MOST COMMONLY USED BRUSH SHAPES
● Round brush: A multi-purpose work horse in the studio, its large belly and pointed tip will lay down any thickness of line. I use thin lines for my initial drawing out and for adding detail; larger round sizes are used for thicker and bolder brushstrokes.
● Flat brush: excellent for covering large areas of flat colour, but the stiffer filament brushes are perfect for achieving painterly mark-making brushstrokes and applying impasto. The flat square edge is ideal for bold expansive strokes, and the flat edge will produce straight fine lines.
● Bright brush: sometimes referred to as a short flat, although it has shorter bristles so is firmer, and is excellent for moving heavy colour around on your canvas. The head is rather stubby and a good choice if you want your brushstrokes to be visible. I use these mainly for dabbing on small, controlled impasto brushstrokes.
● Filbert brush: another studio work horse that has a distinctive oval shape and is basically a combination of a round and a flat. The versatile curved tip gives you smooth, even strokes and it is a useful brush for blending edges and paint mixing. It will produce a thin line if used on its side or broad brushstrokes when used flat. Also available as a long filbert. With use, a flat brush will eventually wear down and end up looking similar to a filbert!
Other useful shapes include riggers, fans, egberts and so on, but stick to the most commonly used brushes to start off with. The only exception here would be to add a rigger brush at some stage; this useful brush has long hairs and is great for adding fine detail.