After your immense efforts and hard work to complete your oil or acrylic painting, you would very much want it to be perfect and protected. It is essential to protect your oil paintings from dirt and dust.
Varnishing your artwork best protects the painted surface and creates an even sheen. Varnish not only seals the colours in your painting but also enhances its vibrancy. It adds a much-needed professional touch and thus improves the sale value of art.
What surfaces work best with varnishes?
Oil and acrylic painting mediums have a relatively thick film of paint. There is a substantial separation between the upper layers of the paint colour and the drawing surface. Moreover, oil and acrylic paints allow easy removal of varnish layers with suitable solvents.
Watercolour paintings or gouache artworks have a thin colour film and thus are highly absorbent. So, varnishes cannot be used on these types of mediums. As the varnish layers become integral to the painting, they cannot be removed.
The types of varnishes available
Varnishes for oil and acrylic paints come available as paint-on varnishes and spray varnishes. King’s Framing & Art Gallery offers high-quality, durable varnish for oil paints and acrylic paints. These can be applied with a brush or sprayed directly on the painted surface.
You can shop for these varnishes from http://kingsframingandartgallery.com/paint-brushes/varnishes-fixatives-solvents.
Why use varnish on oil or acrylic paintings?
If you wish your oil or acrylic paint to last longer, applying a varnish layer is imperative. Here are the three reasons why you must always apply varnish to your paintings
- Surface protection against elements
Dust and grime gradually accumulate on the painting surface, making it look dull. Moreover, smoke, moisture, and UV rays can also have a harmful effect on the overall finishing of the painting and thus affect its lustre and longevity.
- Varnish unifies the surface finish
Resulting in an even sheen and refined finish quality, gloss, or matte varnish, which makes an oil or acrylic painting accomplish a unified surface. A varnish layer evens the textures as well as the sheen throughout the painting, making it aesthetically pleasing and balanced.
You can buy Weber Synvar Varnish, a high gloss picture varnish for oil, alkyd or acrylic paintings, from King’s Framing & Art Gallery, the best online store for art supplies in Canada.
- Enhance the vibrancy of a painting
Varnishing is a vital technique to revive the saturation and shine of colours that have become muted in vibrancy after drying. It brings the colours back to life and enhances the colour longevity of your oil or acrylic painting.
Now that you know why to varnish your paintings, follow this technique to protect your artwork and seal the colours forever. Compromising in the choice of varnishes for your painting can damage your artwork in the long run. Thus, it would be best if you opted for the collection of high-quality Winsor & Newton varnishes from the top art supply store in Ottawa at unrivalled prices.
