A selection of commercially available varnishes from various manufacturers, designed for use over acrylic paint.
Photo: Laura Homer
An overall view of the painting and a detail showing the discoloured, degraded, and uneven layer of varnish.
Dag Skedsmo, “Untitled”, 1980. © Skedsmo, Dag/BONO
Photo: Laura Homer

Further reading 

  • The text “Laura Homer: Hvordan nanoteknologi kan redde ikoniske akrylmalerier” (2024) by Monica Høyer, about the use of nanotechnology in the conservation of paintings (article in Norwegian).
  • The chapter “Varnishing of acrylic paintings by artists” by Mark Golden in the book Conservation of Easel Paintings (2021), edited by Joyce Hill Stoner and Rebecca Rushfield, published by Routledge. 
  • The text “A preliminary evaluation of artists’ and conservation varnishes for acrylic emulsion paint films” (2011) by Bronwyn Ormsby et al., published as a postprint for the ICOM Committee for Conservation 16th Triennial Conference in Lisbon.