Ampersand

Ampersand bords

Ampersand has developed unique panels for various purposes in painting. All panels are manufactured with hardboard as a base core. Ampersands Hardbord is a mute and extremely stable surface. The panels are also sealed and protected with Ampersand's proprietary Archiva-Seal barrier technology to prevent yellowing and leave the colors in their original brilliance. Below we go through which panel is suitable for which technologies.

Clayboard

Ampersands Claybord has a nice, very smooth and absorbent surface. This unique clay base allows you to easily etch into the surface to add contrast, texture and detail. You can also erase with oil-free steel wool or very fine sandpaper. The fine surface allows for detailed work. Claybord is suitable for mixed media, water- and alcohol-based ink, acrylic, graphite, heavy impasto, collage, gouache, egg tempera, scratchboard, printing techniques and not least airbrush.

Aquabord

Ampersands Aquabord is a really good alternative to traditional watercolor paper. Aquabord has a high absorbency and texture that can be compared to a cold-pressed watercolor paper. Three big advantages of using Aquabord for watercolor paintings are that you can erase, you don't have to mount your works behind glass to hang them, and that the surface never dents or bends no matter how much water you use. Just like on Claybord, the surface consists of an acid-free clay ground. Use a fine sandpaper to erase unwanted color and create gradients or highlights.

Gessobord

Ampersand's Gessobord has a semi-absorbent surface with a fine texture that can be compared to traditionally primed canvas. This is an acid-free, archival, museum-quality panel that is perfect for acrylic and oil paintings. Here you get a guaranteed durable substrate that does not bend and where the color retains its luster. Gessobord is coated with professional quality acrylic gesso. The subtle texture gives very good brush control and allows for detail work. You can of course use Gessobord for palette knife work, heavy impasto, wipe-out and glazing techniques.

Artist Credit: Taylor Reinhold, Jane Hunt.