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Brenda:
Hmmmm . . . I raised this issue several months ago, and got quite a few replies, but I could not turn up the thread when I did a search.
Nonetheless, my question was much like yours. Why can't we paint over old paint? My thinking was that when we do a painting that takes quite a long time (whether that is days, weeks, or months) it is inevitable that, at some point, we begin putting new paint on top of yesterday's, or last week's paint.
Furthermore, for those who use the underpainting method, at some point, they have to stop "underpainting," and begin painting in color, which is the same as painting on top of paint.
Like you, I raised the question because I sometimes end up with a few canvases, or panels, that could be used to make a study, or to do something for myself.
Some cautioned against painting on old paint, and others didn't see the harm. As I recall, one of the more valid cautions concerned painting on top of paint that was YEARS old. It had to do with how much the underlayers had dried as opposed to the new, wet layers.
I wouldn't try to seal the old paint, and I'd probably try to be sure the new paint surface had a little oil mixed into the paint to preserve the fat over lean rule, and let the older underlayers of paint to continue drying.
So long as these new paintings are for you, you probably won't do any harm.
One other note. I've been in museums in which you could see the outline (paint ridges) of an older painting beneath the new paint, so the old guys did it, too.
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