What do you use to Varnish...
 

Your portraits...I have been using retouch varnish and advise the client that the portrait needs a "final" varnish in 9 mos to a year.

I have heard others say they do this, and some say they use Liquin. What is the general practice? Surely you don't keep the portraits until they are ready for a "final" varnish.

Bob Gamblin makes an alkyd resin that is far better than Liquin. He calls it Galkyd Lite. I suggest you check out his web site.
http://www.gamblincolors.com/

I'm pretty conservative, but I think it's probably a good idea to give your freshly dried canvas a light brushing of 1/2 GALKYD LITE and 1/2 Odorless Mineral Spirits. It dries in a day, will keep the painting looking fresh, will eventually bond with the paint so it can't be removed in the future.

Then if you are so lucky, you can give the painting a final coat of high end picture varnish (Gamblin's GAMVAR is the best final picture varnish in the world) after six months or so.

This varnish is reversable and can be easily removed for restoration in the future.

Bill

I have a question: I've done an atmospheric background and parts are shiny and other parts matte. I assume that when I do the final glaze in 6 months or so, the areas will even out, but I want to correct the problem now. Any suggestions?

When you're sure the painting is dry to the touch, brush on a thin coat of Gamblin's Galkyd Lite - thinned just a little with high quality turpentine or odorless mineral spirits.
Turn the painting to the wall and let it dry for a day. That should even things out.

Thanks, I'll look into buying the Galkyd Lite and coat my painting, and I assume that I will still need to do a final glaze in 6 months or so.

That's right. Give the painting a final varnish in a few months. The best varnish is GAMBLIN'S GAMVAR.

Dear Bill,

Can you think of any reason you would NOT want the Galkyd to bond with the surface of a painting?

Thanks, Chris

This morning I ran into my friend Dick Phillips, not only a fine painter in his own right, but who has operated an art restoration business for more years than I can count.

I have seen him restore smuggled Russian paintings (taken off their stretchers and FOLDED) to modern day work. He agrees with you, Bill, 100% that Galkyd is immeasurably superior to retouch varnish, and recounts many problems he has faced trying to restore work with retouch varnish through several layers, without a bonded surface.

Thanks for the advice, I will begin the Galkyd process with my next piece, and try out the GalVar as well.

Chris

Chris,
I see you live in Arizona. If you are close to Scottsdale, you should lobby that art supply store across the street from the Scottsdale Art School to stock Gamblin. His line is far better than many of the bigger names.

Gamblin SD
 

Hi Bill,

I am a long time user and fan of Liquin, but wanted to try a slower drying medium for more wet-n-wet work. I had bad luck with the Gamblin Slow Dry. It worked almost like a resist on the canvas. Fortunately, I used it on a practice piece, so no harm done. Any experience with this product?


Thanks,
Stanka