Joining Two Canvases

[Clive Fullagar]

I have a restoration problem and decided to ask some old friends to see if you couldn't come up with a solution. I would like to join two canvases together by glueing them to board. I can rework the canvases as they are both paintings that I have done. My question is what is the best way to hide the crack while maintaining the integrity of the canvas surface? Is there a gesso or modeling paste that can be used with oil paints that I could use to fill the crack? Thanks in advance for your help.

Clive

[Marcus Lim]

Hi, I read somewhere before that in the National Gallery of Art in London, restorers use a type of putty to fill in the cracks of paintings. I believe the putty might be clay-based, as this might be the more "natural" element befitting to oil paints.

If all else fails, try this book title from the local library:

Conserving paintings : basic technical information for contemporary artists by Allan Byrne

[Claudemir Bonfim]

Ingres used to do it, but the only information I got is that he simply used "impasto", but on a smooth way, to hide the crack.