A painting sketch or underdrawing, is a preliminary drawing you make on your canvas that will help guide where your painting will go. However, before starting your sketch you first need to put a light color wash over the canvas. After the color wash is in place, you are ready to sketch out your painting.

Canvas usually has a much rougher surface than paper, making it ideally suited for any drawings that have a lot of graphite or charcoal applied to your drawing surface. If you heavily prime a canvas with gesso, it will be smoother, but the plastic-like surface will feel and behave differently than paper does.

Originally Answered: Should you sketch on a canvas before painting? Absolutely! Use pencil, charcoal or even the paint itself to sketch your ideas out before you start. If using oil paint and you change your mind while painting, you can paint over and make the change.

It is best to apply gesso first on canvas if you’re using canvas that wasn’t primed yet. When it is dry, you can use a flat brush or whichever you’re comfortable with to draw/sketch using black paint or other color except white.

What are the best gesso substitutes? The best substitutes for gesso are commercial acrylic primers, clear gesso, a gel medium, rabbit skin glue, and oil painting grounds. You can also prepare a gesso at home for either acrylic or oil.

Place a white vinyl eraser on a clean portion of the canvas and wipe it over the pencil mark, straight through to another clean portion of canvas. A vinyl eraser removes soft graphite marks and significantly reduces the appearance of hard graphite pencil marks.

Pick up the canvas. Paint around the edges first, trying not to get too much overflow onto the front of the canvas.

Can’t I just use white paint? Sorry, but no. While it might look similar, white paint has a different texture and makeup than gesso. White paint will not render your work surface archival.

If a pre-stretched or bought canvas says it’s been primed for acrylics, you don’t need to do anything to it, you can start painting on it straight away (with acrylics or oils). Or even several layers, using some sand paper to smooth the gesso or primer surface if you want. But that’s optional.

If so, then go for acrylics. But if you’re looking for traditional painting styles that are realistic, oil paint is the best choice. Another consideration is where you’re going to work. Oil paints are a luscious pigment, but they can be smelly—especially the substances you use to clean your brushes.