Painting over old paintings

[Chris Saper]

Why would you do this?

New canvas is not costly. There is much to be said about perfect practice, and I can tell you that some of the very best drawings I've ever done were on NEWSPRINT. Ugh. Completely destroyed by the horrible ground.

IMHO, throw out the bad canvases and start fresh on new ground - and more importantly, the surfaces you will really be working on for your serious/commission work. Imperfect practice is a waste of your precious time.

[Michele Rushworth]

There is much to be said about perfect practice.

Thanks for that valuable reminder. I'm doing a "study" painting for a commission right now and it's good for me to do as good a job on it as I can, even though it might end up in my closet for years to come. If I do it well enough, it might just find a good home somewhere.

[Brenda Ellis]

Chris,
You've given me something to think about.
I just used five canvases trying to get this last portrait right. I felt it was a shame to throw them away. But you are right, canvas is fairly inexpensive. I do understand and appreciate the importance of perfect practice. However, the reason I asked this question was to find out if a painting will last if it's been done on a canvas which is previously painted on. If there were no serious problems with doing it, why not do it?

Michele, it would indeed be a shame to have a really good painting on a crummy canvas! However, if a re-painted canvas is not necessarily crummy, then wouldn't it be okay to have a masterpiece on a repainted canvas? I will bear in mind the fat over lean rule.
I appreciate Michele and Chris, your suggestions and experience. Thank you very much!

Richard, nothing I have is years old...yet. Thanks for sharing what you've heard about this matter.

I have heard here two reasons that it could be bad to repaint a canvas. a) paint becomes transparent over time, b) the hastles of painting fat from the start and not being able to do an underpainting decently.
Those are two very good cautions and I will keep them in mind.

I come from the "throw away" generation, but I attempt to be more conscientious. Sometimes it's a good idea, sometimes not.

Alexandra, you said that gesso could peal off if put over oil paint. Is this true even of oil-based gesso? I can use your method and just mix up some neutral oil paint and spread it on the canvas.

[Lacey Lewis]

I'll just toss in what I've been doing. I recently took the canvas of paintings I do not like off of the stretchers, rolled them all up and then re-used the stretcher bars. I know this seems obvious, so sorry if I shouldn't even have mentioned it. But I have been doing this to try and save money, materials, and very limited space. (VERY limited space )

[Claudemir Bonfim]

Hi Brenda,

Linen canvasses are expensive in my Country, so, if you don't want to get rid of them, the procedure is simple... Sand the canvas and apply a coat of paint as if you were staining it, two or more coats may be necessary in order to hide whatever you painted before, because sanding it doesn't erase the previous image completely. Don't worry, you're not damaging your work, Rembrandt always did it and nobody diminishes his work.