Sealing mixed media artwork

by Liza Posar
(Melbourne, Australia)

Mixed Media Art Questions for Milliande

Hi Milliande,
Could you please tell me which medium is suitable for sealing/protecting mixed media on canvas as a last coat(including small 3D items that might be glued to the canvas)?

Mixed Media Art Questions answered by Milliande

Hi Liza

What medium / sealant to use depends on what art supplies were used on the canvas underneath

A lot of Mixed Media and Altered Art Artists like to use beeswax or a mixture of beeswax and medium to seak their artwork .. however beeswax has been known to react adversely with acrylic paint in some cases causing it to brittle

When the paint on the canvas / paper is waterbased ..like watercolors or watercolor crayons .. a spray fixative might give the right protective coat without smearing or smudging the waterbased paint underneath

Spray Fixatives come in matter and gloss ans well as semi gloss versions ... there is a different and fixatives -- which merely fix the art supply in place ( useful for pastels and other loose pigmented art supplies)
or in a varnish type fixative.. which actually adds a thick coat of varnish for protecting ..but can alter the images appearance depending on gloss. matt option etc

If the Art supply underneath is waterproof and compatible with water-based varnish (eg not oil paint) then one can also use a coat of gel medium or art varnish to protect the image..

There are literally lots of options.. but the main thing to consider when varnishing artwork is what art supplies are compatible with which varnish .. reading the manufacturers label often gives a good indication

hope this helps
Milliande