Learn what gesso is and how to make it at home. The primer is essential to ensuring your paint goes on smooth. It also promotes a strong, healthy canvas.
Gesso is used in painting as a preparation for any number of substrates such as wood panels, canvas and sculpture as a base for paint and other materials that are applied over it. The colour of gesso is usually white or off-white.
Gesso is very similar to white acrylic paint, only thinner. It dries hard, making the surface more stiff. Gesso prepares (or "primes") the surface for painting, making the surface slightly textured and ready to accept acrylic paint. Without gesso, the paint would soak into the weave of the canvas.
Traditional gesso, or genuine gesso, is a mixture of hot animal glue (usually rabbit skin glue) and gypsum applied to a stiff surface in several layers while it’s still warm.
Gesso is a primer used to prepare surfaces like canvas, wood, or paper for painting. It creates a slightly textured, absorbent layer that improves paint adhesion and prevents paint from soaking into the surface.
Gesso might sound fancy, but it’s really just your helpful sidekick in the creative process. Whether you’re making junk journals, layering paints in a mixed media spread, or prepping an old book page for something new—gesso has your back.
Gesso is a white, plaster-based substance used to prepare or “prime” surfaces for painting. The purpose of modern gesso is the same as traditional gesso: to provide a smooth, primed surface for painting.
This guide covers gesso basics: types, application techniques with brushes, recommended coats for acrylic and oil paintings, drying times, canvas priming importance, and tips for reusing canvases effectively.
Gesso is a white primer coating applied to canvas, wood, or paper before painting. It contains acrylic polymer, titanium dioxide, and calcium carbonate fillers.
Gesso is used in painting as a preparation for any number of substrates such as wood panels, canvas and sculpture as a base for paint and other materials that are applied over it. The colour of gesso is usually white or off-white.