Arteza Colored Pencils vs Prismacolor

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Arteza colored pencils vs Prismacolor – who wins this comparison battle? Well, each of these brands has noteworthy qualities.

Arteza colored pencils impress with exceptional quality, seamless blending capabilities, and affordability, ideal for artists who prefer slightly harder lead, and eye-pleasing color transitions.

Prismacolor colored pencils, however, excel with their soft, velvety texture, producing vibrant finished drawings. They offer layering capabilities for added depth and intricate details; the lightfast options ensure long-lasting artwork.

Let’s compare these top-grade colored pencils in terms of pigment quality, blendability, layering capabilities, durability, lightfastness, and affordability to see what’s best for your artistic needs.

A Brief Comparison of Arteza and Prismacolor Colored Pencils

Side by Side – A Detailed Face-Off between Arteza and Prismacolor Colored Pencils

Arteza and Prismacolor are both reputable brands in the art industry, hence making it quite challenging for artists, whether newbies or experts, to decide which is the better selection.

In this section, we will compare these high-quality colored pencils when it comes to:

For every aspect that we discuss, we will rate each colored pencil brand on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest.

Pigment Quality

Arteza Colored Pencils – 8/10

Arteza offers a wide range of highly saturated pigments that yield vivid colors with each stroke. The pigments perform exceptionally well, providing a smooth color surface even after the first layer.

The smooth wax-based core allows for transitioning different colors, eliminating noticeable transition lines between colors. The pencil barrels directly reflect the pigment, aiding color identification.

Moreover, layering multiple times is possible, setting Arteza apart from other wax-based pencils. Although the pencils demonstrate remarkable performance, some minor wax blooms may appear after 2 to 3 layers.

Prismacolor Colored Pencils – 9/10

Prismacolor colored pencils feature a soft wax pigment that spreads easily over different surfaces. With a vast selection of individual colors, Prismacolor offers versatility and options for all sorts of artists.

The thick-quality cores of these pencils enable easy blending and shading, creating depth and dimension. The pigments are quite rich, which promotes resistance to breakage.
Layered colors build up quickly, achieving a painting-like effect reminiscent of oil glazing techniques.

Blendability

Arteza Colored Pencils – 9/10

Arteza colored pencils are superb in terms of blendability, surpassing many other major brands. They allow for effortless blending by hand, eraser, or solvent, providing smooth color transitions. All thanks to their wax-based core.

The impressive blendability opens up new possibilities for artistic approaches and compensates for the limited color selection in the smaller sets.

Prismacolor Colored Pencils – 9/10

Prismacolor colored pencils boast creamy cores that blend exceptionally well, making them ideal for blending and shading techniques. They offer even color distribution without chipping or bleeding.

Moreover, Prismacolor’s colorless blending pencils further enhance the blending process, allowing for enhancing color quality.

Layering Capabilities

Arteza Colored Pencils – 8/10

Arteza colored pencils exhibit fantastic layering capabilities, akin to oil-based pencils. They create a smooth color surface even after the first layer, providing consistent results.

Unlike many other wax-based pencils, Arteza pencils allow for multiple layers, enabling artists to build depth and add intricate details. The pencils hold their point remarkably well and do not crumble during layering applications.

Prismacolor Colored Pencils – 10/10

Prismacolor colored pencils offer rapid color buildup through layering techniques. With precise application, Prismacolor drawings can even resemble realistic paintings.

The succeeding layers build upon each other like translucent glazing techniques that are often employed in oil painting.

This exceedingly incredible layering capability allows artists to achieve remarkable depth and complexity in their artwork.

Durability

Arteza Colored Pencils – 7/10

Arteza Expert colored pencils feature a slightly harder wax lead, which marginally increases the risk of cracking and chipping under heavy pressure. However, they can be sharpened to a sharp point, making them suitable for detailed work.

Fortunately, the thick, round barrel provides balance and protection. Some variants are break-resistant, ensuring long-lasting performance.

Prismacolor Colored Pencils – 9/10

Prismacolor colored pencils are indeed known for their barrel and lead durability. The softcore pencils hold up well even with passionate use, thanks to their thick cores and quality construction.

Also, the harder material of Prismacolor Scholar pencils makes them suitable for busy classroom settings. These pencils exhibit excellent durability in various situations, making them a reliable pick for both beginners and experts.

Lightfastness

Arteza Colored Pencils – 8/10

Arteza pencils have been tested and shown to maintain their color vibrancy over time. The color stability is remarkable, with the assurance that the hues will stay the same for many decades.

This level of lightfastness is excellent, allowing your artwork to withstand the test of time and retain its original brilliance.

The Arteza Professional colored pencils perform smoothly and creamily during application, while also offering good lightfastness. The lightfastness of each color is conveniently printed on the barrel, adding value to the overall package.

Prismacolor Colored Pencils – 8/10

Prismacolor offers many excellent lightfast pencils, surpassing some popular brands in terms of lightfastness. The majority of Prismacolor browns, grays, and yellows are praised for their commendable ratings and are considered archival.

However, it is worth noting that the Prismacolor Premier set contains a few colors that are not lightfast. To address this concern, Prismacolor created an exclusive set featuring only their lightfast colors that are sure to last for decades.

Affordability

Arteza Colored Pencils – 10/10

Arteza colored pencils are competitively priced, offering large, complete sets without breaking the bank. They provide remarkable value for artists who are just starting out or those working on various projects but are on a budget.

The combination of performance, durability, and affordability makes Arteza pencils an attractive option for all types of artists.

Prismacolor Colored Pencils – 6/10

Prismacolor pencils are known for their quality, but they come at a higher price point compared. The steeper cost reflects the higher proportion of pigment, resulting in richer and bolder colors.

Artist-grade Prismacolor pencils are also more lightfast and softer, facilitating ease of use and blending.

While they may be pricey, the quality and characteristics of Prismacolor pencils justify their higher price tag, making them a worthwhile investment for dedicated artists.

Conclusion

The battle between Arteza colored pencils vs Prismacolor is a close one as both brands showcase distinctive qualities that many artists would undoubtedly appreciate.

When picking between these top-grade colored pencils, you have to take into account factors such as pigment quality, blend ability, layering capabilities, durability, lightfastness, and affordability to find the preferable fit for your creative desires.