Choosing canvas: panels, boards or stretched
Canvas comes in three formats and they are not interchangeable, though for most purposes any of them will do. The differences are about weight, rigidity and what happens to the piece afterwards.
Canvas panels
A panel is canvas glued to a thin board. It is flat, light, cheap and rigid, which makes it the standard choice for studies, classes and group sessions.
Panels stack well, post easily and take a lot of pressure without flexing. The trade-off is that they look like what they are: a panel needs framing to hang as a finished piece, and it has no depth.
Canvas boards and gesso boards
Slightly heavier than panels, with a stiffer core. They behave like panels but resist warping better in humidity, which is worth something in a small flat over a summer.
Smooth gesso boards, with little or no visible weave, suit detailed work where canvas texture would fight the subject.
Stretched canvas
Canvas pulled over a wooden frame. It has depth, it hangs without a frame, and it has a slight give under the brush that many people prefer once they are used to it.
The relevant specification is the depth of the bar. A standard-depth canvas is fine framed or unframed on a wall; a deep-edge canvas is designed to hang unframed with the sides painted.
Stretched canvas is bulkier to store, more expensive per piece, and can be punctured. For a finished painting intended to hang, it is the natural choice.
What matters more than format
Priming
Almost all ready-made canvas is pre-primed with acrylic gesso, which is why acrylic and oil both sit on it happily. Where a surface is unprimed, it needs gesso before painting or the fibres drink the paint.
Extra coats of gesso, sanded lightly between them, produce a smoother surface. This is the cheapest way to turn an ordinary canvas into a good one for detailed work.
Weave and weight
A coarse weave shows texture through thin paint and breaks up fine lines. A fine weave takes detail but shows brush marks less. Neither is better; they suit different subjects.
Sizes and why 8×10 dominates
The common small sizes — 8×10, 9×12, 11×14 — exist because standard frames exist for them. Painting on a non-standard size means commissioning a frame later, which costs more than the painting materials did.
For anything intended to be framed, checking that the size is a standard frame size first is worth thirty seconds.
Storing blank canvas
Flat, dry and out of direct sun. Panels warp if stored damp; stretched canvas slackens in humidity and tightens again when dry, which is normal and not damage. A canvas that has gone slack can usually be re-tensioned with the corner keys supplied with it.
Practical checks before buying
- Panels for practice, classes and posting; stretched for finished work that will hang.
- Check the bar depth on stretched canvas if it will hang unframed.
- Confirm the surface is pre-primed, and add gesso coats for smoother detail work.
- Choose a standard frame size for anything to be framed.
- Check the sheet or panel count in a multipack against how many pieces you plan.
Preparing a canvas before the first mark
Ready-primed canvas can be painted on straight away, and there is one worthwhile step before doing so: a light sanding with fine paper to knock back the raised fibres, followed by wiping off the dust.
It takes two minutes and makes a noticeable difference to how a brush moves, particularly on cheaper canvas where the priming is thin.
Toning the ground
Many painters cover the white with a thin wash of a neutral colour before starting. A white ground makes every colour look darker than it is, so judging values against it is harder than it needs to be.
A thin burnt sienna or grey wash, dry in minutes with acrylic, gives a mid-value ground that makes both the lights and the darks easier to place accurately.
Where this sits in the shop
Everything discussed above comes back to one part of the shop: Canvas and Easel Kits, which currently holds 7 listings between $23.99 and $119.95. The whole of it is picked and packed at PaintBox SoHo, 105 Thompson St, New York, NY, during Mon–Sat 11am–8pm, Sun 12pm–6pm — so anything written here can be checked by phoning the counter on ((212) 226-1300.
From our shelves
- 8 Pack 8 * 10In Canvas Boards for Painting, Art Canvas for Drawing with 16 Brushes & 8 — $26.99
- 15 Pack Canvas and Easel Set, 8×10 Paint and Sip Kit for Adults Party — $42.99
- MISUMISO Acrylic Paint Set for Beginners – 24 Colors Painting Kit with Canvas Panels, Easel — $27.99
What we get asked about this
What can I pay with?
Checkout accepts Pay with cards and more, Card, WeChat Pay, Airwallex – Express Checkout, Klarna and Afterpay. Card details are handled by the payment provider and never stored on this site.
Can I return something?
Yes — unused goods, within 30 days of delivery. If the mistake was ours, we pay the return postage. Full detail is on the Refund and Returns Policy page.
Read next
- Student and artist grade acrylics: what actually differs
- Setting up a paint night for six people
- Brush shapes and what each one is actually for
Ordering from PaintBox SoHo
Orders of $49.00 or more ship free anywhere in the United States, and a flat $5.99 covers everything below that. Handling takes 1–2 business days and carrier transit is normally 3–7 business days. Unused items can go back within 30 days, and if the mistake was ours we pay the return postage.
Questions about anything above go to [email protected], answered within 1 business day, or call (212) 226-1300. Full detail is on the Shipping Policy and Refund and Returns pages.
