A varnish question

[Patt Legg]

I have a question about the final varnish for paintings. I am totally aware that one should wait at least 6 months to varnish. This is the first time that I have had 4 paintings for one person ( a grandmother with her 4 grandkids). Of course, a couple of them have been finished for about 3 months now but the last 2 are just now nearing completion.

How do any of you feel about Retouch Varnish to an entire painting? Some artists do that but I have not. The client is coming to pick them up from out of state eventually (soon, this summer). What can I do to suffice?

[Marcus Lim]

Hi Patt,

You may find the following threads very helpful to your question:

http://forum.portraitartist.com/show...ght=varnishing

http://forum.portraitartist.com/show...ght=varnishing

http://forum.portraitartist.com/show...ght=varnishing

http://forum.portraitartist.com/show...ght=varnishing

The truth I learnt about varnishing is that, unless your painting is most impasto, thin applications dry adequately within the month or so depending on humidity of your environment. So retouch varnish is possible.

So the ones you've done three months ago, should be OK if they're thin layered works of art. Explain to your customer the situation with those near completion - and ask if she'd want to wait for those to dry first, so you can complete your varnishing task on them. Or if she'd mind bringing them back and wait for herself, before hiring someone from her area to complete the varnishing process for her.

Either ways, presenting yourself this way assures your dedication to her job. Hope what I've said is useful to you.

[Patt Legg]

Thanks Marcus and I will indeed check out the threads you have chosen.

Your other suggestions are good as well. It happens that I paint in very thin layers (usually) in the Old Master layering technique beginning with a shady study and other layers follow. I think the two that have dried would be fine with varnish.

I also want to add that I checked out your site and love your work. Great use of the primary colors. Noticed the Red particularialy that you have in nearly all of your figurative works,

[Patt Legg]

That's Shadow Study---------sorry Cynthia, didn't check it out first.

[Marcus Lim]

Hi Patt,

I'm glad my knowledge benefits you. One tip I'd like to share is that you might like to do a test first: before you varnish, give a gentle wipe on the painting surface with spirits (I used turps). If there are traces of paint on the wipe, then the painting isn't totally dry yet.

And not forgetting that after varnishing, place it with the painting face on the wall than right side up so that dust will not be trapped onto the varnish. Hope these additional tips help you further.

Finally, my thanks for your compliments. I continue to work hard and do the best I can

[Lani Powell]

In applying the varnish, should you paint it on in one direction only?

Or (as I have read elsewhere) should one apply the varnish in one direction, let that dry, and then apply the varnish in the perpendicular direction?

In practice, the application of varnish has proven to be so stressful to me that I have not dared to go back and apply the varnish in the perpendicular direction after the initial application has dried and I wonder if I would have been pleased had I tried it.

[Marcus Lim]

Originally Posted by Lani Powell

In applying the varnish, should you paint it on in one direction only?

Or (as I have read elsewhere) should one apply the varnish in one direction, let that dry, and then apply the varnish in the perpendicular direction?

Hi Lani,

In answering your question, I would think there are different schools of thought - one being applying one perpendicular to the other.
For me, what I did was applying with random (but concentrated) strokes over parcels of areas of the painting. As I did that on a elevated plane, e.g on a table facing the light, I constantly check for areas where I did not cover with my brushing. And when I've more or less covered the painting fully with varnish, I then bring my brush to the shorter length of the painting (still facing the light) a put another brushstroke using one direction only. It's important to note all this steps in the process are completed within that same period of time.

And so far I have wonderful results with this procedure!

[Lani Powell]

For some reason, varnishing my paintings has been a source of real anxiety to me. Must be the fear of ruining something I've worked so hard on -- especially after it has already been sold. Thanks for the reassuring advice.

[Juan Martinez]

Lani, Patt, Marcus;

If I may, I'll add to what's already been said. First, retouch varnish shouldn't be a problem at this point for the reasons already stated. Even if some paint were to come off if you wipe it with turps, which is likely even after a month, if you use a spray retouch varnish instead, it won't be a problem. If the client picks up the paintings and they (the paintings) have just recently been sprayed, they'll look well saturated and at their best. Over the next few months, though, they will fade back to a more sunken-in look. The client will not notice this, however. When you go back in a year, or in 6 months (if you are able) to give them their final varnish, the paintings will pop back to their original glory and impress your client even more!

Yes, varnishing is very stressful for many people. Conservators tell me -- and this is the practice I follow -- that you should use as little varnish as possible, and as few brush strokes. Use a soft-haired, wide brush. Dip it in the varnish, but blot it first on some absorbent paper so that it isn't dripping with varnish. The layer must be as thin as possible. One stroke across the painting, and then one back, is all you should do on that spot. That is, don't go over the same area repeatedly. Move on to the next zone right away. Depending on the size of brush and size of painting, you'll be able to do differing areas of a given painting with a given size of loaded brush. You should at least have enough varnish on it so that you can go across the breadth of the picture in one stroke. If another layer is needed, wait at least a day, but not much more.

I hope that makes sense. Less is more.

Further, using less varnish makes it less stressful, too, as does waiting as long as possible before applying final varnish. The room for varnishing should be well ventilated and warm. Everything; the varnish, the canvas, the brushes, etc., should all be warm. Don't heat them in an oven, but see if you can somehow raise the temperature in the room for a while, or turn off the air conditioning, or some such thing.

One more thing, if you have let the painting cure for 6 months to a year, then first clean the surface of the painting by going over it with a clean, damp -- not dripping -- sponge. Then let it dry for at least half an hour or more before varnishing so that no trace of water vapour remains. Water is a major enemy of varnish, which is why in humid climates it can ocassionally be a problem to apply varnish. Marcus?

Anyway, I hope this helps.

Juan

[Allan Rahbek]

[QUOTE=Marcus Lim]For me, what I did was applying with random (but concentrated) strokes over parcels of areas of the painting. As I did that on a elevated plane, e.g on a table facing the light, I constantly check for areas where I did not cover with my brushing. QUOTE]

Marcus is right about the way of applying the paint in suitable squares and finishing the parcel before going on to the next parcel.

I am a trained interior painter and have painted many doors in glossy alkyd paint. The problem was always to cover the surface by painting wet into wet. The only way to do that was by dividing the area into parcels that were not too big.
Say, if we have a painting that is 10" wide it would be wise to divide it into two parcels of 5"X 5".
That way you will soon be finished with the two first parcels and get to the next row and paint wet into wet under the first parcel and so on...

The way to spread the paint is to dip the brush so that it hold a lot of varnish, but not so much that it is dripping. Put on the varnish with a few vertical strokes and then spread the varnish with horizontal strokes to make sure that the liquid is all over the surface. Finish the applying with some very light vertical strokes all over the parcel.

The varnish will then float perfectly into an even layer.

As Marcus also said it is important to stand by a window or under a light so that it is easy to see if the surface is perfectly covered.

Allan