Can anyone explain the mechanics of “varnishing day” at academic art salons?

Question

My understanding is that it takes weeks or months for artists oil paint to dry completely so that is ready to be varnished. Did artists really time their work so that it was ready on a specified day or was the term just a fiction for a VIP day to allow special patrons an early viewing. Were the paintings submitted weeks in advance, (while they were still wet!) so the judges could decide what would be hung and where? If so, I could see how they would get damaged and need retouching. Perhaps it was more about this than the varnish. In any event it must have been quite a logistics project to examine, sort, and hang everything. Where did they put it all before it was hung?

If they were all really applying varnish, the smell must have been remarkable, and how did the painters who were “skyed” not dribble varnish on their colleagues below?

Answer 1

Hi James!

This is a really interesting question especially considering artists of the past. From my knowledge it is best to let a painting completely dry before varnishing it. Personally, in the past I have varnished paintings and run across the issue of it catching dust and particulates from the area it was in.

At the college I went to they had specific wood "shelves" that would hold your paintings and keep them protected from people scuffing them or having them collect dust.

Some of the plein air painters in my region will actually have their paintings hung up while they are still wet (especially during competitions). Some of the frames nowadays are able to accommodate wet paint while still retaining the brushstrokes and design of the overall piece.

Hope this was helpful in one way or another! :)