Best painting medium for flexible surface

First, our moderators will generally formulate our answers with longevity and stability as the main criteria. Adding to this is the fact that there are many times when a work that was initially intended to be ephemeral became valued after it creation. However, You may be able to get away with very thin alkyds on an acrylic dispersion ground and this probably will not crack in your period of intended use if applied thinly, but this is still a possibility. Artists alkyds tend to be fatter and with a lower pigment load than the highest quality oil colors. Perhaps more importantly, alkyds may retain some degree of gloss, which it sounds like you need to avoid. Matt painting backdrops usually need to be dead matte to avoid the creation of unwanted hot spots. Even what we call matte acrylic dispersion mediums generally create a paint with a slight gloss. If I were asked to paint a backdrop like this, I would likely use a high pigment load, low sheen, fluid acrylic dispersion paint or a matte vinyl paint (like Flashe) and thin it out liberally during application. This would likely achieve a rather matte work that should survive for the period you suggest. If you are dead set on a solvent born paint you might try to make a mock-up of thinned alkyds coated with a matte MSA varnish. If if this does work, you will need to wait a bit after the paint dries before applying the varnish. Perhaps one of the other moderators can weigh in on this subject as well.

Some additional thoughts: Very lean paints like those created by adding very liberally thinning a paint can create a film that may remain soluble in its diluent. This would cause no issue for a piece mean to survive for only a short period, but as I wrote above, wishes and expectation change over time. Also, a lean very matte painting will always be more susceptible to abrasion and scratching than a painting with a more balanced pigment/binder ration. The backdrop will need to be well protected during storage, preferably with a soft non-abrasive film or tissue placed on the face of the canvas before rolling. About rolling, this is best done on a cardboard tube of as large a diameter as possible to help prevent over compression and to avoid crimping and unintentional folding of the rolled canvas during storage. Also, always roll the painting with the image side face out and covered. This may seem counter intuitive but when a painting is rolled face in, the surface of the paint film is most stressed when the painting is unrolled. A painting rolled face out does require a protective covering, but stresses are diminished when it is unrolled. I also realize that I did not address wax additives as matting agents. In this instance, and ignoring other issues about the use wax mediums in oils and alkyd paints, I do not believe that wax would provide enough of a matte effect to achieve the photo ready backdrop you seem to require.

Hi –

We generally agree with what Brian has shared already but wanted to also address this from the standpoint of acrylics, which we believe would offer the longest service life in terms of flexibility, but like every medium it can have its downsides as well.

If deciding to use acrylics look for ones that are already formulated to be matte when possible. Golden Acrylics offer a line of Matte Fluid and Heavy Body Matte Acrylics, and there should be other manufacturers as well. These will have higher pigment load to work with then trying to add matte medium to a regular paint line. Alternatively, you can paint with any of the professional acrylics and simply apply a matte varnish at the end. For advice and recommendation on varnishing procedures, consult with the manufacturer as instructions and advice might differ. Finally, if used to oils, you might find the fast drying quality of acrylics hard to adapt to. To make that transition easier, take a look at slower-drying mediums or slow-drying acrylic paint systems. The mediums can often provide 30 minutes or so of open time, while some of the slow drying acrylic paints can be worked for many hours.

In terms of storing these, Brian’s advice would be ours as well – select as large of a diameter of tube as possible. Ones used for casting concrete pillars, originally made by Sonotubes you can find a variety of brands now at building supply stores.

In terms of downsides, acrylics are thermoplastic so in warm and humid weather they can become quite soft and any texture from a protective sheet can easily transfer to the surface. So trying to find a non-stick, wrinkle and texture free cover sheet is important and can be a challenge at a large scale. We would suggest looking into some of the large rolls of silicone release paper at places like Talas. Also keep in mind that all matte surfaces are inherently fragile and can be easily scratched, burnished, and will collect dust and dirt at a faster rate, so they should be handled with care.

Hope that helps.

Sarah Sands
Senior Technical Specialist
Golden Artist Colors