16x26 3D Pro Monterey Canvas 2-1/2" #DM-1626

True Golden Mean Proportion - 16x26 Size

This 16x26 size is one of our Golden Mean sizes, considered the most pleasing shape to the eye!

The Golden Ratio, also known as the Golden Mean or Divine Proportion, is considered the most aesthetically pleasing proportion to the human eye. This proportion has been used in art and architecture for thousands of years, and countless examples can be found in nature, plant life, galaxies, and the human body. The Golden Mean can also be used as a guide to arrange your subjects on the canvas in concert with other Golden Mean shapes like an ellipse, star, triangle, and spiral, resulting in intriguing compositions. Many famous artists, such as Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Mondrian, Botticelli, Dali, and Seurat, have used this proportion in their art, and many contemporary artists continue to use it exclusively. The Golden Ratio can even produce some mathematically intriguing relationships that relate directly to art, architecture, science, and human intrigue. If you're looking for a challenge and inspiration, consider using a canvas in the proportion of the Golden Mean to create a composition that will come alive in the most intriguing ways!

Explore other sizes in this same 13:8 aspect ratio:

7x11 • 10x16 • 12x19 • 15x24 • 18x29 • 20x32 • 23x37 • 26x42 • 28x45 • 30x48 • 31x50 • 33x53 • 36x58 • 37x60 • 39x63 • 42x68 • 46x74 • 47x76 • 50x81 • 52x84 • 60x96 • 60x97

Explore Related Products to this 16x26 Size:

• Acrylic Primed Cotton: Carmel™ • Tahoe™ • Heavy Weight 14oz cotton • Sierra™
• Acrylic Primed Linen: Muir™ • Vintage L22U™ • Santa Cruz™ • Saint-Cloud™ • Grenoble™ • Pau™
• Alkyd / Oil Primed Linen: Malibu™ • Vintage L21C™ • Ventura™ • Versailles™ • Isola™ • Poitiers™
• Vincent™ Pro 7/8 • Monet™ Pro 1.5

Monterey™ 7oz Acrylic Primed Cotton

An all-around great canvas, extraordinary value, and our top selling canvas surface across all our products. It is our premium quality all-purpose canvas suitable for most all techniques.

• 100% Cotton 7 oz.; Primed Weight 10.5 oz. per square yard
• Medium Weight, Medium Weave, Medium Texture
• Sized and Double Primed with acid-free archival quality acrylic gesso
• Impenetrable ground prevents oil paint from leaching through and harming the canvas
• For acrylics, oils, alkyds, and water miscible oil paints

3D™ Pro 2.5 Stretcher Bar • 1/2" Canvas Clearance

1/2" Canvas Clearance is the space between the Bar and the canvas. Generally speaking, more clearance reduces the risk of the canvas touching the wood and creating unsightly lines during painting. Our design provides the optimal clearance so as not to impact your painting, but still leaving enough wood to the maximize strength of the Stretcher Bar.

• Produces a 2.5" deep stretched canvas (Actual depth is slightly thinner)
• 1.25" wide Stretcher Bar
• All Bars have an exclusive groove on the inside perimeter of the frame to which cross braces and Diamond Corner Braces attach
• Solid Ponderosa Pine or Fir from the Pacific Northwest

Solid Wood is Archival - Finger Jointed Wood is Not

We only use Solid Wood to build our Stretcher Bars because a solid piece of wood will last indefinitely. When we speak of archival value, it's not just the paint you use and the quality of your canvas and ground, even the wood choices manufacturers make are part of the archival process.

The principal reason manufactures use finger jointed wood is reduce cost, not increase archival value. Wood constantly grows and shrinks when the environment becomes hotter, or colder, or more humid, or more dry. Because finger jointed wood is made-up of multiple and varied pieces of wood, with varying grain patterns and densities, they each absorb and shed moisture at varying rates, which works on the glue joints that hold them together, causing the wood to bow and the joints to eventually fail, and certainly not consistent with increasing the archival value of your artwork frame support.

As a manufacturer, we do our part to conserve as much wood as possible, and still provide a quality made product that will out-perform any other in the marketplace.

16x26 2.5" Deep Edge Heavy Frame Offers Maximum Support!

• Drawing depicts the exact frame construction, not the proportion
• 2.5" Deep Edge K2 Heavy Stretcher Bars are precision machined with a unique double tongue-and-groove corner joint that provides rock-solid torsional rigidity that resists warping or twisting, which is an important benefit for such a deep edge canvas
• One super strong 3/4" thick keyable brace provides maximum possible support for this 16x26 frame - Brace is permanently installed in the frame, but canvas tension may be increased by tapping-in the keys or wedges that slightly expand the size of the frame
• The Stretcher Bars have an proprietary utility groove on the inside perimeter of the frame which is used to attach braces and other optional frame supports
• The Masterpiece brace feature an exclusive system that allows you to increase the tension to the middle of the canvas, where the tension is needed the most; it's so unique it earned us a patent
• To increase canvas tension: 1) remove any staples in the corners and those that retain the brace keys in the middle, 2) tap all of the expansion keys further into their respective slots, 3) tighten and re-staple the canvas in the corners

Canvas Tension is in Your Control

In dry climates or air conditioned environments, the lack of moisture in the air causes wood frames to shrink and the canvas fibers to narrow and elongate making the canvas more slack and resulting in a loss of canvas tension. In some instances, the canvas could have waves on the surface resulting in an unsightly viewing experience.

Our 3D™ Pro 2.5 professional frames provide the functionality for you to slightly expand the size of the frame in the corners and the middle of the canvas, thereby increasing canvas tension all across the surface. The difference between a loose canvas and a tight canvas is just 1/8" of an inch, so a small adjustment using our corner and brace keys makes an important difference in canvas tension.

• Helps to prevent waves that occur in a loose canvas
• Increase canvas tension by tapping-in the corner and brace keys
• True professional class canvases make it possible for you to adjust the canvas tension

Cross Braces Make it Tighter

A tightly stretched canvas on an un-braced frame overpowers the Stretcher Bars causing them to bow inward and thereby lose tension. Sometimes that bow can expose a space in picture frames.

When a canvas is stretched on a properly supported frame, the cross-braces prevent the Bars from bowing thereby achieving maximum canvas tension. To increase the canvas tension even more, simply tap the corner and brace keys further in their slots. Properly supported frames provide you with the control over the canvas tension of your canvas and painting.

Sustainably Managed Forests Coexist with Mankind

We use lumber grown in the sustainable forests of the Pacific Northwest, where thereÕs more standing timber today than last century! There will always be a demand for wood pulp and fiber, but striking a harmonious balance with human coexistence is the essential strategy to which we subscribe. Sustainably managed forests increase our health and abundance of our forests which can be in harmony with this precious natural resource.

MuseumWrap™ Stretching Technique

With more than a half a century of American engineering, Masterpiece® designs and builds its own proprietary stretching equipment that enables us to produce the finest and most tightly-stretched canvas on the market.

• Drum-tight stretch!
• Up to 50% tighter than other methods
• Balanced tension across the surface
• Uncut folded corners make it possible to remove and re-stretch canvas on the same size frame
• Usually the corner folds are on the long sides

Our mission at Masterpiece® is to deliver the premium quality products that add value to your art. We are widely recognized as the nation's leader and trendsetter of professional quality fine-art canvas. Not only do we have the widest selection of products, but we feature intriguing aspect ratios and sizes with a purpose to add new dimensions to your art.

The first step towards vice is to shroud innocent actions in mystery, and whoever likes to conceal something sooner or later has reason to conceal it. ♦ Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the iconic philosopher, writer, and composer of the 18th century, delves into the complexities of human nature and morality in this profound observation. His works often revolved around the idea of man's innate goodness, only to be corrupted by society's influence. Here, he offers a penetrating look into the gradual descent into vice, suggesting that hiding even the most innocent of actions can pave the way to darker intentions.

Transparency and honesty are often paramount in our creations. When we begin to obscure our intentions or hide behind facades, we might find ourselves drifting from the authentic core that defines our work. This sentiment from Rousseau serves as a reminder for all of us: integrity and authenticity are our guiding lights. Deviating from this path, even with the smallest concealment, could lead to larger deviations in the future. As we navigate our art careers, let's remember the importance of clarity in action and intention, ensuring that our work remains true to who we are and the messages we wish to convey.

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We've handpicked this empowering quote and offer insightful context to inspire your art. We've even created this unique portrait of Jean-Jacques Rousseau to provide a personal touch to your browsing experience. Now start on your painting!

Tight'n'Up™ Liquid Canvas Retensioner

While all of our Masterpiece® Pro canvases are stretched very tightly and our frames have a built-in method to increase tension, we have another method to add canvas tension. Tight'n'Up™ Liquid Canvas Retensioner (sold separately) can be sprayed on the back of a canvas to repair most canvas tension issues.

With Tight'n'Up™, you can add tension to just a small area, or a large area. Simply spray it lightly on the back and brush it into the canvas, and within seconds, your canvas becomes tighter and stays tighter. The more you use, the tighter it gets.