Polyester or linen, what is the most archival surface to paint on?

[Linda Brandon]

Moderator's Note: please keep this thread on topic (archival surfaces and substrates) and discuss glues on a glue thread so that artists (like me) with perennial glue questions wil know where to look in the future.

[Richard Bingham]

Linda, I removed the "sticky" comment. Is there a thread or section on glues? (discussions of painting supports often wander into digressions on glues as sizing, and methods of adhering fabric to panel)

One of the plusses of this site is being able to find things!

[Steven Sweeney]

All things old are made new . . .

Trolling for something else, I discovered this brief thread on topic, adding a couple of other voices.

http://forum.portraitartist.com/showthread.php?t=6347

[Steven Sweeney]

Richard,

Here are some folks talking about adhesive applications, from about 5 years ago . . .

http://forum.portraitartist.com/showthread.php?t=1769

[Richard Bingham]

Thanks much, Steven!

(I realize that similar questions and discussions seem to "recycle" over time . . . that probably becomes boring for those who have already been there, done that and bought the tee-shirt. In this case, it's well to revisit the older threads, because of the reference to Studio Materials. Alas, Mike Ozog threw in the towel on that enterprise a couple of years ago.)

[Allan Rahbek]

Sharon,
20 years ago I got a roll of unprimed polyester fabric that I primed and painted on, The paintings are perfectly straight without any bulging or sagging. I did not like the structure of it because it was like felt and rather course, but it hold the paint nicely. I think that it was primed with Acrylic gesso.

[Richard Bingham]

Originally Posted by Sharon Knettell

. . . Pollack's paintings are falling apart (tant pis ) because they were painted on cotton. . .

Ha ha ha ha. That ain't the only reason, Sharon, but you're right. Cotton canvas and large size both present major problems for the longevity of a support.

It is true that a number of people (gallerists and patrons) are attracted to linen only because it was the material of the "Old Masters".

The climate where you live and work (or at least, where your paintings will end up) has much to do with "permanence". In sunny, dry Spain, El Greco's (and Velasquez' Murillo's, Zurbaran's etc., etc.) canvases remained in fine condition partly because of ambient conditions.

In fact, constructing large painting supports (over 3 feet) presents enough difficulties in terms of "engineering" that it's for all practical purposes as different a problem from making up small supports (up to 30 inches) as building a house does compared to making a packing crate.