Paintings ready for varnishing
I normally leave my paintings as long as I can before varnishing so that
I know the paint surface is nice and hard before I send them, and I
usually varnish right before posting. I have a standard 3 day turnaround
for sale to allow for that.
Of course, at this time of year there are always last minute orders so
today I busied myself varnishing them plus some extras in
anticipation... Monday is the last comfortable day to ensure they will
arrive in the US/Canada in time for Xmas so the varnish should be nice
and dry by then.
I like to use a satin varnish as I feel this gives a nice balanced
semi-glossy surface which enhances the texture of my knife paintings. I
make up my own mixture usually 1 part gloss varnish to 2 parts matt. My
brand of preference is Winsor and Newton and I buy the small bottles
which I tip into a jam jar which is the perfect size.
When I painted in acrylics I only used matt varnish which toned down
some of the shinyness of the acrylics but nowadays, I find myself more
drawn to the more glossy finish. Maybe I shall start using gloss
varnish, but I feel that can be a bit harsh when the light shines on it.
What do you use? Do you varnish or not? Leave your comments below.
I learned the art of acrylic and pastel painting through private instruction, after having spent my career as a designer of printed fabrics in the New York market place. I am a graduate of the College of Design, Art and Architecture at the University of Cincinnati, with a major in the History of Art, 1977. Later, I studied printed textile design at Parsons School of Design, in New York. Immediately afterward, I began free lance work for several design studios in the garment district of NYC, where I did re-coloration work for printed apparel fabrics, and sold my own designs through Bread and Butter Designs,also located in New York. In addition, during the 1980's and 1990's, I designed a number of needlecraft and stencil books for Dover Publications. Currently, I am working on a series of exotic birds and other animals done in acrylic paint, with a palette knife, for texture and brilliant color. I consider my paintings to be representational or impressionistic in nature, and I use fantasy colors because what I see often makes me feel these colors,and what would make an interesting composition, rather than using realistic colors.
