“DANIEL SMITH is the only brand I’ve worked with that I know I can 100% rely upon for its perfect color transparency, which is critical to my award-winning works. I can truly create a final mix that is clear with very nice color. Other brands leave something behind, creating a color that’s more like looking through a dirty window. This 100% certainty made me fall in love with a newfound freedom.”

This is a true compliment from an artist who loves to try every brand on the global market. Michael Solovyev first discovered DANIEL SMITH when he moved to Canada, after having limited access to art supplies while living in Russia during a Communist regime. He happily tells the story of attending an artist festival where the town square was full of vendor tents, including Daniel Smith. Michael was very surprised that the gentleman working this tent was not a local salesperson, but rather the company owner. “This was amazing to me, that the man at the top of the brand was still engaged with the product and enthusiastically talking with artists. I knew that I was no longer in Russia,” he jokes. “On a serious note, I was very impressed that this was more than business to the owner, it was about innovation – and that stuck with me.”  The following year, Michael traveled to the Daniel Smith headquarters to meet with their team, see the operation and develop his own curated set of watercolors.

Michael’s palette usually holds nine colors, which is all he needs for 80% of his work. But for this new set, he chose ten colors with a balance of warm and cool hues that will allow artists to develop a robust color family.

Michael Solovyev’s Master Artist Set includes 10 5ml/0.17oz Tubes:

• India Yellow
• Quinacridone Deep Gold
• Quinacridone Sienna
• Alizarin Crimson 
• Perylene Violet
• Moonglow
• Cobalt Blue
• Phthalo Blue (Green shade)
• Phthalo Green (Blue shade)
• Indigo