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Originally Posted by Kimberly Dow
Thank you Virgil for responding.
All this experimentation with mediums and supports is due to certain issues. I'd gladly go back to just paint and linseed if I could solve them...
I found I loved a flat smooth surface when I tried ABS. I have stopped using that because of the all the issues and advice I have read, (except a few small pieces I will finish). I found gesso panels which seemed to fit this OK and am ordering them through realgesso.com. But - these present their own problems. The initial sucking up of paint is not a big issue - but the glare on the surface is. In certain situations it is almost impossible to see the painting. Then there is the uneven surface from paints sinking in. I can fix the uneveness with retouch - but then glare is still an issue. If I could let my paintings sit for 6 months I could do a matte varnish, but I cant always do that. And I hear about issues with retouch as well.
Here is what I want - it is not as simple as it sounds....
I want something to put on my panel paintings as soon as they are dry to the touch that evens them out without too much glare. A nice even sheen from a product that has no issues with longevity.
Is this too much to ask, I beg you!?  |
Kim,
Several things cause uneven gloss. One of them is thinning paints with solvent, which produces a matte effect, but the matte effect is uneven because some passages will have less solvent, and some more. Mediums with polymerized oils like stand oil or sun-thickened linseed oil will increase gloss, but usually unevenly, again, because there will be more of it in some passages than in others. Same with resin mediums.
I've found just using linseed oil as my medium, with no solvent and no resin of any kind, produces the most even degree of gloss, which is less glossy than what I was getting with stand oil mediums or resin-oil mediums. It's important not to add too much. Too much of any medium is not a good idea.
If your ground is very absorbent, it's best to add some linseed oil to the paints, as some of the binding oil will be drawn out by the absorbancy of the ground, which could leave the paint underbound unless there is a bit of extra oil in it to compensate.
Virgil Elliott