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Lifespan of acrylic
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Message
Posted
I don't do much with acrylic, except muck about and play with it, but just the other day I came across a pot of Golden micaceous iron oxide in my store-box. I had purchased it about, oh what, four or five years ago....to use it as a pastelling surface. When I opened it up, it still looked ok but seemed rather thick, and the sparkly sheen had gone dull. It is like it has started to dry out. Still spreads ok with a palette knife but not quite as it used to. Just wondering about the lifespan of this kind of stuff...is there any hope for it, via the addition of polymer medium or water, or should I bin it?
Posted
If the water content has reduced - basically, if it's started to dry - then it will lose some of its working characteristics: but Golden Acrylics are very good, I'm told, at answering specific questions directed to their website - someone called Sarah, I understand, is a mine of information.
As a non-expert in this brand, I would suggest the increased thickness of the medium is a sign that it's beginning to dry out and I wouldn't use it. But give it a stir with something and see if that does any good; Golden may advise mixing a medium with it, or even a little water, to make it usable as a surface again: but I doubt it. However: I've never used this product, or Golden paints - so would go to the fountainhead and ask.
Posted
Thanks to both....sorry for the late response, I had almost forgotten that I'd put the post here!
In the end, I found a small bit of the paint was usable but the majority wasn't...so the pot has now gone to the large paint store in the sky
(or at least, the local recycling-paint compound). It's fascinating stuff....but bloomin expensive. Works great for pastels, though, nice sparkly background.