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Protect acrylic paintings without glare?
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Message
Posted
Hello! I've made two acrylic paintings of night scenes, so they have more dark areas, but also some bright colors. Now I am concerned with how to preserve them. Without lacquer or glass they look well and no glare/reflection. If I cover them with transparent lacquer or use glass on the frame, I am afraid it will be difficult to see them because of glare. If I use satin lacquer or anti-glare glass , it will reduce colorfulness of the paintings. But if I don't use any protection, I am afraid that in couple of years the paintings will get spoiled from dust/humidity. What to do?
Posted
Hello Leonid. I've recently tried (Winsor & Newton Galeria) Matt Varnish and Satin Varnish. I found the satin too shiny for the finish I wanted, and have been happy with outcome of the matt. Before I tried the varnish, I used to coat my paintings with Matt Medium. I'm not certain of how protective it was, but paintings I've got at home (several years old) still look well.
I switched to the varnish for more peace of mind - particularly when a painting is going to live in someone else's home.
Posted
An acrylic without varnish will be vulnerable to dirt and dust - but I don't think varnishing a strongly painted picture like this, i.e. not a delicate, water-coloury touch on paper, but with thicker and stronger paint, is really likely to come to much harm. I have a 40 or 50 year old acrylic I've never varnished, and when it got dirty (I smoked a pipe for years) was able to clean it off with a tissue and water, perhaps even a bit of washing-up liquid.
For good guidance to varnishing acrylics, look up Will Kemp, who paints and teaches, specializing in acrylic painting (willkempartschool.com) - he goes to more trouble than I tend to do, but if recommending anyone on this subject, he's the one I send people to.
Posted
I do large bold flower paintings acrylic on board. Usually with a dark background( not black ) I like my gloss varnish. Shines and in your face... but on my stuff it works. Initially I was a tad concerned and hung back. But it gives a depth and finish that I like. It isn’t any more shiny than glass over a water based painting . I would steer clear of non reflective glass it somehow changes colours and dulls them...horrid stuff.
I think of your painting is small and delicate Yes a matt finish works. But cos I do big...I like the effect obtained by gloss.
Even the best art galleries have their works affected by “ glare” if they are hung incorrectly.
Edited
by Sylvia Evans
Posted
You're right there! I went to an exhibition years ago - I forget where it was; probably not a space originally designed as an art gallery: it had lighting via a skylight; and when there was an exhibition of framed watercolours, I couldn't see a blessed thing for the glare: I tried crouching down, standing on tiptoe, and the best I could get was a vision of a bit of corner where the mount was casting a shadow. Not a great success.
Back to the varnishing issue, if you want a matte look, I'm told the best way is to apply a standard gloss varnish first, and a matte varnish on top of that - or you tend to get a deadening effect. But I've never yet tried this.