How long do Acrylic Paintings last?

You are planning to make an acrylic masterpiece that’s so cool. But the first thing to keep in mind that if you invest time in making an artwork then how long it will last?

The answer is it depends. If they are used in a right way they will last for centuries. When we talk about acrylics and oil then we got straight answer that oil paintings last more than acrylics. There are some advantages of acrylics over oils. Oil paintings get cracks in them after sometime and become brittle especially on a flexible background. You can also read the difference between oil and acrylic painting.

Now, If you think to work on thick background or layered artwork then acrylics are the best choice. Let’s follow some steps in order to make your acrylics stay long.

# Prepare a background with a big NO to oil so that it will grip the bottom layer without peeling it off and also holding tight the top layers along with it.

# Do not mix cheap house wall paints along with acrylic paint otherwise it will peel off the paint so quick.

# Use the reputed colors from the reputed artist color companies.

# Try not to use thin layers of paint over the thick layer so that it will not get removed.

# Don’t use thin acrylic with excess of water, this will result in less binding of paint and it will fall off more quickly in powder form.

# If you want to use extremely thin paint, use airbrush medium apart from water.

# Don’t use fugitive materials such as neon or florescent paint that they can fade quickly.

# You can use nonprime canvas, but this is an exception when you can thin with whole lot of water as paint will stain and sink inside but not lie only on the top.

# Varnishing can be considered if you want, It will make surface look smooth and uniform. As acrylic paint tend to stick to dust more quickly than oils. So better to have a layer above the original painting so that dust catch the varnish not the original layer.

These are some points that helps you maintain your acrylic paintings for long. Now let’s talk about the last point some people don’t want to do the varnish but it is their personal choice to apply varnish or not. But there is no harm in doing so.

Here’s the deal:

Varnish can be removed as well through a conservator like mineral spirits or gamsol when it becomes or look dirty. The plus point is you can give second thought to it means you can remove it and can also fix the painting. It will be bit difficult but it is a nice feature.

Varnishing Alternatives
There are two types of varnish glossy and matte. If you want your acrylic painting to maintain a matte appearance then use matte varnish that will make no effect just a layer is coated for your painting safety. If on the other hand if you use a glossy varnish it will make your painting colors bit more luminous.

The final deal is:
Your acrylic paintings can last long just with little bit of efforts and you will get all done. Rest depends on you.