Painting Art Canvas

Painting Art Canvas

Not all stretch canvas oil paintings are sold in frames. They are rolled up and packed. So you have to learn how to stretch canvas for oil painting and this requires patience and concentration to get it right. In this article let me explain how to go about stretching canvas on to a frame in a methodical manner.

Steps:

Choose a clean table top or clean surface to do the stretching work.
Place the canvas painting face down on the table.
After that place the frame on the canvas aligning the bars of the stretcher frame to the edges of the canvas. To get it right check to see whether the same area of canvas edge is seen outside the bar on all four sides. You can also pull the canvas edge over the stretcher bar to check the alignment. Learning how to stretch canvas is a serious matter and not to be taken lightly.
Start from one side of the frame at mid-point. Pull the canvas edge over the frame with a pair of pliers and attach it to the frame with staples.
Now pull the canvas again gently over the frame about five centimeters away from the first staple and staple again. Repeat the same on the other side of the mid-point. Now you will have stapled the canvas on to stretcher frame at three points five centimeters apart on one side.
Repeat the same procedure on the opposite side. Remember that the canvas is already stapled down on one side. So this time you have to use the pliers and pull the canvas tight before stapling. This will help you to learn how to stretch canvas without folds forming on the canvas.
Once you have two opposite sides stapled in the middle move on to doing the same on the remaining two sides. So now you will have stapled all four sides at three places in the middle of the sides five centimeters apart.
Move on from by putting one staple on either side of the mid-point moving from center to corner and maintaining the five centimeters gap and always doing opposite side after putting the two staples on one side. This is the way to make sure that you stretch the canvas evenly on all sides.
Do not ever try to finish one side first. The painting will get stretched crookedly.
If the timber of the frame is hard, you may have some trouble stapling. If the staple is extending upward use a hammer to gently push it down flush on the frame.
Now the corner of the canvas. Fold them as you fold gift wrappers and staple it down with two staples since the canvas will be thick because of the fold. Follow these guidelines to learn the techniques of stretching canvas painting properly before or after painting.

Other than learning how to stretch canvas, the technique of removing the acrylic paints is equally crucial for an artist.

Can canvas art be taken off stretcher bars?

Would it ruin an acrylic or oil painting on stretched canvas to take it off its stretcher bars and lay it flat?
I collect art and put it in an album like people do with photos. I see a lot of things I like on stretched canvas but with the bars it won't fit into a album sleeve. Thanks for your help!

Yes canvas can be removed from the stretchers. As a matter of fact the famous full size portrait of George Washington was removed from the White House by Dolly Madison in this manner before the British army arrived and burned the executive mansion.