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Monday, August 22, 2016

Varnishing Oil Painting

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                                     By Jim Hingst @hingst_jim

In the fine arts field, Damar Varnish (also spelled Dammar) is used as a final finish for oil painting. Used for this application, Damar Varnish provides a glossy protective layer. Equally important is that the varnish evens out  the surface finish, which otherwise might have some glossy areas and other finishes which are not so glossy.

5 Pound Cut Formula

The popular formula for Damar Varnish used in fine art oil painting is fairly simple. It’s called the 5 pound cut. It consists of dissolving five pounds of Damar crystals in one gallon of pure gum spirits of turpentine.  Be sure to use real turpentine, rather than a turpentine substitute, odorless mineral spirits or alcohol.

The Damar crystals are wrapped in cheesecloth to form a bag with a string tied around the top of the bag. The string allows you to retrieve the bag from the turpentine. After soaking in the turpentine for 3 to 5 days, the crystals will dissolve.

The cheesecloth helps trap some of the impurities in the Damar crystals. It will not trap enough of the impurities. The mixture should be decanted and filtered through cloth.

To this 5 pound cut mixture, some artists will add a teaspoon of natural white beeswax. The reason for the beeswax, some believe, is that it allows the varnish to dry faster and harder.  

Safety Note: When using turpentine, work in a well ventilated workspace.

Before coating an oil painting with varnish, you should wait for the paint to dry for at least six months. Of course, paintings will dry at different rates. Thinner coatings dry faster. And thick coats of paint take longer. Varnishing over paint, which has not dried, inhibits the paint from curing.

Traditionally, two coats of Damar Varnish are applied to a thoroughly dry oil painting. In painting the varnish, you should use a soft natural hair brush.

In applying the varnish, use uniform strokes in the same direction. First apply a thin coating of varnish. Allow it to dry for 24 hours. Then apply the second coating. After varnishing, you cannot paint over it because it will crack.


Damar resin is also used in the sign industry, which I explain in my story: Damar Varnish Recipe.

PAINTING ARTICLES


About Jim Hingst: After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.

Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer.  Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.

Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for  publications, such as  Signs Canada, SignCraft,  Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and  Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 400 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published.  Vinyl Sign Techniques is available at sign supply distributors and at Amazon. 

Slides of Jim's Artwork

2016 Hingst Garden

© 2016 Jim Hingst

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