Artist - Barbara Simmons

Tip of the month – August 2008 Watercolor artists are becoming more interested in a finishing process that allows the final work to be framed without glass. The glass in a framed work is heavy and it can be broken easily. Some watercolors that have dark color are not easily seen because of the reflective nature of glass. Yet, watercolors need to be protected from the environment around them. Varnishing the watercolor and fixing it to an acid free surface is a solution that is currently popular.
	My chosen watercolor is a sunflower on a dark background. Because I will be handling this work, I decided to spray on a light coat of varnish. The varnish is an acrylic varnish with a satin finish. I am using a spray on it because if I applied liquid varnish with a brush, I might disturb the dark colors on the watercolor paper.
	When the coat of varnish was dry, I turned the painting over and applied a wash of water over the backside. I checked that I had covered all of the paper’s surface.
	I chose a clayboard surface as my ground for the watercolor. There are a number of surfaces that can be used for the varnished watercolor. Some will require a coat of gesso to protect the watercolor paper from the contents of the chosen surface. I applied a generous coat of acrylic gel medium to the clayboard.
	The next step was to put a coat of gel medium onto the damp watercolor paper. The medium was easier to paint onto a wet surface and the watercolor would stretch while it was wet. As it dried on the clayboard, it would shrink and lay flatly.
	Once I had laid the painting onto the wet surface of the clayboard, I used a clean cloth to gently push the paper onto the surface.
	I continued patting and rubbing the surface of the painting to ensure that there were no air bubbles. The acrylic gel is thick and there are fewer air bubbles when you use this product. Also, I found that the adhering quality was excellent. I placed the painting upside down on a smooth, flat surface and weighted it down with some of my books. It was left to dry overnight.
	After it was dry, I trimmed away the excess paper on the edges. The edge of the ground and the edge of the paper should be flush to one another. Otherwise, the paper may catch on something and tear.
	The final finishing requires a few additional coats of varnish. I allow an hour between applications. SUN WORSHIPPER was now ready to be framed without glass.
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