Artworks on canvas, whatever your media, need a strong, stable underpinning to stand the test of time. As canvas ages, it naturally slackens. Moisture and humidity, varying levels of light, the weight of your media and other natural factors can all hasten the deterioration of your canvas.

North America’s top artists, art institutions and restoration pros look to UCS for professionally designed and engineered canvas stretchers to protect their best works. In order to keep your canvas taut and enable you to adjust its tension over time, stretcher bars need to be keyable. As needed, you can check the tension of your canvas (give it an inspection at least annually) and gently tap your keys to uniformly tighten it up.

There are a number of other unique and innovative features you’ll want to watch for in your stretcher bars, to make sure they can stand up to the environmental factors trying to wear them down:

• straight grain clear white pine, kiln dried to 8% humidity for lightness, strength and stability;
• friction-fitting 10 degree tapered hardwood keys for precise control of canvas tension;
• laminated and finger jointed bars and braces, with double & triple tongue and groove friction joints providing additional strength for supporting large and extra large canvases;

For oversized or heavier artworks, additional design features can create superior support–inward sloping on the stretcher bars to allow for a protective backing, or heavy duty, keyable cross braces, for example. Sharing your vision with a UCS expert enables us to create the perfect canvas for your next project.

The Smithsonian Art Museum in Washington, D.C., turned to Upper Canada Stretchers to support five stunning paintings by artist Gene Davis. When Landon Metz needed sturdy, three-dimensional canvasesfor an installation at Andersen’s Gallery in Copenhagen, UCS designed and manufactured custom supports to bring his vision to life. From Daren Gallo’s fine art and portrait photography studio in the Yukon, to San Franciscan Heather Day’s murals, to Andrew Radcliffe’s ethereal watercolors in the Virgin Islands and everywhere in between, you’ll find our stretchers supporting and protecting fine art.

Add value and strength to your next piece with a professionally engineered, top quality canvas stretcher. Join the ranks of hundreds of artists and top art institutions across North America who look to UCS for their stock and custom canvas stretcher bars, custom stretched canvas and more. We ship daily across North America to art professionals like you, including the outstanding folks featured here: