Varnishes

Artist varnishes for oil & acrylic paintings

Oil and acrylic artists know the value of adding varnishes to their art supply list to ensure their painting looks great, is durable and has an even gloss or matt finish.

Reasons to varnish a painting:
1. To deepen, enrich or saturate the colours. During the Renaissance, oil painters favoured a high gloss varnish finish as it gave their paintings the 'Old Master Glow' by enriching the colours. Acrylic paintings can look dull when dry and varnishing gives them a satin sheen that brightens the colours.
2. To create an even gloss/satin/matt sheen surface. Different pigments, mediums and gels result in different finishes depending on what is added to the paint, which gives areas of a painting an inconsistent appearance.
3. To protect the painted surface. Over time, as dust and dirt settle on it, the varnished layer can be removed with varnish remover and the painting re-varnished to make it look as good as new.

Types of varnishes:
1. The oldest and most popular is resin-based dammar varnish. It is mainly used for oils and is used to thin paints, increase transparency and speed up the drying time. As a topcoat, it adds a gloss finish.
2. Gloss varnishes deepen and brighten paint colours but leave a highly reflective surface.
3. Matt varnishes give a medium sheen but colours will appear slightly duller. Professional matt and gloss varnishes can be intermixed in a 50:50 ratio to achieve a beautiful satin finish.

Tips for applying varnishes:
1. Paintings must be completely dry and in a dust-free area before varnishing.
2. Keep a specific brush just for varnishing. (A flat, wide, soft and tightly packed brush works best).
3. Stir varnish well and apply in long, even horizontal strokes. Apply 1 to 3 thin coats rather than 1 thick layer and remove any air bubbles.
4. Protect the painting from dust with a protective plastic film (known as a “tent”) and leave to dry for 24 hours.