If you love the nuts and bolts of painting, stick around. I’ve got some deliciously boring opinions on canvases!
I started out painting on cheap canvas boards. Basically, just cardboard with canvas glued to it. It did the trick. And I was a beginner- so who cares! I say use what’s available. Don’t worry too much about getting ‘the right’ materials until you’ve been painting long enough to know what you like and don’t like.
Then, I switched to gallery wrapped canvases. These are canvases wrapped around a wooden frame and attached with staples. I even tried making my own for a while. I liked working with these for a variety of reasons. One- they were cheap! Art stores sell them in bulk packs which make them affordable and your mistakes less precious. I also like the bounce of the surface when painting. Most of all, I liked how easy they were to hang. The cavity in the back makes it easy to hang them on your easel or the wall.
What I did not like about gallery wrapped canvases was how easily they got dimpled and dented which makes shipping a nightmare and I hated framing them. Like, REALLY hated framing them. The frame has to be custom and it has to be a perfect fit. The dread of framing a finished piece swallowed up the joy of creating the painting.
So, I switched to canvas hardboard. I love these! It’s a piece of quality MDF board with the canvas glued to the front. My favorite brand so far has been Jack Richeson. They offer different sizes and different grades of canvas, I always use extra fine.
I love that they are sturdy, undent-able, and EASY to frame. At just an 1/8th of an inch thick, you can use any frame. I buy mine from our local art store here in Medford Oregon, Central Art Supply.
It’s been a game changer. I love these canvases!
