Concentrated UV Light Exposure to Oil Paint

Question

Hi all, my query is about exposing a 6-month old oil painting to concentrated UV light; I’ve made some tiny oil paintings to fit into rings for a jewellery brand, and found out the jeweller will be sealing the crystal cover on with UV-curing glue to make them watertight; which entails bathing the piece in 365nw UV light for ‘5-20 minutes’ to cure the glue. Which is concerning! Is this likely to cause serious problems, either visual changes or to the integrity of the painting, or would they likely be very minor? I know 365nw UV light is used in conservation to examine paintings, but these are only 6 months old.

They are 1.3cm high and very detailed, so a visual change would be the most impactful, although I’ve used pigments with good lightfastness. We will be testing for immediate visual change, but I’m concerned about the paint film integrity in the longer term.

The painting is oil on solid gold, medium Gamsol, Galkyd and Linseed oil, prepared with a lead alkyd ground, 6 months cured, unvarnished, with an air gap between the glass.

Additionally…would a watertight seal cause any problems with creating a microclimate, assuming the ring was assembled during moderate atmospheric humidity? It would seem there’s nothing to create condensation, or mould growth, but I’d love your expert opinion! The whole ring including the painting support is solid 18 or 22ct rose gold, so largely inert.

Thanks so much for your time, I really appreciate it!

Ellie

Lussh · Answer

Hello Ellie,

365nm for 20 minutes shouldn’t damage much. It’s not the harsher side of UV and I would be surprised if you get any chalking or fading (unless you used dyes).
However since it’s dried rather well, you could use a standard solvent based varnish to seal the picture layer and protect it from what will follow.
If varnished on a dry day, you won’t have any environmental issue afterward. Some varnishes have some UV protectors I believe.

and since the substrate is rather inert and static, not much to expect for a long while.
These UV cured polymers will give you a better hardness and chemical resiliency than typical artist varnishes as a second layer.

You should have something nice.

Good art to you,

ellie moore · Answer

Thank you so much for your reply, Lussh! I hadn't thought about using a varnish with a UV protector first. All the best to you, Ellie

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Concentrated UV Light Exposure to Oil Paint