Stuart Semple BLACK 2.0 - The World’s Mattest, Flattest, black high pigmented waterbased acrylic paint for artists

I can’t describe how satisfying Black 2.0 is to paint with. It’s black, sure. I mean, yeah, it’s black black. But the even more amazing thing about it is how smooth it goes on, and such amazing coverage! It’s almost like the thing you’re painting is disappearing. I’ve been looking around the house for things to paint black, just to paint them black. Wife is not thrilled about this, by the way.This is probably the blackest paint you’ve ever seen, until Black 3.0. So I’m going to rag and brag on both Black 2.0 and Black 3.0 now. Black 2.0 looks gray compared side-by-side with 3.0. But 3.0 is awful to work with, in my opinion. The best thing to do is prime whatever you want to paint using Black 2.0 and put a top coat of 3.0 on it. Even then, sometimes the 3.0 tends to have whitish- I don’t know what- like, residue lines on it. I can’t explain, it’s like maybe the water I diluted with was contaminated (but I use DI water, and clean my brushes with DI) or it leached something out of the object. Anyway, with enough fuss you can get the thing coated, but not with the same joie de vivre as Black 2.0. And a dab of 3.0 will not have anywhere near the same coverage as 2.0. BTW, you can tell that Black 2.0 and 3.0 are totally different fundamentally, not just a tweak in the recipe, by how they clean up. A molecule of Black 2.0 will turn your whole sink black, but 3.0 cleans up easily.

Not as black as you think, but way more black than anything you have. It is very matte, but it won’t give your stuff the void look you think you’ll get if you’re basing your purchase off that vantablack stuff. If you want black in your paintings or such this will really make an impact. I use it for paintings as a backdrop.

If you leave this paint 'flat' (without a clear coat) it will not be as black as you might expect. A "flat" surface simply means that all light hitting it is either absorbed or reflected back out in a scattered fashion, hence the non shiny flatness look. If you put a shiny clear coat glaze over it WILL LOOK DARKER but again there will be shiny spots where the light source is reflected back out in a columnar fashion to the eye when seen at tangent angles.The trick is to absorb ALL the light falling on the surface of the paint. This paint did not do this for me.The closest thing to this end (non reflective black) is a well made black velvet cloth.I am giving it five stars (assuming it holds) because I would like the optomistic minds to see this information. It is actually a negative five stars.

Black 2.0 is made by Stewart Semple in collaboration with other artists. It is an amazingly deep, flat black -when surfaces are appropriately prepped and when instructions are followed. The end result isn't a black hole and you shouldn't expect one, but this is REALLY dark.I got this for a wall-sized video backdrop project. Initially, I didn't use Black 2.0, I used an eggshell black from a home improvement store instead —which created a lot of reflection. So, I ordered 2 bottles of Black 2.0.NOTE: It's important —really, REALLY important to follow the directions, which can be found on Culture Hustle's website. Follow the directions, prepare surfaces that are porous (wood, paper) or shiney (metal, plastics); otherwise you end up with [see images of reviewers complaining about their cutting board, plastic bottle caps, whatever] —sort of mess.IF you're painting a large space like I did (an 8'x6' wall), don't use a 2" brush. It will take FOREVER and you'll find yourself applying multiple times just to cover gaps in spots where the paint is drying. Another reviewer mentioned 'shrinkage' or something to that effect and I don't think that's really the case, I think it's more of a coverage issue. Anyway, use a roller instead or sprayer for bigger projects.In the first image, you can see gaps in between paint patches. This image was taken within 1hr of first application, so, it was still drying. Most of the reflected light is from the previous paint job or gaps between paint patches, NOT Black 2.0. I was very cognizant of not trying to apply it heavily, or paint over freshly laid paint. This is the likely reason for these "gaps". Subsequent application and using a roller smoothed 90-95% of this problem.Second image: after 2-3 applications (leaving it to dry overnight completely each time), I got the effect I was going for: near complete, total darkness. Now the lights from my cameras can't be seen when recording/zooming. When no lights are in use, this is wall is darker than the rest of the room, even at night.Black 2.0 is amazingly black. If you want something darker, go for Black 3.0, but mind your wallet.My wish for this (and future Stewart Sample products) is for them to be less temperamental. A temperature range of 55-70 degrees limits it's use to controlled environments or seasons of the year. At $16.99 for 5 fl. oz, Black 2.0 isn't cheap, especially if your project is large scale. Being able to buy larger containers without emptying my wallet would be great, especially if it meant I didn't have to unload a whole bottle into a paint tray just for a single coat.All things considered, Black 2.0 is still worth it!!

I've been preparing for an exhibition recently and have been listening to a lot of art videos to keep me motivated (so I don't procrastinate). As such, I came across the Vantablack thing. And y'know what, screw Anish Kapoor and Vantablack, I'ma buy this affordable Black 2.0 by Stuart Semple. It does reflect light in-person but appears like a black hole on camera. My favorite part of it is how INCREDIBLY OPAQUE it is. Not only that, but it isn't clumpy or thick-- it's very thin and only requires one coating. Now, the most weird but good part is: it smells nice and doesn't make me faint. Generally speaking, if I surround myself with paints or chemicals for too long, I become incredibly faint and it's hard to breathe. This even happens with products as minimal as Tacky Glue. But I can honestly go hours using this and not feel like death. And it doesn't smell like crap while I paint for hours either. I highly suggest Black 2.0 for artists, beginner and master alike! :>