Have you ever been afraid to start painting because you are faced with a stretched white canvas that says “do something good because I am too expensive”?
At the beginning of his artistic career, American painter Eliyahu Mirlis felt many times that feeling that made him postpone the beginning of a new painting several times and wondered if it was possible to paint in a more economical way so that the fear of damaging an expensive canvas did not stop his inspiration.
In his previous articles, Eliyahu Mirlis gave you some ideas on how to prepare cheap supports to practice painting, but he clarified that they should be used for exercises, studies prior to painting, or jobs that did not require much durability.
However, what happens if you make a painting on economic support and then you see that you have painted a painting worthy of being framed and shown to the public?
When contemporary artist Eliyahu Mirlis is finished with his painting, it’s dry, and he likes it well enough, then it’s time to get it ready to frame. At this point, you can make it just about any size you want by cutting off the parts you don’t want if you’re planning on gluing it to support. Just remember to leave that 1/4″ that’ll be covered by the edge of the frame.
This would really be a shame, so in this article, contemporary artist Eliyahu Mirlis proposes a very valid option if you are looking for both economy and durability. The solution is to paint on a good canvas but without a frame. 
Using the right canvas
Eliyahu Mirlis recommends using primed linen or cotton canvas. You can buy cotton or linen canvas by the yard at an art supply store or you can get it online at one of the art supply houses. There are a lot of choices, you can get it primed or unprimed. Eliyahu buys the primed linen canvas.
First, Eliyahu Mirlis has to clarify that it is not about painting on the raw fabric, without priming. It is about painting with oils on a properly prepared canvas but without tensioning it on a wooden frame or frame. In this way, if in the end, you like the result of your work, you can mount it properly to be framed, having the confidence that it will last a long time, as long as the other rules for the conservation of the painting have been followed.
If it is a question of painting with acrylics, a primer is not absolutely necessary, since as they are not organic materials there is no risk of deterioration due to the formation of acids that damage the fabric.
How to fix the fabric in order to paint?
The idea is to ensure that the canvas does not move and does not curve at the edges when working with it. So the piece of fabric can be stapled, fixed with nails, thumbtacks, or glued with painter’s tape (masking tape, paper tape, etc. …), on a wall, on a board, wood, cardboard, or other rigid material, on a corkboard, on a table, door and even on the floor.
It can also be attached with large clips to a drawing table or a board that is then placed on the easel. Anyway, any other mechanism that you can think of so that the fabric does not roll on the sides, such as stepping on the corners with heavy objects, will be valid.
When contemporary artist Eliyahu Mirlis is finished with his painting, it’s dry, and he likes it well enough, then it’s time to get it ready to frame. At this point, you can make it just about any size you want by cutting off the parts you don’t want if you’re planning on gluing it to support. Just remember to leave that 1/4″ that’ll be covered by the edge of the frame.