Can matte acrylics can be used (ie thinned with matte medium) under an oil paint film, ie as an underpainting/ebauche layer?
Thanks for the info!
A good product for this and one that will produce a nice “tooth” for oil adhesion on acrylic is Liquitex Clear Gesso”. I’ve had good success with this over the years.
In short, the answer is “yes” but as always it depends. It is not recommended that oils be applied over relatively thick, non-porous layers of acrylic paints but the scenario you are describing will probably impart a sufficient amount of adhesion. Hopefully other moderators can weigh in with their expertise on this subject. Please refer to the section on Acrylic Paints in our “Mediums and Additives for Painting” document (specifically the section on “Painting Recommendations and Tips) to read more about this. Also there is an excellent summary about the pros and cons involving painting with oils atop acrylic that can be found here: http://www.goldenpaints.com/technicalinfo_oil_over_acrylic
Answer: As Kristin states, the short answer is definitely yes. Keep in mind that some companies produce a matte line of acrylics, which can make the task easier for underpainting, or as you suggest above, you can use a matte medium to help provide more tooth and absorbency. You might also want to read through the following article on Using Oil with Acrylics, which gathered and attempted to summarize our research into this at Golden, as well as research in the conservation literature: http://www.justpaint.org/using-oils-with-acrylics/ Along with the other tech sheet that Kristin pointed to, you should have the information that you need. But if you have other questions, just ask!
