Effect of Sunlight Exposure on Models

[Llagos_Tyrant]

I'm finishing up a move to a new place and looking at potentially placing my display cabinet for my painted models in a spot which gets direct sunlight for a fair part of the afternoon. Does anyone know if there is a risk that the sun could distort or desaturate the colour of the paint on the models? I've seen it happen to books and other items before, but I'm not sure if it would impact acrylic paints in a cabinet.

 

Appreciate any lessons learned or confirmation it shouldn't be a problem!

[Lord_Ikka]

I'd be more worried about the heat caused by direct sunlight- depending on the model's material (plastic, resin, metal, etc...), you could face some issues with deformation and warping of the model/base. 

[WrathOfTheLion]

I'd probably avoid direct sunlight if you can. I figure like with most pigments, they can get sunbleached. I think I've seen it happen before, although it isn't quick nor as dramatic. This was in the Southeastern US, which has more sun though.

[Noserenda]

Yeah my old store had cabinets in the window in direct sun most of the day and even in sunny blighty you eventually get some paint fading, cabinets can get really hot too which can be a problem for resin, though probably not anything else? 

[Lord_Ikka]

14 minutes ago, Noserenda said:

cabinets can get really hot too which can be a problem for resin, though probably not anything else? 

Depends on how hot it can get for plastic models- thinner elements will bend at lower temps. I've also had metal "slotty" models' bases warp due to heat that transferred from the model to the base. 

[Bouargh]

IMO, sun light on paint pots is the main issue in case of direct exposure on the storage rack: in that place heat can increase rapidely behind a glass window. It favors evaporation and polimerization making paints sticky and thick before any impact on colour. I noticed it especially for yellows, whites and metallics. Pouring medium do not really help to recover the situation as fas as I tried it.

 

Too much direct light may also make painting difficult because of shadws that form - but it is more about eye comfort stuff...

 

Otherwise models do not get sun tan lines I noticed.

[StratoKhan]

Sunlight definitely causes fading. Certain elements of UV like UVB are blocked by glass windows, but anyone who’s taken down a mirror or a painting from a wall that’s exposed to sunlight will have noticed that the patch behind their hanging object has not faded as much as the areas in direct exposure to the sun. Other factors, such as the composition of the paints, will contribute to the rate of fading as well.

 

If you’re worried about fading, I would suggest looking into sun control films for the glass cabinet or the windows in that room.

 

[frankendoodle65]

This is a question that seriously stresses out artists and museum restorers on a regular basis. 

Some pigments are more light-fast than others, but also how thickly you apply the paint can have an effect; ultra thin glazes will obviously put less pigment on the surface so they'll fade faster. 

High quality artists paints will list the pigments used and give a light fastness rating, so it's possible to consider that when painting. However no miniature paint brands that I've seen give any of this information so It's impossible to know what's in them and thus how light-fast they are. 

 

I saw some paintings at The Queen's Gallery at Buckingham palace recently that featured some gorgeous blue robes. Turned out when I read the sign next to them that the robes were originally purple - a red glaze hade been applied over the blue but in the 200 years since has completely faded away! 

 

 

TL:DR unless you know exactly which pigments you're using it's impossible to know how your paints will react to sunlight.

 

My hobby room gets a lot of direct sunlight and I've never had an issue (yet), but maybe I'm just lucky.  The biggest problem for me is just that it gets too hot to comfortably work in there during the summer months, so take that into consideration too!

[Firedrake Cordova]

I think as has been pointed out, there's two potential issues here:

• Effect of sunlight on the material of the models (i.e. do they heat up and warp).
• Effect of sunlight on the paint applied to the model.

I think that models made from "Finecast" resin are probably the most likely to suffer "materially" (i.e. warp).

 

With regards to the paint, I know some of the art supplies manufacturers make varnishes which are supposed to block UV - I don't know if that's something worth looking into or not?

[Llagos_Tyrant]

Thanks everyone for your feedback! I wasn't sure how much of a response this question would get so I appreciate the thoughtful and thorough answers. I think I'll set up the display cabinet a little further into the room away from the window in this case, just to reduce any risks. The A/C in the apartment should help with temperature control at least, so hopefully that will prevent any models warping.