! #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6x8" oil painting on canvas (Canson-Canva) paper of a Florida landscape with water and palm trees.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 06/04/2025

6x8" oil #painting on canvas paper Florida landscape IV Zorn palette + phthalo blue (red shade). What's not to love about phthalo blue? Especially the red shade which is better for skies. It makes the limited Zorn palette a lot less limited. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 05/04/2025

6x8" oil #painting on canvas paper Florida landscape III Zorn palette plus cobalt blue. Cobalt blue turns out to be a very overrated color. People think because it's expensive it must be really awesome, but it's not even as good as ultramarine. #art #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6x8" oil painting on Canson canva-paper. Florida landscape with palm tree and water. Painted alla prima style.

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

6x8" oil #painting on canvas Modified Zorn palette I replaced the yellow ochre with Winsor & Newton Chrome Yellow Hue (a Hansa yellow type of color). Don't think this worked. Yellow ochre is an essential color for both landscapes and Zorn-style paintings. #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6x8" oil painting on cavas, estuary in Florida

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Michael Kantor @michaelartist4.bsky.social · 03/04/2025

6x8" oil painting on canvas Alla prima Zorn palette study I got artist block trying to paint a 12x16" Florida landscape, so I thought that doing this small study using only one paintbrush would help. Note that for the red I used pyrrole red (PR254). #painting #oilpainting #landscapepainting

6x8" oil painting on canvas, alla prima Florida landscape painted with the Zorn palette

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