Tutorials, videos, tips & techniques

Karen Vernon's painting Windows of the World is an 11x14 watercolor on Ampersand Aquabord. Take a look at the many layers of color that have been applied to this beautiful painting.

Claybord is our most versatile panel and is a favorite of both fine and graphic artists. It features a velvety-smooth and extremely absorbent clay finish to which no other surface compares. This kaolin clay ground formula is very similar to the clay gesso grounds used during the Renaissance period.

For the past 20 years I have worked on Aquabord which allows me to do far more than I ever dreamed of doing on paper. Not only does it give me more luminous, vibrant color, but it allows me to present my works with no glass. I can create intimate 1x1 pieces up to large 42x90 paintings. Or pieces to be framed traditionally or to present cradled with no frame at all.

Follow along with Sally Maxwell's step-by-step instructions to create a finished 5x7 Scratchbord.

Contemporary acrylic artist, Nancy Reyner, works with gold leaf and acrylics on Ampersand Hardbord. This video is a complete instructional tutorial on gold leaf, its properties, and how to apply it to use as a painting surface. Nancy's exceptional instruction make this video a pleasure to watch and intriguing for even a beginning artist.

Claybord can be coated with inks and used like a traditional scratchboard. The advantage to using Claybord as a scratchboard is that you can control the tonal variations unlike using a traditional black scratchboard. Try this exercise and see how easy it is to do.

Egg tempera artist Mark Meunier has found that working on an absorbent surface, like Ampersand Claybord is best, as the egg needs something to soak into to adhere correctly. Mark has taken the difficulty out of egg tempera and created a technique that anyone can use.