Id rather not put it behind glass, unless that is really the best solution. Thank you so much Will! Can I clean the surface with a damp cotton cloth? However, for realist paintings when you are trying to bring out colours and form in your work, the matte varnish will dull, desaturate and flatten out the three-dimensional effect and colours of the painting. I tend to not like the surface of my dried paintings and had no idea that I didnt have to wait a year to varnish them. Change the surface finish to gloss or matte, Provide a more unified finish to the various areas of a painting, I respect your privacy and take protecting it very seriously -. Hi Dick, it depends on how thick you apply the varnish but a thin layer should be touch dry in a few hours, ideally left overnight before adding a frame. Will, I dont understand how you can avoid going over already varnished parts of a painting if you first go top to bottom and then side to side Steps 4 and 5 under How to apply a varnish with a brush., Yes thats right Celine, youre trying to go over the already varnished parts to enable an even coverage. Features a very resistant satin surface that is colourless. They are available in liquid or aerosol form, are readily available and cost-effective and they come in a variety of sheens, such as matte, satin or gloss. But time is running out. I am new to painting and it is always a place I visit to pick up tips and increase my learning. Thank you for this article! Would applying a gloss coat over the matte coat bring back the saturation more than a satin coat will? Very informative. This was super helpful to me. and probably should have oiled out first and thinned the varnish. Will, wonderful once again, thank you so much for helping me clear this varnishing issue up! Gamblin makes a nice one, you can mix it with your oils and it will make them thicker and stiffer and also more matte. Would it be possible for you to suggest a safe formula? And what DO I use as a final varnish if I use Liquin or other alkyd mediums, gel or liquid? However Im having trouble achieving a non-glossy final finish to my oil paintings and didnt find a simple solution. Susan, Good one Susan, pleased you found it helpful. which can be dissolved in a solvent, this solvent evaporates away when the paint dries. So, chances are that minute dust particles might stick on the surface. Also, would I dilute a copal picture varnish brilliant gloss? You can mix in different quantities of wax to change the sheen of your varnish. Will. The two options you have to restore an uneven sheen to your painting before final picture varnishing are: 1. Each surface will soak up a varying degree of varnish at a different rate so would often give a different sheen to the finish. Hi Will, I have a question. Mineral Spirit Acrylic varnishes (MSAs) have a high molecular weight tend to offer a better protective surface, have greater elasticity and more resistance to blooming. Dries rapidly: apply in 2 or 3 thin coats. There are different considerations to think about when youre working with Oils in comparison to Acrylics, so here are some common questions to check before getting out the varnish brush. Thanks much in advance. Just taking a course from Stephanie Deshpande. I tend to favour Gamvar from Gamblin at the moment as it can be applied when the oil painting is touch dry, rather than waiting the traditional 6-12 months before final varnishing. Which is why you shouldnt varnish an oil painting with traditional varnish until it is fully cured as putting varnish on a touch dry painting wont allow air through the varnish layer and will stop it drying properly and fully. Yes, Thankyou so much Will. Thanks. On an acrylic painting, this differs as the isolation coat adds a much-needed sheet of thin protection over the paint surface. They also allow for relatively easy removal with less risk to underlying paint layers. Learn how your comment data is processed. Can I spray over it with a matte or satin varnish to knock down the sheen a bit? Can I remove where I wanted to touch up? Or possibly know of any products that would help? Would a better result be achievable in the future by switching mediums and using a matte or satin retouching or final varnish? On Oiling Out, you mention that this can be done by applying sparingly a thin coat of Linseed oil but I dont know what a thin coat would be. Pro-tip: To dilute the Dammar varnish you ideally need to use Turpentine which is better suited to a well ventilated separate studio space, rather than a ventilated room in a home. Hi Will, Thank you so much!! I also benefit from reading the comments and problems of your other readers. Do you think this would be a problem? You could use a modern equivalent like gamer which can be applied when the surface is touch dry. Otherwise is there something I could mix into the paint? I am sorry, my keyboard doesnt type the question marks, Hi Alla, if you are using Dammar varnish you would need to wait the same amount of time as with traditional oil paint. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise. I am using a wide variety of brands for paint. Oil out the surface this is a method of applying sparingly a thin coat of Linseed oil or clear artist medium over the entire surface of the painting. Need to varnish my oil painting, frame it, and put it in a show. There isnt any water in the paint to evaporate (unlike acrylics which dry by evaporation). But if its intended as a non-removal layer it should work fine. It seems fairly thick. Can I use turpenoid instead of turpentine? Please advise. I have just read your information on varnishing oil paintings. This is because if you ever needed to remove the varnish at a later date, the solvents used to remove the layer of oil varnish wont damage the existing oil paint layer. When applying it I noticed it drying too quickly for me and started beading before I had time to spread it evenly across the painting. Hi Brendan, you can paint over when touch dry if using Gamsol, but traditional varnishes will need a few months. It also saturates the colour a lot more than if we just used Turpentine or Mineral Spirits to dilute the paint consistency. Now I worry about yellowing and/or cracking. Cheers, Will. Hi Will, I have an unfinished oil painting that has been sitting for a few months and now I am ready to work on it again. The piece has a brushed on varnish but i dont remember what i used. Can I use it during the painting just mixing with linseed oil (for instance, I want to paint bright sunny landscape or car headlights at night) and what will be the proportions Should I still use gloss or satin varnish after 6 month, when it dries Thank you. Is it advised to varnish the mount or mat board used in the framing as well? With a slightly damp lint-free cloth. 3 thin coats are better than 1 thick one. Thanks for all the tips. Im doing a large abstract/minimal commissioned tryptic, of which Ive basicslly got three color areas: a base of dark grey, bars of a bright green on top of that, then lines of a bright orange as the last part. They are a lovely Golden colour and as such, give a rich glossy and enamel-like appearance. Gamvar can be applied when the thickest areas of your painting are thoroughly dry and firm to the touch. How soon after I oil out a painting should I wait to apply a final varnish? Good luck with the show. 3. I have an Ageing Varnish that goes over a Cracking varnish, the Cracking that I do not use. It is easier to control the amount of varnish on your brush this way. Dries quickly to a colourless and hard film, difficult to reverse. Thanks so much. 6. Or something else? I noticed when I varnished two paintings, one a plain oil painting, and another an acrylic painting with a gel isolation coat, and I used Gamvar varnish on both paintings, the oil painting had a lot of dust stick to it, but the acrylic painting with the isolation coat came out dust free and smooth in the same setting, time and place that they both received gamvar. Thanks for all your help. I also have access to ample sun light, to let the work get dried. Some recent varnishes also have the great advantage of being able to be applied when the painting is just touch dry rather than waiting for the painting to be fully cured. There are no dull voids, but thicker areas and very very shiney. I have not varnished yet. Im trying to avoid other varnish and just apply wax, gently rub in, buff out. Hope the commission goes well. This is referred to as a sunken in area. I plan to use a matte varnish. The retouch varnish works like an isolation coat, it also does a good job on its own, you can see a video of brush application here Cheers, Will. Will. Have you heard of artists using things like polyacrylic over oils? If you have very thin paint application with earth colours, an oil painting can be touch dry within a day or two for a thicker painting with other pigments it may take 10 14 days. A clear coat on the first application that stays clear over time, therefore non-yellowing and more flexible. Thank you. Should I still dilute this Winsor & Newton Dammar? Hi Archana, I tend to use Gamvar, which is a modern varnish by Gamblin that can be used on acrylics and oils and used when the oil paint is touch dry. Yep, that was a good delivery, thanks. It is very dusty and dirty. Satin: Synthetic resin based final varnish. I have a large oil painting on wood. Im a well seasoned artist in multi-media forms, painting, drawing, glass etching, metals and wood. Is this a bad idea? All that aside, its a personal choice as an artist and for some of my paintings, I like the idea they will have that lovely soft, warm yellow glow to them in the future. Hope this helps. What varnish is used to obtain an ENAMEL effect on oil and acrylic paintings ? Could I go over this varnish with a satin coat to bring back the quality it had before? I am not thinking of the ( W & Ns, Artists Glossy Varnish). Also, you can paint over the top of a Re-touch varnish. I look forward to the more oil specific tutorials you mention (in reply to Steve). I did look at the videos, but I was a little concerned about the linseed oil. Gamvar is virtually odorless and ready to apply. What aspects are you looking for in a reference photo? Also, the oil wouldnt be able to fully harden so it wouldnt be a super-strong bond between the layers. Hi Jan, yes a very subtle coat of Gamvar applies with a rag would work and dry off very quickly for the second layer. Do you know of any use for this without the Cracking Varnish? Jeff Nelson. The cracking varnish is often used for decorative effects, I personally dont use it. I realize this may take up to a month to dry but Im wondering if literally pouring Gamvar over the surface of my 3636 in oil on gesso board will create the smooth top pool layer Im looking for. Thank you for your time! Should I have thinned it out a bit with turps first before applying? Hi Tony, with Gamvar, you can apply when the surface is touch dry. It can be used during the course of a painting and as a temporary picture varnish to restore colours and add an even sheen to your painting yet still allow the oil to dry fully. I have an oil portrait with different levels of sheen. I also thought Oiling-out may be useful, but will that dry out too after a year or so? Hope this helps. What type of cloth can I drape over the painting? Im so glad I found this, so much of your knowledge is here. The more coats that are applied the richer and deeper the colours will be. I do have a small bottle of Grumbacher Damar Varnish but Id hate to waste the other if it is quality varnish. Earth colours such as Raw umber dry a lot quicker. Hi Gaye, I tend to use Gamsol varnish from Gamblin, this can be used on Acrylics, Oils and Water-mixable Oils. Hi Shirley, yes, you can spot remove areas, turpenoid wont be a strong enough to dissolve the Dammar resin. Thanks for sharing your knowledge! Lovely to hear from you, and thanks do much for taking the time to comment on the article, so pleased youve been finding the articles helpful to your painting. You can see a video here. You can read more specific FAQs on Gamvar Varnishing Help here: Sometimes you can find areas of your painting that have turned dull, matte and lighter in colour, even though surrounding areas are still glossy and rich. I wonder if adding some percentage cold wax to the medium and/or retouching varnish would solve that problem by sticking to the glossy surface and achieve a satiny overall final result. Tracy, Hi Tracy, you can sometimes get clouding in the mastic varnish was applied in a damp or humid environment, I tend to use Gamvar on my oil paintings Will, Hey!! Thanks, WIll! Im only interested in stopping dust from sticking to it during the drying process. One thing about retouch varnish is that if you read the contents, I seem to recall that it has map gas in it. Alternatively, with large canvass I will prop them facing a wall when the varnish is semi-dry. Im currently painting a series of plein air urban night scenes. I see that you can buy varnish for water mixable oil so I wondered if there was much difference between them. Very helpful information! I am very new to oil painting (have worked in acrylic for years) and excited to find your site this page is so helpful. Cheers, Will, Will, The Winsor and Newton varnishes seem to say on their label For oils only and another which says for acrylics. Cheers, Will. Hi Vauney, yes, gloss would bring back more saturation, as satin is a mix of gloss varnish and matte varnish so will also have matting agent within in. Thanks Denny, hope the varnishing goes well. Ive used it under the paint successfully but now that its a tad dull I wondered if I can spray it over to top and have a similar outcome to restoring the shine? There are no available products, that I have found, to help me achieve this for oil painting (there are numerous for acrylics, but I am not a fan of acrylic paint, as I work slow). 5. Once the oil paint is dry enough then you can apply the varnish directly to the painting surface. Couple of them I like to add more highlight. I was thinking I would try 3 thin coats, first with the glitter additive, followed by two without. Do you have any insight on whether I would be able to mix a glitter additive with the varnish, without compromising my painting? Thank you for replying! By the way, I think your art school is wonderful! Ive used Lagridge and Art Spectrum retouch in the past both too glossy for my desired result. Hi there, an isolation coat is designed for acrylic paints and wouldnt be suitable for oils, many of the modern varnishes have less chance of yellowing in comparison to traditional dammar varnish. document.getElementById( "ak_js_3" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2012-2022 Will Kemp Art School | All rights reserved |. I usually do epoxy resin as a final seal but wanted to try a varnish. I love it. If I have painted picture with oil figures on an acrylic background and I varnish it as if it is an oil painting will the background acrylic run, or will it accept the varnish? Thank you for the information and especially the demonstrations. Can I use it over workable varnish, and/or varnish? Apply a Re-touch varnish Re-touch varnish is a standard Dammar varnish that has been diluted with Turpentine by the manufacturer. Hope this helps. Is there anything I can do to thin out the applied varnish? When youre varnishing an oil painting it really depends on how thick or thin the paint application is. Yes, you can apply the Cold wax when touch dry, you might find this site helpful: http://www.coldwaxpainting.com for more info when working with cold wax. Liquin is an Alkyd Medium and fast drying oils are Alkyd paints, so it will be safe to varnish in the traditional manner. Hope this helps, Many thanks Will, that seems like a good idea (and a good excuse to do another painting :), Hi Will, I am enjoying all the information you offer-great site! What can I say, thank you Will for your detail advice! I have used this technique intentionally for effect sometimes, but do I need to stick with the oil mediums if I am wanting to use Gamsol or Damar? The greatest advantage of the Gamvar varnish is the ability to apply it when the painting is touch dry. Can I assume Gamvar can be used similarly? Hi Peter, nice to hear from you and glad youve been enjoying the site. For a satin finish have you had a look at the Gamvar new varnishes? I have used a matt varnish from Michael Harding and I did not like the effect. Work side to side, left to right, slightly overlapping each stroke you are aiming to have no visible brush-marks. But I have a question, I just want to protect my oil painting without changing it colors, so I dont want my painting become matte or glossy, so what I have to do? Dammar (can be spelt Damar) and Mastic varnishes are referred to as soft varnishes, they dissolve in solvents such as Turpentine and Mineral spirits. I use the choice of varnish as an aesthetic judgement, it might not be as technically sound as keeping a crystal clear finish that the synthetic varnish would give but I just like it. Thank you sooo much, for all the time you take. Someone told me that they can discolour otherwise, as usually with oils there is no glass on the frame. Does the type of medium determine the type of varnish you can use? that will produce the highest gloss effect, for large-scale oil paintings? Willy, Hi Willy, yes, thats right, applying a little oil to the area that youre going to be painting will bring back the lustre to the whole area so will make it easier to match the fresh colours to the previous painting. I usually apply Dammar varnish to smaller paintings as it can go very tacky, very quickly and is harder to control with a brush. Hi Vauney, because the painting already has a layer of matting agent (within the matte varnish) on it if you apply the satin varnish it will bring back the saturation slightly but not as strongly as if it were onto the painting on its own. I dont really know to much about art work or painting, I have started a painting of Jesus, I think Ive done pretty good for a first time. Hello. Also, please could you tell me: does using an oiling-out technique do essentially the same thing as using retouching varnish? I usually spray Retouch Varnish on my oil paintings and months later, spray a final varnish coat. I would like so to use this too as I have! Hi Will! Thanks a million for that advice Will. Hi Nancy, Can I oil out on top of retouch varnish? :), My pleasure Lynda, so pleased youve been enjoying them. True hard Copal and Amber varnishes are rare in the world today, some specialist manufacturers still offer unique historically-accurate painting varnishes if you want to go completely old school. I have an oil painting that I applied Gamvar picture varnish. Hope this helps. Cheers, Will. Thanks for speedy reply. Would you recommend a brand? The advantage of using the Dammar varnish in the final glaze helps to make the medium leaner than if we just used Linseed Oil. So depending on the subject and mood/feel Im after with the painting Id change the aspects within the image. Its been an hour and its still tacky. Hard varnishes do not redissolve in a solvent such as Mineral Spirits or Turpentine. Thankyou so much, its so helpful! Does not have the amber tint of natural resins. Great article. Cheers, Will. One question, can I use an acrylic varnish like those produced by Winsor and Newton to protect an oil painting. just what I needed to proceed with confidence. Will this mix affect the final gloss of my painting? Thanks for your help. Cheers, Will. I am wondering now that the varnish has dried if I can put and epoxy resin seal over it as a final layer? Could i still go ahead and use the Winsor and Newtons varnish for oils? The pigments in oil paints are dispersed in oil, which may itself be dissolved in a solvent and that solvent evaporates away when the paint dries. I never realised this before and I have been using Sennelier matt varnish for quite a while now. You are the best! Ive had success in the past with re-touch varnish and then a Gamvar finish if youre going for a gloss finish. Your thoughts are helpful and the most well-thought-out I have come across after 100s of ridiculously crafted writing from other pros. I later removed the gamvar from the oil painting with mineral spirits and no harm was done. Cheers, Will, Ive recently bought a very fine realist painting from a friend. I understand that a gloss varnish will accentuate the sheen difference, but what about a matte varnish? This is where the oil from the paint has soaked into an absorbent ground and left just the pigment on the canvas surface. It has been a month or more since they are touch-dry. Traditional oil paints dry by oxidization, when the oil reacts with oxygen in the air. What would you say? Hope this helps. To apply it, the painting must be touch dry and Ive found it is most effective as a spray because you can build up the layers gently, compared to applying with a brush. God bless you all, C-Marie, Hi C-Marie, I tend to use a dedicated varnish brush, so wash it after use and then use again next time Im varnishing. You need to work quickly but gently Apply in long even strokes to cover the surface top to bottom while moving from one side to the other. Can I remove it or varnish over it with a gloss varnish? Notice the difference in colour between: Re-touch varnish, refined Linseed oil, Dammar Varnish. For example, if I use Liquin for a medium, I found that retouch varnish will bead off, and I assume that the final varnish will do the same. 4. Since its not mentioned on the bottle, or in other places I presume it cant be too long. I see the paints touch dry in a couple of days. Thank you for your clear and well explained pointers. :) Thanks a ton! After several paintings Ive tried to keep the paint stroke birms very shallow or nonexistent in order to have a smooth plane that a glossy varnish wont have ripples in its sheen. That was thorough and very helpful. My concern of course is the old varnish and Im basically a little apprehensive to use on one of my older unvarnished pieces. Hope this helps. Thank you! I would like to redo an oil painting from a few years ago. The writing on the back of the jar is so tiny that I cant read it, nor can I find anything about it on the Sennelier website. When would you advise me to varnish the work? It is on a canvas by the way. I just discovered your interesting and informative website. It has been vanished, I suspect with Damar vanish which was most common in those days, its really patchy. Another question is the Cold wax methodcan that be applied to a touch dry painting as a mat varnish and will that last over time giving the oil time to dry unhindered and not damage the oil painting in the long term. It is too reflective for our house. Will. Cheers, Will, I dont leave comments on articles like these normally, but I feel deeply compelled to extend a HUGE thank you to you for compiling such a wise and extensive fact-based article on something that is critical for a professional closure to my oil paintings before they are handed off to my collectors. My desire is to have the green bars and orange lines really pop with gloss, and the gray underneath to be matte, and Im experimenting with liquin and neo meglip as mediums. I wouldnt recommend a decorators brush as it will show too many brush marks, you want a brush that is smooth to the touch so you can just glide it over the surface. Thanks, Jackie, Hi Jackie, Im not sure about using Gamvar over an existing varnish, you could try Gamblin technical support that would know for sure. hHi, i just applied a mastic varnish to my oil painting and it left some very cloudy spots. Because we mix the Dammar varnish with Linseed Oil in the glaze medium, the flexibility of the Linseed Oil balances out the brittleness of the Dammar varnish. Continue painting. Will. I started a comment several days ago but got interrupted. Will. They must be dissolved in hot oil which can get a tad complicated! Hi Tom, nice to hear from you, sounds like they are both Damar varnishes. The oil doesnt evaporate, the linseed oil and pigments oxidize, meaning they react with oxygen and harden. The painting is much better, but I want to still lift it up. Any future plans? Hi Patti, you can mix Gamvar with Cold Wax medium to take down the sheen to a more satin finish and then apply another coat. Thank you again. What can I apply over that to bring down the high gloss but not lose the vibrant colors and dark background? Hi Scott, yes, Id go with the different Gamvar finishes to give you the difference in matte or gloss. I basically painted with fast drying oils in thin washes, using liquin as medium. 1. I was wondering if there is matte or lessy glossy retouch varnish out there I could apply, which allows the paint to continue to cure over the next year or two. Hi Kathy, yes, the varnish would change the surface appearance of the canvas and is harder to control when leaving blank areas due to the viscosity of the varnish (many varnishes have a self-levelling quality to them) what I would do is experiment on a test piece first to see how the varnish aesthetic looks before committing to your finished piece.
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varnish spray for oil painting