Painting and Drawing on Drafting Film
Drafting film is a synthetic material that is available in clear or matte cut sheets or rolls in different thickness. The matte version has a slightly frosted, translucent surface similar to tracing paper. The films are generally more durable than paper in that they are resistant to tearing; although, they can be dented or creased. They will also not shrink or expand like organic paper products. The matte surface is available on either one side only, or both sides.
There are several types and brands of films on the market. “Mylar” from Dupont is the original brand made out of polyester. Other brands include Azon (“Herculene”) and Grafix, also made with polyester. The brands of Yupo and Borden & Riley (“Denril”) use polypropylene, which looks and behaves the same as polyester. The polyester brands are either clear or matte. Yupo is smooth and opaque white, and Denril is translucent.
Dupont Mylar film
Azon Herculene film
Grafix Drafting films
Yupo film
Denril film
The smooth surfaces of untreated clear film or the Yupo film does not accept paint mediums very well. The medium just sits on the surface without any proper adhesion. Nonetheless, some watercolor painters like to use Yupo because of the type of effect it gives with the paint, in spite of the lack of proper adhesion. Some drawing mediums like ink or pencil will work nicely on this surface; although, it can be difficult to gradually build up dark values in pencil, and erasers just smear the graphite.
Dupont Mylar film
Azon Herculene film
Grafix Drafting films
Yupo film
Denril film
The smooth surfaces of untreated clear film or the Yupo film does not accept paint mediums very well. The medium just sits on the surface without any proper adhesion. Nonetheless, some watercolor painters like to use Yupo because of the type of effect it gives with the paint, in spite of the lack of proper adhesion. Some drawing mediums like ink or pencil will work nicely on this surface; although, it can be difficult to gradually build up dark values in pencil, and erasers just smear the graphite.
The best film that I have tested so far for painting is “Wet Media” film from Grafix. It is a clear film that has been chemically treated to accept all forms of liquid media, and performs as well or better than the matte films I’ve tested. It is available in large rolls (4 x 12 ft.) or smaller pre-cut pads. The other brands come in different sizes and thickness. The largest I’ve seen for other matte film rolls is 54” x 50 yards at 7 mil.
This synthetic film surface offers a few special features that other surfaces do not. It’s easier to clean off the paint down to the clear surface than it is with paper or canvas to make corrections or reuse it completely. The clear or translucent nature of the film offers some interesting effects. You can paint on both sides, so you could paint an undertone color on the back, and then paint or draw on the front, without any worry about the paint or drawing mediums mixing together. Conversely, you could lay the film on top of a drawing, and see the drawing as you paint, or make a drawing with charcoal or pastels, cover that with the film, and paint on the film instead of the drawing. You could stack layers of painted film on top of each other, leaving open spots to see through. You can preview how paint color will look on your painting by holding some film up to it, and testing out different color ideas on the film.
A major benefit of using this film is that unlike paper or canvas, it needs no preparation for paint media such as oils that will not damage it. No sizing or priming is necessary. I’ve tested turpentine solvent on the film and have seen no damage. No amount of water would cause it to wrinkle or buckle. It’s also much less expensive than high quality paper or canvas, especially in large rolls.
Long term adhesion of paint to this film surface is an unknown factor. Even acrylics, which seem to adhere the best, can be fairly easily scratched off. If the paint surface is protected under glass or varnished then scratches would be less of a worry. Oil paint does shrink slightly as it ages, and this material will not, so it’s conceivable that there could be some problem there. Only time will tell.
The biggest problem I’ve had with these films is in mounting it to a permanent backing in order to display the art in a frame when it’s finished. There are two approaches that seem to work best. One is a mostly physical mounting method rather than chemical, meaning to press the film surface to the backing by means of a mat, much as how watercolor or drawings are typically mounted, and just taping or gluing the edges. Unfortunately, I don’t always want to display my art that way (in a mat.) Also, should any areas of the film be left unpainted or even slightly transparent with thin washes of paint, it creates a slight shadow effect on the backing since it’s just hanging loose. This is even more noticeable with drawings where light will create shadows underneath the lines.
Long term adhesion of paint to this film surface is an unknown factor. Even acrylics, which seem to adhere the best, can be fairly easily scratched off. If the paint surface is protected under glass or varnished then scratches would be less of a worry. Oil paint does shrink slightly as it ages, and this material will not, so it’s conceivable that there could be some problem there. Only time will tell.
The biggest problem I’ve had with these films is in mounting it to a permanent backing in order to display the art in a frame when it’s finished. There are two approaches that seem to work best. One is a mostly physical mounting method rather than chemical, meaning to press the film surface to the backing by means of a mat, much as how watercolor or drawings are typically mounted, and just taping or gluing the edges. Unfortunately, I don’t always want to display my art that way (in a mat.) Also, should any areas of the film be left unpainted or even slightly transparent with thin washes of paint, it creates a slight shadow effect on the backing since it’s just hanging loose. This is even more noticeable with drawings where light will create shadows underneath the lines.
That shadow effect doesn’t happen if you completely glue the whole film to a firm backing. There are two mediums that I’ve found that work best for that purpose, a sheet of double-sided glue film or acrylic gel medium. To use glue film, you peel off a protective sheet of paper from the back, press it down to a firm support, peel off the front paper, and then press your drafting film to that. This method is referred to as “dry mounting.” Alternatively, you can paint a generous coat of acrylic gel to the substrate, and press the drafting film into the gel. The gel seems to hold stronger than the double-sided glue, but it sometimes dries unevenly, leaving some annoying streaks that won’t appear when using the glue film. That streaking is specifically noticeable with brush marks in the gel, so using a roller is best. Of course, those streaks can be hidden with a primer coat, such as acrylic gesso. The largest size of the glue film sheets I’ve seen is 24 x 36,” whereas the gel offers no size limitation. You could try to seam the glue film sheets together to make a larger size, but that seam might telegraph through the thin drafting film. The two glue films I’ve tested are Grafix’s Double Tack, and Crescent’s Perfect Mounting film. Crescent’s glue film is also available pre-mounted to sheets of foamcore. The best acrylic gel I’ve tested is Golden’s Soft Gel Medium.
Alternatively, you can also buy cans of frosting spray that puts an acrylic resin on clear film making it translucent. This would make it accept mediums better, including charcoal or soft pastels. Although there are no long term claims of durability for this spray, it is designed for use on windows that get exposed to direct UV sunlight, so it reasonable to assume it will be durable in that regard. The spray can also give you the option of having a frosted area and a clear area on the same sheet if you mask off sections from the spray.
Using drafting film for art work is a fairly new and “modern” surface, so it’s uncharted territory. Even answers I get back directly from the manufacturers haven’t been definitive on how best to use it; therefore, use at your own risk. Below are links to some past posts I made on my blog that I’ve based this report on. Please also read through the comments there to hear feedback from other artists who have shared their experiences with this film surface, and feel free to add your own, or ask questions. I make no claim to being an expert on this material, but hopefully you will find the information useful.
BLOG POSTS:
Painting on Drafting Film
Grafix Wet Media Film
Painting on Yupo
Drawing on Yupo
Frosting Spray
Using drafting film for art work is a fairly new and “modern” surface, so it’s uncharted territory. Even answers I get back directly from the manufacturers haven’t been definitive on how best to use it; therefore, use at your own risk. Below are links to some past posts I made on my blog that I’ve based this report on. Please also read through the comments there to hear feedback from other artists who have shared their experiences with this film surface, and feel free to add your own, or ask questions. I make no claim to being an expert on this material, but hopefully you will find the information useful.
BLOG POSTS:
Painting on Drafting Film
Grafix Wet Media Film
Painting on Yupo
Drawing on Yupo
Frosting Spray