WHAT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COTTON AND LINEN CANVAS

The blank canvas is a new landscape to explore artistic possibilities and a staple in any artists creative practice. But the term canvas is a catch-all for stretched fabric over a frame. Historically two materials have dominated the canvas industry, Cotton and Linen. Before you choose your canvas of choice, it's always good to see what’s available as there is a vast selection to be made so think about what it is you are using the canvas for, what medium you'll be using and what will help you achieve the results that suit you.

So firstly, what does canvas mean? In the context of painting, the word “canvas” means a fabric used as a painting surface. The difference is that sometimes the canvas is made from cotton fibres and other times from linen fibres. Each material is worth looking at in more detail.

TYPES TO CONSIDER BEFORE CHOOSING COTTON OR LINEN

THE PROFESSIONAL RANGE

The canvases are broken down into two different ranges: Professional and Classic. Identified by the Dark Grey or Light Grey packaging, all are hand-stretched and made from only the finest quality materials, offering artists the choice of breadth of qualities to suit any price range. Explore the ranges below, as we break down their unique qualities and let internationally acclaimed artists tell you why they love using the range…

THE CLASSIC RANGE

Inspired by artists, the Winsor & Newton Classic Canvas range is a high quality range with visibly improved specification in every detail. Hand-stretched and finished with highly pigmented primer, each canvas has everything you need to start painting with confidence. These canvases are made by hand and have a 12.3oz/350gsm weight. All frames are kiln dried and warp resistant, for strength and durability that will stand the test of time. Each canvas is also archival and acid free. You can use all types of media on these canvases, including acrylic, oil and other mixed media applications.

COTTON

Cotton is a soft, fluffy fibre that grows in a boll or protective capsule around the seeds of cotton plants. The plant is native to the Americas, Africa and India, and is most often spun into yarn or thread to create a soft, breathable textile. The chances are you are wearing some cotton right now.

The advantage of cotton to you as an artist is that it is affordable and stretches very easily. A properly prepared cotton canvas will last a long time, and is the most popular surface for oil and acrylic painting, especially among students – although it is considered too flexible for very large paintings. It is classified according to its weight and surface texture.

When it comes to tightness, cotton comes out on top. It is possible to stretch cotton tighter than linen without straining the wooden support around the canvas, and a heavy-grade cotton can make up for its lack of strength and weight.

LINEN

Linen is strong and durable, and remains the preferred surface for many artists. But it is expensive. It is made from the fibres of the flax plant and top quality flax is harvested mainly in Western Europe. If you want your painting to last then a linen canvas is a sound investment. The threads that make up linen, known as the warp and weft threads, weigh the same, which means they are less prone to expansion or contraction due to moisture.

Linen retains its natural oils, which helps to preserve the fibre’s flexibility and stops the canvas from becoming brittle. It is also regarded as having a more “natural” weaved finish than cotton. A variety of textures and weights are available in both rough and smooth finishes. Linen is more expensive than cotton as it takes more steps to process the flax fibres and because its inelasticity makes it harder to weave into fabric. Because of its strength, linen holds up to a heavy painting hand and does not become slack as easily as cotton canvas.

It is also very much worth considering that the heavier the weight - the more tension the canvas fabric can take without splitting or tearing, so if choosing a very large stretched canvas you might wish to choose a heavier weave. Weight is how much fabric there is per area so it is determined by both thickness of the thread used to weave and how tightly it is woven.

THE PRO STRETCHER

Whether you choose ctotton or linen an innovative tool from Winsor & Newton on both types is the Pro Stretcher which allows the ultimate control over the surface tension of your canvas. Included with any Professional Canvas, the ProStretcher is easy to use and allows you to gradually tighten the unique devise to your desired taughtness, unlike wooden adjustments.

Watch the video below which gives you a breakdown how it works!