{"id":8779,"date":"2020-04-26T21:16:41","date_gmt":"2020-04-27T01:16:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/?p=8779"},"modified":"2020-04-26T21:16:41","modified_gmt":"2020-04-27T01:16:41","slug":"retouch-varnish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2020\/04\/retouch-varnish\/","title":{"rendered":"Retouch varnish"},"content":{"rendered":"

When you work on an oil painting over an extended period, colors sometimes become dull. The upper paint layers merge with an earlier layers. This process is called sinking in<\/em>. If the problem isn’t corrected, it gets worse as the painting progresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A final varnish can mitigate the bad effects of sinking in, but how do you fix the problem on an unfinished painting? Retouch varnish is designed for this situation. Retouch varnish is a light, fast-drying varnish that protects new layers from sinking into the old ones. When a painting is in-hand for a long time, retouch varnish can be used repeatedly. Retouch varnish serves the same purpose for oils as does spray fixative for pastels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more<\/span>Cleveland Museum of Art Opens Renovations<\/span><\/a><\/div>

Here is a painting on which I applied a single layer of retouch varnish. Some of the grays sank in, and the coat of varnish enlivened them and corrected the problem. I was able to finish the painting, Woman in Red Pants<\/em>, in a single session after applying the varnish. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

So, what is retouch varnish? Generally, retouch varnish is a resin-turpentine varnish. Artists being artists, a lot of other concoctions are seen. Norman Rockwell used shellac. Because shellac is dissolved in alcohol, it’s super-fast drying. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more<\/span>In the Studio Oct. 14 2012<\/span><\/a><\/div>

For Woman in Red Pants<\/em>, I used Grove’s fast-drying copal varnish thinned 8 to 1. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This photo shows some of the varnishes I’ve purchased. I bought the copal-turp retouch varnish from Doak some time ago. I don’t think he makes this particular product any longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Read more<\/span>In the Studio—10\/28\/12<\/span><\/a><\/div>

Rublev’s mastic varnish is decent varnish, although I don’t use it. I prefer the harder copal resin varnish. Rublev doesn’t make this varnish anymore either.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When you work on an oil painting over an extended period, colors sometimes become dull. The upper paint layers merge with an earlier layers. This process is called sinking in. If the problem isn’t corrected, it gets worse as the painting progresses. A final varnish can mitigate the bad effects of sinking in, but how […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":8777,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[208,6,19,343,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-materials","category-paintings","category-studio","category-turpentine-diaries","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/red-varnish.png?fit=800%2C1198&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1152,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2013\/02\/in-the-studio-2172013\/","url_meta":{"origin":8779,"position":0},"title":"In the Studio 2\/17\/2013","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"February 17, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"A productive day with a lot of good sunlight.\u00a0 I finished two self-portraits this morning (a gouache and another pastel-gouache), almost finished the drawing for a new still life (oil), then worked on the oils in the accompanying photo this afternoon. Why so many self-portraits lately? It's not because I've\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Cleveland"","block_context":{"text":"Cleveland","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/cleveland\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"In the studio 2\/17\/2013","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/studio_2_17.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/studio_2_17.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/studio_2_17.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13551,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2024\/05\/sinking-in-canvases\/","url_meta":{"origin":8779,"position":1},"title":"Sinking in (canvases)","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"May 16, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I always try to be as efficient as possible with my paintings. But I'm also cheap. The combination of efficiency and cheapness has frequently caused me headaches. Instead of saving time and money, I've wasted both in my often wrong-footed efforts to save money. I prefer smooth painting surfaces but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How to"","block_context":{"text":"How to","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/how-to\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/come-along-scaled.jpg?fit=857%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/come-along-scaled.jpg?fit=857%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/come-along-scaled.jpg?fit=857%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/come-along-scaled.jpg?fit=857%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3685,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2014\/06\/correcting-painting-surfaces-that-are-too-slick\/","url_meta":{"origin":8779,"position":2},"title":"Correcting painting surfaces that are too slick","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"June 5, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"You know when your paint surface gets too slick and oil starts to bead? There are several remedies. Rubbing an onion over the surface works but has issues--obviously. A better method is to use denatured alcohol. A light application over the surface cures this problem instantly. Make sure to not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"denatured alcohol\"","block_context":{"text":"denatured alcohol","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/tag\/denatured-alcohol\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/pal-table2.jpg?fit=400%2C305&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8766,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2020\/04\/glowing-lights\/","url_meta":{"origin":8779,"position":3},"title":"Glowing lights","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"April 5, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I have several themes in mind for today's post. One theme is about varnish--intermediate varnish. An intermediate varnish is used to seal the surface and prevent subsequent paint layers from sinking into the earlier layers. This \"sinking in\" robs the colors of their light and life. Since I paint in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "materials"","block_context":{"text":"materials","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/materials\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/studio-2020-4-5.png?fit=800%2C1025&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/studio-2020-4-5.png?fit=800%2C1025&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/studio-2020-4-5.png?fit=800%2C1025&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/studio-2020-4-5.png?fit=800%2C1025&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5300,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2015\/08\/in-the-studio-8915\/","url_meta":{"origin":8779,"position":4},"title":"In the studio 8\/9\/15","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"August 9, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"This is the first time I've shown Break. Break is 40\" x 50\" and I've had four painting sessions. Break is another of my Playhouse Square series. The painting in the background, Euclid Avenue II, is another painting in the series. \u00a0The painting on the right-side is Taking Note, which\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "materials"","block_context":{"text":"materials","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/materials\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/studio-2015-8-9.jpg?fit=500%2C396&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7662,"url":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/2018\/02\/review-groves-coles-copal-varnish\/","url_meta":{"origin":8779,"position":5},"title":"Review: Groves’ Cole’s Copal Varnish","author":"Tom Hudson","date":"February 25, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"My painting medium consists of oil, essential oil (turpentine), copal varnish, and driers.\u00a0 I like my medium, and it's suitable for everything painting-wise except a few corner cases.\u00a0 For the corner cases, I add a small amount of this or that, depending on the case.\u00a0 I like my medium, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "materials"","block_context":{"text":"materials","link":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/category\/materials\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/gorves-coles.png?fit=800%2C569&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/gorves-coles.png?fit=800%2C569&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/gorves-coles.png?fit=800%2C569&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/gorves-coles.png?fit=800%2C569&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Gw6F-2hB","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8779"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8779\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8777"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomasparkerhudson.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}