Quick and easy way to prevent oils from bleeding through?

[Mr Leal]

What is a quick and easy way for me to prevent oils from bleeding, or seeping through the canvas? What can I use as a barrier?

Applying gesso is fine, but sometimes I still have issues.

Does a tempera layer work? I'm not sure what others use and can't easily find the info online, and it irks me greatly.

[Aires]

Are you using pre-stretched canvas that comes already gessoed or are you stretching your own? Prestretched canvas usually needs more coats of gesso than the factory coating. I also find the heavier gesso brands work the best for me. Guess it depends on the surface you want but if you seek a really smooth surface, multiple coats of gesso will not have paint seeping through to the back of the canvas. At least that has been my experience. I usually use a rather thick gesso and roll it on with a small paint roller, going in every direction to be sure the gesso fills all the canvas pores ....works for me. I believe some use primers but I'll leave that to someone who has experience with that technique.

[artbyDanielDyment]

I would like to know the answer to this too.

[oilpainter98]

I have never had paint bleed through the canvas, but gesso has, when i am priming the canvas. usually you can prevent this by applying multiple layer of gesso or primer.

But even with store bought double or triple primed canvas, it has not leaked through. what is the weight of the canvas? sometimes there is more problems with thinner canvas.

[Mr Leal]

I'm not sure of the weight of the canvas.

For some additional info though, I bought some double primed unstretched canvas from an art store. I've stretched some over some frames and had some strips left over. On one of these strips I decided to test some new paints by just applying them out of the tube onto the primed side. Recently I noticed that the yellowing around the paint is not just on the front, but also on the back. This is what I mean by bleeding through, it's the oil, not the pigments. I've heard this can destroy the canvas over time, so I am looking for a barrier method that is easy to apply or that I can maybe mix with a gesso layer.

I've thought of rabbit skin glue or pvc glue, but that stays water soluble from what I've read so I was hoping to avoid it. I'm also not sure if an egg tempera layer would work for this as I've never worked with tempera.

I would prefer an easy barrier because then I can have the canvas as bumpy or as smooth as I like, and have confidence that even if I just buy it prestretched without sufficient gesso coats that I can still work with it.

[artbyDanielDyment]

Could you post a picture for us to see what it looks like.

[K. Henderson]

Not sure if this is what you are asking, but often when I open a new tube of paint or one that has been sitting for a long time, there is a lot of oil that has separated from the paint pigment. I always discard that oil. Mix your paint with a palette knife and the oil shouldn't separate and seep through the canvas that has a few layers of gesso. Of course, I paint in thin layers so if you are painting impasto it may be a different story.

[jdadson]

The traditional substance ("size") is rabbit skin glue. You can also use white glue like Elmer's. Art supply stores sell white glue that's supposed to be better Ph balanced, but I have my doubts about that. Make the first coat wet enough to soak the canvas a little. Dry, sand, repeat. And again.

You must seal out the oil completely. If it gets into the fibers, they will rot.

I don't like or trust acrylic "gesso." Real gesso (plaster of Paris) is for stiff supports like panels only, not for canvas or paper.