Welcome to HardyCanvas.com My name is Dylan Cotton and I’m a founder of Hardy Canvas Ltd. For many years I’ve been a professional painter, selling my work at exhibitions, in galleries and online. I have learned the hard way on several occasions just how vulnerable a painting is when on a regular canvas stretcher. I’ve had work damaged by galleries; customers have had paintings irreparably damaged while moving to a new house. I once had to stop very sharply with a van full of my paintings, despite the precautions I’d taken in packing the van several were damaged and could not be displayed in the exhibition. (The cat was fine.) As for shipping paintings from online sales, there really is no other option than expensive custom-made wooden crates, I also learned this the hard way on several occasions. Our ‘diamond standard’ canvases won’t stop a bullet, but they’re very tough.
As an artist if you’ve ever had to re-tension a canvas with those ridiculous wooden wedges, you’ll know it rarely works. This method forces the stretcher joints apart and will often push the canvas out of square. To be perfectly sensible it’s also rather daft to stretch a canvas with a dried painting on its surface, this risky practice does weaken the paint adhesion and compromise its overall durability. Our canvas surfaces will never become slack, they will not warp or sag.
When creating an artwork (with regular stretched canvas) and especially with larger canvases the surface is rather bouncy, a lot of artists find this a real annoyance, myself included. Many artists turn to plywood, MDF, aluminum or clay-board products for that joyous rigid working surface; however, these products present another set of problems: Weight, reduced adhesion, warping, and aesthetics. Also let’s face it a painting should be on canvas, it’s just more appealing to art buyers and traditionalists alike. Our rigid working surface retains its classic canvas pedigree.
An experienced artist will know many of the canvases in the art shop racks will be damaged, dented pushed out of shape Etc. That multi-pack of canvases will always contain at least one dented canvas, in-store or bought online. Our canvases are not so susceptible and will always be delivered in pristine condition. Or your money back with no quibbles.
As an artist I put a bit of my soul into every canvas I paint, it’s very important to give that painting as much futureproofing and protection as possible. I want my paintings stay in great condition hopefully for centuries post my departure. Having a robustly reinforced canvas is a great selling point and really helps the potential art buyer complete with a favorable decision.
Hardy Canvas – All the benefits of regular canvases without the weaknesses.