Caring for Your Art

At Crescent Hill Gallery, our artists use the highest quality acrylics and oils. These paints will retain their colour and vibrancy for a long time; according to the CCI (Canadian Conservation Institute), an acrylic or oil painting left in direct sunlight for 8 hours will not show signs of fading for 30-50 years. However, it is best to take certain precautions when dealing with your artwork.

Frame the Artwork

Wood ‘breathes’ even after it is cut, and will expand and contract with fluctuations in humidity. To save yourself the expense of having a painting warp and need to be re-stretched (a cost of several hundreds of dollars), frame your painting in a simple floater frame. This will give is space behind the work and help maintain the stretchers shape.

Hang the Art Directly on the Wall

A painting leaning above a fireplace or on a shelf will slowly warp towards the wall, creating a concave shape to the stretcher. For tips on hanging your art, check out our blog post: http://blog.crescenthill.com/2015/06/04/hanging-tip-and-tricks

Choose an Interior Wall

Exterior facing walls can also be problematic as they are exposed to more fluctuations. A frame and bump-ons stuck to the back of the frame will help air circulate around the piece. If you have work on exterior walls or above fireplaces, make sure to check them every few months for signs change.

Be Careful when Cleaning

Dust can act as an abrasive force on your painting, so make sure to dust your painting with a feather duster or, preferably, a clean sable brush. To clean the inside edges of your floater frame, a Q-tip fits nicely between the space of the frame and painting.

Lighting

Although the high quality of paints used by our artists minimises any concerns of light damage to the artwork, there are lighting options that are better for the art than others. Our blog post “When to Shine a Light or Not” explains the safest options.