Ampersand Claybord - Superior Performance with Mixed Media

Product Highlights:

Museum Series Claybord™
• Ultra-smooth absorbent clay ground
• Accepts more mediums than any other surface
• One of a kind workability with paints and artist tools

Many Fine Art Uses:
• Excellent for use with India, pigmented and alcohol inks
• Also use with egg tempera, acrylics, collage, pencil, pens, airbrush, photo-transfers, casein, watercolor, gouache and mixed media
• Bonds well with adhesives to mount paper and fabrics


Museum Series Claybord™ is made using 1/8" true artist hardboard and features Ampersand’s simply amazing kaolin clay ground formula similar in paintability to the clay gesso grounds used during the Renaissance. The surface is sanded to an ULTRA-smooth, highly absorbent finish so your paint colors remain true and brilliant. Work the surface by thinly applying paint or ink, then remove it, reapply it, even scratch through it to add contrast, texture and fine details. Claybord is a favorite of both fine and graphic artists. Only Ampersand builds their cradles by hand with premium grade 13-ply birch plywood for maximum stability and a clean, finished look from edge to edge. Choose from 3/4", 1.5" and 2" Deep, all made in the USA.

We used to recommend Claybord™ for encaustic painting. Now we have a surface called Encausticbord™ that is rigid, absorbent, heat resistant and made especially for the unique demands of encaustic painting.

Why Choose Ampersand™?
No other panel on the market protects an artist’s work like an Ampersand™ panel. Every Claybord™ panel is protected by our proprietary Archival-Seal™ barrier technology, the most advanced formula for sealing wood that prevents support induced discoloration. Only Ampersand™ uses true high-density hardboard made from US-grown renewable Aspen wood fibers. Claybord is archival, eco-friendly, formaldehyde-free and made by hand in the USA. Read more about the hardboard we use and why we’ve found it to be a better substrate.

About painting on Claybord™
Apply paint and ink using brushes, sponges, palette knives, paper towels, airbrush, technical pens and painting tools. Claybord is also an excellent printing surface and can also be used for image transfers.

With Claybord, paints and inks can be manipulated to vary tonal value, create detail and to develop highlights and correct mistakes. Various artist tools can be used such as Ampersand scratchboard tools, hobby knives, razor blades, etching tools, sand paper, oil-free steel wool, and electric erasers. Claybord's clay coating allows for the use of sgraffito techniques to cut into the surface and re-expose the white clay ground. The coating is 7 to 10 dry-mils thick allowing for multiple cut-ins or erasers. The smooth finish and the absorbency of the clay ground allows the use of an abrasive like oil-free steel wool or sand paper to remove pigment without damaging the finish. Claybord’s inventor Charles Ewing demonstrates his process for using India inks in an additive and subtractive process here.

While Claybord allows the use of traditional materials, tools, and techniques, it is also an ideal surface for mixed media and experimentation. Details can be added, highlights created, and mistakes corrected.