The following excerpt is from “Scenery, a Manual of Scene Design” by Harold Helvenston (1931, page 55)
“Sizing is made by putting into a large bucket about three-quarters of a bucket of dry whiting, allowing water to flow easily into the bucket while a stirring rod or stick is used vigorously to dissolve the lumps and make an evenly consistent paste. Three or four small cups of glue are then added to this mixture for binding purposes and enough water is added to insure the proper consistency for the easy use of the brush, the amount of glue is variable and is usually determined by each individual painter in the preparation of sizing…if there is too little glue the paint will crack and if there is too much the sizing will stretch the canvas or cloth too tightly. The whiting serves to fill the pores of the fabric and the glue acts as a binder to stretch it tightly on the frame.”
Author: waszut_barrett@me.com
Wendy Rae Waszut-Barrett, PhD, is an author, artist, and historian, specializing in painted settings for opera houses, vaudeville theaters, social halls, cinemas, and other entertainment venues. For over thirty years, her passion has remained the preservation of theatrical heritage, restoration of historic backdrops, and the training of scenic artists in lost painting techniques. In addition to evaluating, restoring, and replicating historic scenes, Waszut-Barrett also writes about forgotten scenic art techniques and theatre manufacturers. Recent publications include the The Santa Fe Scottish Rite Temple: Freemasonry, Architecture and Theatre (Museum of New Mexico Press, 2018), as well as articles for Theatre Historical Society of America’s Marquee, InitiativeTheatre Museum Berlin’s Die Vierte Wand, and various Masonic publications such as Scottish Rite Journal, Heredom and Plumbline. Dr. Waszut-Barrett is the founder and president of Historic Stage Services, LLC, a company specializing in historic stages and how to make them work for today’s needs. Although her primary focus remains on the past, she continues to work as a contemporary scene designer for theatre and opera.
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