You need three things to paint a masterpiece: the paint, brushes, and something to paint on.
Although professionals tend to use traditional painting surfaces like canvas and hardwood, creative amateurs can transform many unique materials into a base for their works.
Discover the best painting surfaces, from the traditional to the obscure, for all your painting needs.
Two Traditional Painting Surfaces
Most artists use canvas or hardboard for their works, and it’s easy to see why. These materials are versatile, holding a wide range of mediums, but they’re still fairly inexpensive.
Discover the advantages and disadvantages of the traditional surfaces.
Canvas
Canvas is the go-to painting surface for most artists. How many times have you browsed a museum and noticed all the “oil on canvas” tags next to famous paintings?
It’s tried and true.
Big box art supply stores offer packages of ready-to-use canvas for $10-20. When you’re in practice-mode, these pre-stretched pieces are perfect for any job, including oils, acrylics, watercolor, or mixed media.
Unfortunately, you can only get good deals on small canvases. If you want to scale up to massive works, you’ll pay upwards of $100 for a single piece.
That’s quite an investment.
Hardboard
Hardboard is a medium-density fiberboard you can get from hardware stores. Generally, a 4’ x 8’ sheet goes for 10 bucks, which you can have cut down to a more manageable size by taking advantage of the in-house cutting resource.
Hardboard comes in different thicknesses, so the thicker hardboard will have a better time of holding its form in larger dimensions.
Hardboard is cheap, but also heavy, so may prove difficult to work with for larger pieces.
The paneling is sturdy enough if you prepare it right, but if you don’t, it’s susceptible to warping with wetter media. You must prep it well before using.
Preparing Hardboard for Painting or Mixed Media
If you’re using oil paints or watercolor, you must prep your hardboard to ensure your work will stand the test of time.
The prep work also gives you the opportunity to pre-apply textures with cheaper substances, like molding paste.
If you want a flat surface, pre-apply a few layers of Gesso to create a strong, flexible barrier between your paint and the board.
Creative Painting Surfaces
Canvas and hardboard can be so blase. Everyone’s using it, but you want to be different.
Maybe it lacks depth, or maybe the wall space lacks actual wall space. Whatever the reason, even if that reason is pure boredom, sometimes you just can’t get inspired without the right surface.
If that describes you, maybe you need some inspirational surfaces to paint on.
Try dabbling with these alternatives.
Doors
Doors have always been my favorite alternative painting surface. Most doors are so bland that an expressive one really makes a statement. I’ve painted on many doors, and either affixed the necessary hardware to convert it to wall art or reattached the original hardware and added visual interest to functionality.
Just between us, door art can be a really easy commission to land, because numerous small businesses are looking for ways to set their place of business and its atmosphere apart from their competitors.
And who doesn’t have some boring old bathroom or closet doors hanging around just asking for a little color?
Windows
You must prepare glass before you can paint on it, but it also boasts some spectacular features making it worth the effort. The transparency adds fascinating effects to your work.
First, you must coat the surface with a clear sealer to ensure it will hold the paint. Although the glass won’t break down, it’s so smooth that it limits the adhesion of some paint.
You don’t need to buy fresh glass, instead, use an old window or mirror. Mirrors reduce the transparency, but they throw light back in interesting ways that make art more engaging.
Building Materials
Rather than listing random garbage here, let’s just say that found materials or old building materials can be just what you need to get inspired.
Random textures, shapes, and surfaces can produce an infinite number of effects, so get creative before you get creative, and try to salvage something ugly to make it interesting.
Experiment with painting on old wood, bricks, cinderblocks, or even paneling to see what masterpieces you can create.
The Fabric Game
Just as you can stretch, seal, and prime canvas, a lot of other fibers, when properly prepared, work just as well, silk, being the most obvious choice after cotton or linen duck.
Look up what info you can about alternative fabric preparation, and chances are someone else has goofed around a bit with the same fiber.
Reinventing the wheel is fun, but do some research before you get discouraged, and keep a sharp eye on man-made fibers and their often volatile chemical combinations.
Metals
Some artists these days use brass, copper, steel, etc, but of course, the expense is nothing to laugh at. Small sheets can be purchased at hardware and craft stores for experimentation, but larger formats are a bit economically unsound.
If you’re feeling extremely adventurous, you can head to a junk yard and try to find some old car hoods.
Papers
High-quality papers from Arches or Strathmore can be sealed and gessoed in much the same way as any other surface, just be sure to X the back for warping.
Paper can be more porous than other surfaces, so keep that in mind before you get started. If you are going to be working with watercolors, you can get a special watercolor paper that absorbs the water and helps the color pop.
Art Journal
If you’re doing art for just yourself, consider using an art journal or sketchbook. If you’re using mixed media, you will want a journal with heavier paper that can handle whatever you throw at it, but if you’re just drawing, a regular sketchbook will do.
Utility Boxes
Small towns across the nation are beautifying their landscapes with painted utility boxes. Cities in Colorado, like Loveland and Fort Collins, pay artists to transform those ugly eye stains into something beautiful.
Of course, you should never take it upon yourself to mess with city property, but if you’re a skilled artist, you might want to check in at your town hall about the possibility of putting your work in public spaces.
Furniture
My favorite piece of furniture in the house is handmade. My husband and I joined forces to paint the top in lovely swirls of green and purple, showcasing our version of the tree of life, among other things.
If you want a more in-depth art project, consider crafting homemade tables, where your painting becomes the centerpiece!
Have Fun Exploring!
Painting is all about exploration and creativity. When art supplies just aren’t going to cut it, these alternative painting surfaces may be just what you need to light the spark of inspiration.
So grab your palette and whatever surface suits you best, and create that masterpiece!