Sizing Canvases

Many supports are suitable for oil painting including cotton canvas, linen canvas, wood panels, and copper. All are centuries old techniques and still used today by many artists. I use mostly linen, wood panel, and copper, but primed paper, gator board, and many others are popular also. Just go to the painting support section of any of the art supply catalogs to see the many selections.

When using linen it first must be stretched loosely over stretcher bars, stapled or tacked on the back side. Do not miter the corners at this point but secure the corners with staples anyway.

The rabbit skin glue comes in a crystal form and looks somewhat like cream of wheat before it is cooked. This is truly one of the historical materials which has been used for centuries. The crystals are soaked overnight in water and heated in a double boiler whereas the crystals dissolve and the mixture becomes clear. It is applied directly onto the linen with a large brush while very warm, working quickly to cover all the fabric surfaces, sides, corners, and back.

After the surface is totally saturated the canvas is placed on a flat surface to dry. The slack in the linen will become taut as it dries. I use only one coat. After it is dry, sand very lightly to remove rough fibers which are raised on the surface. The purpose of this sizing process is to coat all surfaces so that all the fibers are sealed which prevents the primers and paints from coming into contact with the canvas. The fabric is sealed, protected, and becomes archival. This will last for many many years and is splendid to paint on.