Dibond or AlumaComp Panels

Artist Bob was introduced to aluminum panels by famed NM artist Shana Levenson (BIG thank-you, Shana). What is Dibond? Dibond is one of several trade names of aluminum composite consisting of two thin sheets of aluminum enclosing a polyethylene core. Suitable for a huge range of applications, Dibond is lightweight but strong and the extremely flat surface is great for printing high quality graphics or text. More and more painters seem to have found this material ideal as a painting substrate. The prevailing argument for the use of Dibond is it’s presumed stability over a long period of time. With Dibond you don’t have to worry about the organic fibers rotting (as with cotton and linen), and you don’t have to worry about warpage (as you do with any kind of wood panel). The expansion and contraction of these organic materials, which over many years may compromise the integrity of the paint film, also becomes a non-issue with Dibond.

An aluminum sandwich

This is acid free and Archival. By theory, it should last a really long time (a 1000 years?) because the elements will not bother it as much as a regular linen or canvas.

Artist Bob loves this type

Bob buys these from Jerry's Artarama and then primes one side of them (the roughed side) with an oil-based cream colored gesso primer, giving them 2-3  coats and lightly sanding with a 300 grit on each layer. It takes 14-28 days for just this process.