Robert Genn's Twice Weekly Letter
Insight and inspiration for your artistic career.

Dear Artist,

On Saturday, Nader Khaghani of Gilroy, California wrote: "In your book 'The Painter's Keys,' you suggest untempered Masonite as a support. It's now getting hard to find and the edges tend to break down. I'm considering switching from canvas to wood panel. What are your thoughts about the so-called 'door skin'?"

Thanks, Nader. untempered Masonite is indeed fading from shelves. Further, the quality varies--corners can crumble away like oatmeal cookies. Sealing and reinforcing with something like acrylic medium doesn't always do the job. Some painters, driven to tempered Masonite, have seen other alarms go off. This support, while harder, is simply loaded with acids that gradually seep through several layers of gesso. After a few years the painting surface will certainly be foxed. The estate of a deceased painter friend was mostly ruined by tempered Masonite.

Door skin, or other thin plywood, is an excellent alternative. You can buy different hardwoods as well as the popular Luan or Honduras mahogany. I've seen no darkening or foxing on any of my panels over the forty-odd years I've been using them. Carried in a "wet-box," they're the cat's pyjamas. You don't want to go too big with them--16" x 20" is about the limit without cradling (reinforcing the back). Every few years I get a large selection of sizes cut on a proper table saw by a local woodworker. I also find these handy as gifts for friends or for folks who need to try something new.

Priming and preparing is a matter of personal taste. I like a couple of coats of clear acrylic medium so the colour of the wood is retained. Variations can be had by tinting. Opaque gessoes can also be used. If you don't like the wood grain, sand enthusiastically between several coats. Save time and trouble by selecting a harder, less grainy wood. Prevent long-term buckling by treating both sides.

Because panels don't flex or move around like canvas, they are also ideal for mixed media, collage, etc. Pores in wood give most binders an excellent grip. For painters with an eye to immortality, whose work must withstand the crawling bugs of Armageddon, panel backs and edges should be sealed as well. No matter what happens in the future, you need your work to be there.

Best regards,

Robert

PS: "Every master knows that the material teaches the artist." (Ilya Ehrenberg)

Esoterica: Another angle is to use panels to remount canvas, paper or other material. Panels are particularly valuable for cropping otherwise problematic larger works. You can use regular cut mahogany door skins for this, or invest in more expensive, prepared and guaranteed archival supports. More than one of my disasters has been saved for posterity by a little effort and a recropping panel.

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