Watercolor Canvas Vibes

Since moving back to Malawi four years ago, I have had to adapt and plan to accommodate the challenges of being a watercolor artist here. We live in a beautiful space on the beach of Lake Malawi, but it is a country with so many challenges. Still one of the poorest countries in the world and where the typical ‘African democracy’ forges huge imbalances in its society, Malawi has not yet been able to recover from the strains inflicted during the pandemic and the tourist industry especially is struggling. 

There is no Forex, we have frequent fuel shortages and imported goods are extremely expensive, if they are available. There are no dedicated art shops, most art materials here are found in the Chinese shops and of poor quality, and as a watercolorist the most difficult hurdle is the very limited and extremely expensive framing options. Thank goodness I do have my own mount board cutter and boards, which I brought in when we came. Recently I had a solo exhibition and had ‘re-cycled’ a lot of my older frames for the exhibition, but now my framing stocks are low.

Despite what I have said, there is something very enriching about living a simple life and every day I am grateful for where we find ourselves, on the shores of beautiful Lake Malawi. Living remote also makes you resilient and inventive, and there is always a plan to be made.  Enter our ‘runner’, a guy we simply can’t do without and whose entrepreneurial business is transporting goods between South Africa and Malawi. Solution for my art supplies!! Even more astounding is that by hook or by crook they are delivered to my door, in the middle of nowhere, and often by some arbitrary guy on a motor bike.

However, the framing issue remains and is not easily resolvable. Enter Graham Saunders from Art Canvas Factory. ‘Let me send you some of our watercolor canvasses to try out’. I had tried one of his watercolor canvasses a few years ago, but at the time I was not happy with the spray sealant that had been recommended and consequently lost focus with the canvas story. Anyway, ten days later said ‘arbitrary guy’ arrives with 8 canvasses strapped precariously onto his motor bike. [I have learnt not to be too surprised, as it seems anything is possible]

Some time ago I wrote an article for an art magazine and had to discount the sentence “YOU CAN ONLY PAINT WATERCOLORS ON WATERCOLOR PAPER”.

Of course, this has been dispelled with the introduction of watercolor grounds, which allows any surface to become watercolor receptive, but it is expensive and time consuming in application, requiring several layers. The ACF canvasses have already been ‘primed’ and are ready to be painted on. On first impression one notices the quality of the canvas, the finish is very neat and professional, and the frame and structure is strong. The canvas is taut and whatever is applied to the surface is expertly done giving the resultant tooth of the canvas a smooth and even texture, much like a cold press paper surface. The colour is a brilliant white which will already refract though the transparency of the watercolor paint to maintain the brightness and authenticity of the pigment itself.

 

It did take a little getting used to initially, but once I had found the adjustment of water to pigment it was great. Generally, I found you use a little less water than normal, and the surface absorbs the water efficiently, even when working wet into wet without pooling and clumping, keeping your colors clear, bright and crisp. I would venture to say even more so than paper as there seems very little fading in the drying process. It is so much more forgiving than paper, the canvas can take a lot more ‘bashing’ than paper and it is so much easier to ‘lift out’ when needed. Conversely if your style requires layers of washes and glazing, this may be a bit more of a challenge as the underlying wash, unless using a staining color, can be disturbed. The canvas surface also handles drawing pencil well and still maintains its integrity under eraser scrubbing.

I decided to test other watercolor techniques to create textures using salt, cling wrap, masking fluid and splattering. The canvas handles all these extremely well and no different to working on paper. Using masking tape to block out, i.e. using tape to get a nice straight clean water horizon, was perhaps not that great as the paint did bleed under the masking tape. I wasn’t too surprised as the weave and texture together with the taut canvas would make this very difficult, but it’s not a technique I use too often anyway.  

I love working with these canvasses and I’ve had such a good response to them.  The added bonus: it is a partial solution to my framing dilemma here. I will continue to paint on paper for those who like the traditional frame, but the canvas is a great alternative.  The canvasses are 40mm wide and if you continue your painting on the sides to finish off, once sealed the painting is ready to hang, without having to be framed and put behind glass.

Of course, if not traditionally behind glass, a watercolor needs to be sealed for protection. There are various types of sealants on the market which would do the job but stay away from anything liquid that needs to be applied with a brush as this could lift the paint. A very well known and accomplished artist recommended a cold wax to use as a sealant and which has worked very well for me. This is not the original function of the wax, but I found it the least risky as the consistency is creamy and smooth and ultimately one has more control than a spray. I rubbed it in with a small sponge, waited for it to dry completely and then added another coat. It has a lovely matt finish and also brings out the colors. At this stage I can’t vouch for the longevity, but I have put the canvas under a running tap, given it a good rub with a cloth and with no disturbance at all to the paint.

There are a lot of brands on the market producing watercolor canvasses, and to be fair I can’t compare as I have only used ones from Art Canvas Factory. From my experience working on the canvas itself together with the fantastic and efficient customer care, I won’t be looking anywhere else.

Last but not least I think it is imperative for me to mention that I have not been asked by Art Canvas Factory to write this, nor have they sponsored me in any way. It is based purely on my own experience, one that I have learnt from and one which I would like to share.

 

Original Article: watercolorartsa.com/watercolor-canvas-vibes