How To Varnish an Oil Painting || Materials, Prep, Procedures, & Safety Tips

A HOW-TO guide for varnishing an oil painting! This is an overview to the entire varnishing process. In this video, I discuss and demonstrate the materials, prep, procedures, and safety involved with varnishing an oil painting. We go through final and temporary varnishes, traditional resin based varnishes, modern-day synthetic resin varnishes, application, removal, cleaning, mixing, and spraying...oh my!
Varnishing an oil painting is a wonderful completion to the creation process. It protects and revitalizes our original colors. While the materials and processes can be very complicated and intimidating, this video is meant to remedy that and to lay the foundation for future exploration.
This video is meant for all skill levels.
Here is the chapter list...
00:00 - Introduction
01:39 - Brushes
03:22 - Personal Safety Equipment
04:14 - Cleaning An Oil Painting
05:16 - Synthetic Resin Varnishes (Overview, Application & Removal)
11:42 - Natural Resin Varnishes (Overview & Application)
14:25 - Temporary Varnishes (Re-Touch & Oil Mediums)
17:35 - Spray Varnishes (Overview & Application)
18:33 - Final Thoughts & A Note From Hermes
Enjoy and thanks for watching!
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Music:
- "Autumn Wind" and "Ocean View" by Dyalla
- "Demilitarized Zone" by Ethan Meixsell
- "No.1 A Minor Waltz" by Esther Abrami
- "Soft Feeling" and "Lazy Walk" by Cheel
- "Circus Tent" by Kevin MacLeod
- "Music Box" by Brian Bolger

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Learning how to OIL PAINT? Check out my playlist, "Oil Painting Basics" kzbin.info/aero/PL74fFkdTaHAjFKbih_nnpuEJQvG9jUaA7

[@bumblebee9912]

Another great video. I’ll varnish my first painting tonight 😊

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Awesome! You are so generous. Best of luck with the varnishing. Please reach out if you have any questions. Happy painting!

[@Robin-zc8em]

What a treat to see Odie! Every studio needs a companion.

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Odie is the absolute best!!!!!! Haha! Doesn't do much work though. Haha

[@savannahfitzsimmons707]

there are some truly drool-worthy shots, here, oh my.

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Haha! The Poge does steal the show! He is a star.

[@yeppersyepyep]

Great video! So very helpful. I was always so intimidated to start varnishing. The chemistry of oil painting is more elaborate than I thought. Well done!

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Absolutely! I am so glad it was helpful! Thanks for the comment, Ryan! By the way, I am a huge fan of your films. :)

[@yeppersyepyep]

@@michaeljohnnolan Thanks again!

[@nickrodis6862]

Thank you

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Thank you!

[@MayFire55]

Go ahead and call the academy on me Hermes, I'm not afraid of you! But for real this is super helpful. I get asked about the differences between all the varnishes at work and I just never knew what to say.

[@michaeljohnnolan]

I'm so glad! That made my day! One day... we will stand up to Hermes... together. Thanks for watching!

[@naomipark2333]

Omg Michael this is soooo satisfying to watch....it's eye candy paintings! Like the best part of a candy apple at the fair 🎡🍬 🍎 🤤

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Naomi! Thank you again! Ha ha, that means so much. You have the absolute best descriptions. I do hope you are well.

[@naomipark2333]

@@michaeljohnnolan hey Michael! Doing great in San Diego, enjoying the artsy scene here and surrounding areas got to meet some really cool artists!! Hope your summer going well!!!

[@Artist_Kevin]

One thing about Gamvar I learned. You cannot second coat. It will dissolve the first one and turn into a patchy mess.

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Hello Kevin! Thanks for your insight. That is a shame it is doing that to you. However, that has not been my experience as long as I apply the Gamvar VERY thinly to thin paintings that do not have a lot of surface texture. The few times I applied it too heavy, the surfaced remained tacky for a few weeks. Also, the one time I applied it to one of my thickly painted artworks with lots of texture, it pooled in a number of spots causing super uneven drying. Anyway, I have only used the Gamvar gloss varnish. It might be happening if you are applying multiple coats of their semi transparent sheens like Satin or Matte. Those apply slightly thicker than a gloss would. I checked out Gamblin's website and they confirmed my suspicions. I posted what they said below. Thanks again for the comment. So sorry again for the mess that Gamvar has caused. Because of how thick my oil paintings are, I have had the best luck with Luquitex Soluvar. Cheers! From Gamblin's website... "A single thin coat of Gamvar provides excellent protection to a painting. If you prefer a higher gloss, a second equally thin coat of Gamvar Gloss may be applied after the first coat is tack-free. When using Gamvar Satin or Gamvar Matte, it is best to apply a single thin layer and not to apply multiple applications. Multiple coats of either Satin or Matte can dry to a patchy finish or tacky feel, as the 2nd application will reconstitute the matting agents in the first coat. Whenever applying the varnish, brush on Gamvar very thinly. Gamvar dries purely by solvent evaporation. Thin coats easily throw off solvent and typically dry tack-free within 24 hours. The thicker the coating, the more solvent is trapped and the longer it stays tacky. (Varnish applied too thickly may retain a slightly tacky feel even after it has completely dried.) When applying Gamvar to a heavily textured, impasto style painting, pay extra attention to areas where the varnish “pools”. We recommend using a dry brush to wick out excess varnish. Use a stack of paper towels to remove varnish from the brush throughout this process." gamblincolors.com/varnishing-help/

[@theonetruebarney2854]

Very nice

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Thank you, Barney... oh, Great One!

[@cait3885]

Brilliant.

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Awe...thanks! Gloss varnish is very shiny! :)

[@LUCARTE12]

Muchas gracias. 🤘🏼

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Great, thanks Luis! Hope it helps!

[@xXShadowRaveXx786]

I find these videos very helpful, especially in case you forget. Love the art & doggo Nolan! -btw this is Norma 😉 miss being in your class

[@michaeljohnnolan]

Norma! Of course! Thank you so much for the kind words and for reaching out. It is great to hear from you. Hopefully, you are still pushing the picture making. So glad you liked the videos. That means a lot. Cheers!

[@xXShadowRaveXx786]

@@michaeljohnnolan i found you by accident on Instagram and just kept up with all your posts 😁 i still do paint and draw but not as much i wish to, my health took a bad turn to the point that i can't hold a brush or pencil properly but i've been doing what i can to deal with it. I still love doing portraits of people, mostly family. Lately I've been dared to do super heroes and boy am i glad those anatomy lectures came in handy, drawing muscles are no joke 💪it's always great to see your art, it makes me smile. Your class was always my favorite

[@michaeljohnnolan]

@@xXShadowRaveXx786 I am again so glad you reached out! And I am so glad you are still making art! Superheroes, huh? That is awesome and unexpected. Anyway, I am so sorry to read that your health took a bad turn. I wish you all the best. Send me some of your new art. I would love to see it. Always great to catch up!

[@xXShadowRaveXx786]

@@michaeljohnnolan my best friend challenged me to do a collection of superheroes after the whole Spiderman and Doctor Strange movie hype and me not thinking clearly at the time said yes. I'm having fun with it so far. I normally don't post my art on Instagram but i might just cave in one of these days. I'll continue to stay in contact and keep an eye on your stuff. Stay awesome Nolan! 😉

[@carolinebrensinger6511]

Should I oil out before varnishing to avoid any sinking in?

[@isabel301]

Did Odie just meow😂

[@michaeljohnnolan]

He does that sometimes... Odie might just be a lion! Haha

[@gingergreen4569]

Hermes is so dramatic 🙄

[@michaeljohnnolan]

He totally is. It is always his way or the highway. Yikes.