Canvas art

Canvas may be primed (whish it most often is – with ‘gesso’) or unprimed bare canvas (used this way by some modern artists). In earlier times canvas was made of linen. Cotton came as an optional material for its preparation only in the early 20th century. Professional artists generally prefer to use linen canvas as cotton stretches more and has a mechanical weave. Cotton canvas however – being much cheaper - becomes the material of choice for beginners and intermediate level artists.

Canvas can be stretched our on wood or even cardboard. Readymade cardboard mounted canvas is also available but this doesn’t give the artist much choice of sizes and also has larger amounts of acid which shortens its lifespan and hence professionals prefer to prepare their own canvas.

Oil painting is most often done on canvas. The type of canvas and the material used on it are hardly immaterial. They make a conspicuous difference to the final product, especially in terms of its texture.

 Renaissance masters gave a great deal of attention to the texture of their painting and it is everything but a painless process to prevent the weave of the canvas from showing up in one’s final artwork. It is also of importance that the canvas is wrinkle free which is achieved with the help of a hot iron.