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How I Mount Linen on Wood Panels and Dibond

Fine Art Substrates

Linen on wood panel or Dibond are my preferred substrates. I only want to work with the best materials for established collections and gallery shows. As a traditional painter, I opt for more historically proven materials and practices. This way, I can trust achieving archival quality results.

Dibond is also known as  aluminum composite material or (ACM)

Here’s how I mount Belgian linen to wood panels and dibond.

Materials:

  • Extra fine unprimed Belgian linen
  • Wood panel, Dibond or Ampersand Hardbord
  • Golden GAC100 to seal
  • Gamblin PVA Size to glue, size and seal fabric
  • Gesso brush and squeegee
  • Alcohol to degrease the surface
  • Sharp exacto knife to trim off extra linen
  • Prime with Gamblin’s Oil Ground

Steps:

  1. Add an extra inch for easy handling and cut linen
  2. Iron out all creases
  3. Use alcohol to degrease all sides
  4. Seal all sides with GAC 100, dry 24 hours, repeat with 2nd layer
  5. Brush Gamblin PVA on the linen. Lay linen on panel, saturate with PVA, squeegee excess away, dry 24 hours
  6. Brush on 2nd coat of PVA size and dry
  7. The PVA acts as an excellent seal for linen. Thus, you can skip priming altogether and trim off excess linen with an exacto knife. I like using Gamblin’s Oil Ground. I use a palette knife and smooth it out. (Cutting off excess linen after priming gives me a cleaner cut.)

Dibond is the most expensive and also my number one favorite substrate. It’s the most durable surface that will never warp. It’s a truly extravagant surface for fine art painting. Linen on dibond is an extra layer of luxury to an already exquisite product.

When I am tight for time, Ampersand is my go-to company for ready-to-use substrates. The Ampersand Hardbord or Claybord do not technically require any preparation. However, I still prefer to seal them with a thin layer of imprimatura made of Alizarin Crimson and M. Graham Walnut Alkyd Medium. Oil priming an Ampersand product is again, adding a tiny layer of luxury to an already exquisite product.

Either way, it’s all over the top in terms of process and precisely how I like to work.

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Print Shop

Fine Art Giclées

Our busy print shop is on a brief sabatical. My loyal printer, named Noori is taking a maintenance break.

Mini desk calendars, mini note cards, greeting cards, and fine art prints are an important part of my creative business. Sadly, some of the smaller specialty paper products may not return to my shop simply due to the endless rising shipping costs. Specifically, shipping with tracking from Canada is extremely challenging. Perhaps, a smaller item bundled with another purchase is a possibilty. These are best seller products and I will do my best to find a manageable option that works.

Giclées that are museum quality require the best paper available. For me, that means my shop has always, only, been stocked with the highest-quality Hahnemühle paper. However, Arctic Paper and its manufacturing process is unique and inspiring. Thus, going forward, all fine art paper goods will be made with either brand.