Mounting an Oil Painting on Wood

Mounting an oil painting to wood is a way to display odd shaped canvases.

Mounting an oil painting to a piece of wood helps art admirers to pay more attention to the piece of art as opposed to be distracted by the framing, according to Biddington’s Art Gallery. Attaching the painting to wood is similar to stretching a canvas on a wooden frame. You will use the same technique with a few adjustments for the solid piece of wood. After stretching the oil painting, it is easy to place a hanger on the back of the wood and hang on the wall to enjoy.

Things You'll Need

• Tape measure
• Pencil
• Paper
• Piece of wood, 1/2-inch thick
• Jig saw
• Fine grit sand paper
• Soft cloth
• Staple gun
• Staples
• Acid-free fabric glue, such as Fabri-Tac
• Foam brush
• Picture hanging hardware

Instructions

1. Measure your oil painting with the tape measure. Subtract two inches from each measurement. Write the adjusted measurements down on a scrap of paper.

2. Cut a piece of 1/2-inch thick wood with a jig saw that matches the adjusted measurements of the oil painting. Sand the edges with fine grit sand paper. Wipe clean with soft cloth.

3. Place the oil painting face down on your work surface. Set the wood down on top of the painting. Position the wood so that two inches of the painting are visible on each side of the wood.

4. Put your palm in the middle of the wood to hold it down. Stretch the top edge of the canvas of the oil painting over the edge of the wood and lay it flat against the back of the wood. Use the staple gun to shoot a staple into the center of the canvas piece that is against the back of the wood.

5. Flip the wood back over. Fold the oil painting back so it is no longer lying against the front of the wood. Paint a thin coat of fabric glue over the wood with a foam brush. Use even strokes to prevent brush marks in the glue.

6. Fold the oil painting back down over the wood and pull the bottom free edge of the canvas taught. Smooth the painting with your hands.

7. Turn the wood back over so the oil painting is face down. Pull the bottom edge of the canvas towards you and pull over the edge of the wood. Staple the canvas in the middle to secure it to the wood while holding it with your free hand.

8. Rotate the wood 90 degrees so you can pull the short side taught and stretch it over the wood. Staple with the staple gun like you did the top and bottom sides. Rotate the wood to the opposite short side and repeat.

9. Turn the wood so the side you stapled first is back at the top. Grab the canvas about two inches to the right of the staple and pull taught. Staple the canvas to the wood. Staple every two inches until you are two inches away from the corner. Repeat for the canvas to the left of the center staple. Do this for all four sides.

10. Pull the corner of the canvas toward the corner of the wood. This creates a flap of canvas on each side of the corner. With one finger holding the corner down, use the other hand to fold one of the flaps toward the corner. Lay the flap flat on top of the corner of the canvas. Hold with your finger again. Fold the second flap of canvas toward the corner and fold flat on top of the first flap. Staple the canvas to secure. Repeat for each corner.

11. Center the hanging hardware in the middle of the top edge of the back of the wood. Secure with screws or nails.

References

• Biddington's: Ask Mrs. Biddington
• Emptyeasel.com: How to Stretch Canvas: A Tutorial with Step-by-step Instructions
• Artsparx.com: Canvas Stretching

Resources

• Beacon Adhesives: Fabri-Tac