Virtues of wet sanding
 

If you are painting in oils on a traditional smooth panel, sanding is a great way to prepare the surface for glazing.

I discovered the virtues of using sandpaper in painting by watching maintenance men refinish my studio cabinets when I was teaching at university many years ago. I employ this technique when I

This is a 9x12

I

I lowered the camera and took this shot to show that I

After I finished, I wiped off the surface with a wet SCOTT SHOP TOWEL. (Scott

Hello Bill: Great topic!

When you first suggested to me that I do that on my elf girl painting, I thought - "Sand it! He's crazy!"

But I did it anyway and it really worked well to smooth it out and get rid of unwanted paint ridges.

It also accomplished another thing - it gets you away from saying to yourself "that part is perfect" and loving any one part of the work too much. Because of the sanding, there were parts of that painting that I painted into and over two and three times - each time they got better. :)

Hi Bill,

Gosh, that's a beautiful painting.

Your post came just in time. I think I'm not using enough water when I wet sand.

On your post you said you wet sand before glazing, but do you also wet sand between coats? And how are you laminating the ABS to the birch?

Have you tried wet sanding the New Traditions panels?

Your post didn't mention power sanding away large sections of paintings or vaporizing bad paintings altogether. This is probably a regrettable practice, but hugely fun to do.

Michael,

I'd be happy if my painting improved every time I sanded and repainted! One of these days I simply must learn brush control.....

Linda dear,

Always remember that the fifteen horsepower industrial strength belt sander you wield is not Mr. Painting's friend....... It is a good studio defense weapon though.

I laminated ABS to birch with a high quality kitchen countertop cement back in the days when I was handy with my hands. Nowadays I have New Traditions do it for me.

I sand between coats, before glazing, and just about anytime I'm in the mood. Some folks have been heard to say that I sand better than I paint. Sanding is a relaxing hobby.

Sometimes I'd rather sand than paint, especially when the painting begins to get difficult.

Bill,

When I started with the first image in this thread I was ready to cry. My immediate response was "What can he possibly be thinking!!??"

I have (yes, dragged, kicking and screaming) become enamored with smooth surfaces. This is all your fault. In any case, I am here to beg and grovel: Please post images of this gorgeous painting!

How delightful to see you posting here again, Bill! And I second Chris: please post more images of that jaw dropping painting, along with closeups, if you have the time.

This piece is having the effect on me that seems to happen when I view many of your paintings: tears come to my eyes. I can't decide if it's joy at seeing so lovely a work of art, or despair at ever being able to create something so exquisite. Think I'll go to my garage and sand something to console myself...!

Thank you Bill, for posting this beautiful painting ( please post close ups). At first I was shocked at the idea of sanding a painting, but after my 12th look at this I became curious. So, you have inspired me to try my first painting on a panel with wet sanding. Any other tips would be appreciated.

Painting on a panel is a very different experience, and since I'm a "texture junkie", I'm finding this to be like learning to paint all over again. I'm not going to post it until it's past the ugly scary stage cause it really looks bad right now!

Thank you for the inspiration.

Jean

I finally finished the painting -- or at least it's almost finished!

Here are a few shots.

The painting measures 9x12" and is painted in oil on panel.

Here is a detail -- actual size.

This detail is well over actual size.

I took the shot in raking light to show the paint texture. It's actually not very textural-appearing in actual life.

This doesn't qualify as a "portrait," although is certainly a likeness of my model -- a very close likeness.

I end the series with this extreme close-up of a hand, again taken in raking light.

I will now let the painting sit for a month, out of sight, and then get a nice fresh-eyed look at it and probably change some stuff.

I always do.

Bill

Thanks, Bill, for posting these. What a great idea. I need to start doing this too!

Hi Bill,

I always loved to see your work. I think it

It's amazing.

Jean

What is ABS and where do I find it?
 

Googling ABS turns up a scary array of choices - none of which appear to be appropriate. Who knew "ABS" could stand for so many things?

ABS = acrylonitrile butadiene styrene.
An industrial plastic.
I buy a 1/16" thick white sheet of this material, glue it to plywood using countertop cement, sand it until it looks like a lovely piece of matte ivory, and paint away. No priming necessary. It is archival.

A great alternative is to buy a gesso panel here. http://www.realgesso.com/
These panels are primed with gesso -- not the acrylic stuff, but the real thing.

Thank you, William. Is the ABS something that can be found in a home improvement store? Where can I get it? Also, what is the advantage in real gesso, over acrylic? Is it in archival quality, aesthetics, working surface? I never knew there was a "real gesso."

Thanks, again!

Kim

Hi fellow Valley-ian Kimber,

If you do a Forum search on ABS you will find several links to ABS discussions, including the one here. I suggest asking somebody to give you one first before going to the considerable trouble of making them yourself.

Oh, just call me and I'll give you one. I have to add, though, that every time I give one away it's as if they get frisbeed into the Grand Canyon. I never hear back as to whether they get used as painting supports, chopping blocks or birdcage liners. You know who you are.

Bird cage liners? LOL! That doesn't sound very promising. I had a look at the painting you did of your husband on ABS. Wonderful! I can't believe I Googled the Internet for information on ABS, but never thought to do a search here on the forum! Duh.

Anyway, I would be eternally grateful, if you were to give me a panel! I promise I won't pitch it into the Grand Canyon and I don't have any birds. I'm just now practicing glazing on some pieces of wood I've covered with acrylic gesso. I'm finding the smooth surface to be quite a challenge. I don't have a clue what I'm doing! I did notice in the other thread you, or somebody, said the ABS was absorbent. I'm curious how the paint feel when I lay it on that.

Thanks, so much. My number is 623.329.1931. Maybe, I could drop by this week sometime?