This time we’ll talk about how to choose hog bristle brushes. As always, we’ll cover many aspects: use, sources, benefits and ethical questions.
What is special about hog hair?
Hog bristle brushes, as you can guess from the name, made from pigs’ hair. Generally speaking, hog bristle has some unique characteristics: most of its hair has split tip, wide and strong body, and very sturdy “springy” stiff structure. Split-ends provide better paint hold and smoother application for heavy-bodied paint, which is very valuable especially for oil painting and varnishing.
However, a hog is a big animal and not all hair works well for art brushes. Hair from the back gives the longest bristle and has less amount of split-ends. Bristle from the sides has 80% flagged-ends and most quality brushes are made with this kind of hair, while hair from the neck, belly, legs are softer and less durable. But these are not the only things that determine quality of hair.
Another very important factor is breed. You may think that there is a specific breed that gives a better hair as some sources may say. In fact, for hog bristle brushes the best breed is no breed. That’s why the most stiff and sturdy bristle comes from wild or free-run pigs. Also, the colder the temperature where pigs are raised the better the quality of bristle.
The biggest importer of hog bristle is China, but quality in most cases is very questionable. The second place belongs to Germany.
Studio grade vs. professional grade
The best hog bristle brushes
As we already mentioned, not all hog-bristle brushes have the same quality due to many reasons. And, of course, every brushes, low or high quality, has its own purpose. Now, let’s take a look at how to make a choice that meets your goals and expectations.
Even though the best hog bristle brushes seem to be the ones that have a good split at the tip, for fine art works the best and most expensive have no more than 20% of split-ended hair and show maximum of flexibility, completely restoring their shapes after bending. This hair literally springs back.
Also, the longer the hair the more expensive the brush, but it doesn’t mean that you need long ones. The longer the hair the softer application. So, if you work in rough style or want to achieve perfect flat blending short haired brushes will work better.
If a brush has 80% of flagged ends, it should cost you less money, but also provide some good use. For example, dry brush technique or casual painting will work well with this kind of brushes. Such a brush will hold paint very well and release it evenly, or the way you want.
Soft bristled hog brushes or brushes with excessive split would work perfectly for varnish application or overall glazing. Lower-grade brushes from this segment you can find also in construction stores.
The worst hog bristle brushes
The worst brushes (that RUSART can’t even find a good use in painting) have very harsh endings. That happens when manufacturers try to maximize profits and use the same hair twice or more. For example, we have a long good hair. The top part will go for expensive brush, but there is still a lot of length left. Normally, other industries use those left-overs, like for making ropes or threads as well as fillings for some cushions. But if you slice the rest and sell it for a brush you can make much more! That’s what most cheap manufacturers do. And these kinds of brushes do NOT work for painting at all. You can use them for glue or some crafts, though.
Hog bristle paint brushes for oil
Hog bristle brushes are born for oil. There are no any better brushes for underpainting, blending or spreading oil paints. All other kinds of brushes are not that stiff and don’t hold heavy paint very well.
However, for very detailed works, after using hog bristle brushes for initial layering, some artists may prefer synthetic or kolinsky sable brushes.
Hog bristle paint brushes for watercolour
RUSART doesn’t recommend hog bristle brushes for watercolours. They can damage paper and ruin your work. Please use softer choices, such as Squirrel, Faux Squirrel, Kolinsky, Faux Kolinsky, White Goat, or Sable Mix.
Hog bristle paint brushes for acrylic
Traditionally we tend to think, that which tools work well for oil will work well for acrylic as well. But that’s not completely true. Oil paints apparently have oil inside, while acrylics are water-based. And hog bristle brushes as any other natural brushes absorb water. This makes acrylic painting uncomfortable as (1) bristle becomes softer and unpredictable (2) water from ferrule may affect painting process.
For acrylic painting we recommend Faux Hog Bristle brushes instead.
Sable paint brushes for tempera
Please see acrylic use.
Ethical questions
Hogs and pigs apparently are not rare or at risk species and farmed easily a lot around the world. Also hogs-quality hog-bristle brushes are very durable and will last more than any synthetic brush. As that’s hog bristle hair is a natural product they are completely biodegradable.
Cleaning and care
As hog bristle brushes are very sturdy, they can tolerate well even harsh cleaning solutions. For cleaning after oil painting, you can use regular vegetable oil, turpentine, solvent, dishwasher soap or bar soap.
RUSART suggests using special RUSART Naturals: Oil-based brush cleanser. It gently cleans your brushes and conditions them in seconds.
After acrylic or tempera painting you can use just water and soap, such as RUSART Naturals: Marseille Soap, which thanks to natural clays and olive oil removes paint particles and prolongs brush life.
We hope this short overview gave you some ideas on how and when choose hog bristle brushes.
(c) RUSART
Iryna as a Canadian artist
Her studio is full of interesting and unique pieces that help her set up compositions for every mood and season, complemented with flowers, plants or fruits. All objects she is depicting have their own little stories that make a novel when painted.
