I am fortunate in having no particular sensitivity to the aromatic solvents such as spirits of turpentine and oil of spike often used in oil painting. I take reasonable precautions while painting to avoid overexposure and ensure good ventilation.
Some people are specifically sensitive to spirits of turpentine, but are able to use alternate solvents such as oil of spike. Others are very sensitive to aromatic solvents, but are able to tolerate modified substances such as odorless mineral spirits. (I don’t like using OMS with oil paints because I don’t like the way they interact with paint. I also have a slight skin sensitivity to mineral spirits.) Note that not all spirits of turpentine are the same. Most modern gum turpentines are made from boiled tree stumps, which makes a nasty-smelling product. Look for stuff that doesn’t have a foul odor.
But there are some individuals who just can’t be around any of the solvents that are useful for oil painting. And even people with no sensitivity may find themselves taking a class or in some other situation in which solvents are not allowed. I think it’s useful, therefore, to discuss strategies for working with oil paint without solvents.
I’d first like to note that, for the first 100 years of oil painting, there is scant evidence of solvent use. Paintings from that period often exhibit very fine detail, demonstrating that just about any sort of painting in oil is possible without solvents. Since those paintings have often lasted very well (without excessive cracking or yellowing), it also demonstrates that multi-layered solvent-free painting can be done without having to dilute the paint with excessive oil or by egregiously violating the principle of fat over lean.
Water miscible oil paints
I’ve written about these convenience paints before. They are made with oils that have been chemically modified so that they are mixable with water. I don’t use them for three reasons. First, while it is possible to dilute them with water, it’s not a good idea to paint with a lot of water added because that can disrupt the binding strength of the paint. Second, since adding water makes an emulsion, dark-colored paints with water added become a bit lighter, then darken as the water evaporates. Third, because water miscible paints are mostly marketed to amateurs, the paints are mostly not of the same quality as artist-grade oil paints. For these reasons, I personally don’t find water miscible oil paints to be a good strategy for oil painting without solvents.
M. Graham paints
There is one company that has achieved some success by promoting a solvent-free strategy with their products. M. Graham is the only manufacturer, so far as I know, that makes all of their oil paints with walnut oil. They suggest the avoidance of solvents in favor of diluting the paint with walnut oil or with their faster-drying walnut oil alkyd medium. They tend to promote the idea that using their paints, with their special solvent-free methods, is safer. I’ve head of demonstrations they do in which company representatives use their walnut medium to cook with. It’s true that walnut oil is safe, but their marketing is also a bit misleading. All of the other oils used by their competitors are also safe, and you can cook with any of them. While their paints are well-made, there is nothing about them that is particularly more suited to solvent-free painting than any other oil paint. Any of the solvent-free painting methods described in their product literature will work just as well with other brands of paint and with plain linseed oil.
Using regular oil paints without solvents
There isn’t any one approach to solvent-free painting. The most appropriate methods will depend to some degree on your style of painting and which materials you feel comfortable working with. Here are some ideas:
- Use paints that are smooth and creamy, not thick and pasty. Avoid brands like Old Holland and Williamsburg which, while of high quality, are often difficult to work with without dilution. Instead, use paint brands like Doak, Studio Products, and (notwithstanding what I said above) M. Graham. These paints are more like fresh-mulled paint and are far easier to work with without additives.
- For the initial layers of a painting, use lean mediums that contain no solvents. Emulsions using egg yolk, hide glue, and small amounts of oil are very lean and can be effective, fast-drying dilutents for oil paints if you prefer initial layers to be loose and easy to apply. I sometimes make a medium consisting of 3 parts egg yolk to 1 part black oil or linseed oil, for example. It can be slightly diluted with water and, mixed with oil paints, allows free application of a lean underpainting layer. Tad Spurgeon provides this recipe:
If you want to use your regular oils without solvent you can create an emulsion using 1 part egg yolk and 2 parts warm glue solution (3T glue to 2c water, above) and paint with that on panels. The emulsion will set as it cools but still be workable: you can add a bit more water if this feels too thick: warm slightly and shake it well to re-emulsify. You can also add a bit of oil to this (first, before the water) and/or a small proportion of one of the water soluble wax products sold for tempera. You can also emulsify Canada Balsam or Strasbourg Turpentine into this but I developed this for students who paint in community places where solvents are forbidden and felt that might cause problems. I’ve actually ended up like the simplicity of the egg yolk and glue: it sets up very quickly, holding the pigment although the oil is still wet. If you feel like you’re working too tightly you might enjoy a few sketches in this stuff.
- For upper layers of a painting, add very small amounts of oil (I prefer linseed oil or black oil) to the paint in order to get it to flow more freely. It doesn’t take much, especially when using one of the paint brands recommended above.
- Do initial layers of a painting on panel in egg tempera or tempera grassa. You can then glaze over the initial very lean layers with oil paint (to which you can add a small amount of oil when necessary).
- Paint with a wax-based medium such as this one from Studio Products.
- While painting, clean your brushes with linseed oil. Dip the brush in oil, wipe with a paper towel, repeating until the brush is sufficiently clean. At the end of a session, clean your palette with a paper towel dipped in oil and your brushes with soap and water.
- Keep your paint warm. I’m not kidding. Warm oil paint flows a lot more smoothly than cold oil paint. You can keep paint on a glass palette on top of an electric hot plate. Just be careful never to use an open flame or an exposed heating element near oil paint or any solvents.
- You can thin your paint with an alkyd-based medium such as Liquin or Galkyd. I don’t like alkyd mediums for multi-layer painting. I also hate the way they smell, so I don’t use them.
There is no reason why you can’t paint effectively with oils without solvents, although you will have to adjust your materials and methods. You will have some limitations, but they are not so severe that you will need to give up painting in oil.
I am the author of the book titled, ” Oil Painting with ‘Calcite Sun Oil’: Safety and Permanence without Hazardous Solvents , Varnishes, Resins and Driers”, with details on my website at… http://www.calcitesunoil.com
Please review my site as it refers to the content of this article. Thank you= Louis
Louis,
You state on your site that solvents can be replaced by the mediums described in your book. I have not read the book or used those mediums, so I don’t feel qualified to comment.
This is the best, concrete information I have found so far about oil painting without solvents. For the past year, I have not used any medium — just safflower oil to clean brush before washing. How long will your oil/egg yolk mixture keep? Thank you for all the useful information you post on your website. You may not realize just how valuable this can be to someone learning how to oil paint. All the best.
Suzette,
Thanks for the kind words.
An egg/oil emulsion (basically, mayonnaise made with linseed or other drying oil) can keep for a week or so, if refrigerated. There are many recipes and they have a very long history in oil painting. They can be made in just a couple of minutes, so it’s easy to make up small batches.
Thanks, David. Your website is a treasure trove! I also have pics of roosters on the road towards Dun Angus (sp?). Have painted them in both watercolor and oil — oil being MUCH easier.
Hi Suzette and David, Since the readers will recognize my previous introduction, I will not repeat. I cut and pasted the important parts of David’s writing ( and TADS paragraph), in order to make comments. Ill preface Davids/ Tads writing with an # and mine with an *…
Using regular oil paints without solvents
The most appropriate methods will depend to some degree on your style of painting and which materials you feel comfortable working with. Here are some ideas:
Use paints that are smooth and creamy, not thick and pasty. Avoid brands like Old Holland and Williamsburg which, while of high quality, are often difficult to work with without dilution. * I do not think this is good information because the Emulsion itself is the thinner of the paint. One can add as much of the non-solvent based thinner ( the emulsion)as one wishes, so the firmness of the paint grind matters nothing.
Instead, use paint brands like Doak, Studio Products, and (notwithstanding what I said above) M. Graham. These paints are more like fresh-mulled paint and are far easier to work with without additives.
For the initial layers of a painting, use lean mediums that contain no solvents. Emulsions using egg yolk, hide glue, and small amounts of oil are very lean and can be effective, fast-drying dilutents for oil paints if you prefer initial layers to be loose and easy to apply.
I sometimes make a medium consisting of 3 parts egg yolk to 1 part black oil or linseed oil, for example. It can be slightly diluted with water and, mixed with oil paints, allows free application of a lean underpainting layer.
Tad Spurgeon provides this recipe:
If you want to use your regular oils without solvent you can create an emulsion using 1 part egg yolk and 2 parts warm glue solution (3T glue to 2c water, above) and paint with that on panels. The emulsion will set as it cools but still be workable: you can add a bit more water if this feels too thick: warm slightly and shake it well to re-emulsify. You can also add a bit of oil to this (first, before the water) and/or a small proportion of one of the water soluble wax products sold for tempera. * I have covered my objections to use of water and yolk sufficiently, and adding wax is another item that serves no purpose in oil painting. If one wishes to work with encaustic, thats another medium. Sir Joshua REynolds worked with wax additions to his paint.. to the dismay of its permanence..
You can also emulsify Canada Balsam or Strasbourg Turpentine into this but I developed this for students who paint in community places where solvents are forbidden
Do initial layers of a painting on panel in egg tempera or tempera grassa. You can then glaze over the initial very lean layers with oil paint (to which you can add a small amount of oil when necessary).
Yes..the materials are the key. Methods are not the key.
You will have some limitations,
but they are not so severe that you will need to give up painting in oil.
Find this site useful? Support is much appreciated. * Please see my website and write to me. I will answer questions for painting without solvents.
sincerely = Louis R. VBelasquez
As far as oils go for a putty ( i am just using oil and calcite without the rotten eggs)
Have you checked out the Jedwards oils ? There prices are so good — I have just bought a gallon flax and gallon walnut. They are very responsive and good customer service . $25 for a gallon of flax oil
Jedwards International, Inc. — Plant Oils:
http://www.bulknaturaloilsstore.com/plantoils.aspx
Their flax oil — that they often sell as pharmaceutical grade for encapsulation — is not unrefined though:
refined first to remove particulate & debris (i’m not sure if this includes mucilage) then bleached with the D-clay
then Deorderized by steaming
their process of refining seems harmless and close to what we artists would do at home.
the head space of gallon jugs are nitrogen purged
this sounds highly refined
just confirmed the pressing of the seeds is cold –for their organic and conventional
But, they have been around for half-century and one of the few on the east coast.
The walnut oil is alkali refined which they say is not caustic and just basically salt and state it is meant for food grade as is all their oils.
Update to Jedwards oil:
Just spoke to someone else in customer serviece and here is some clarification:
Convention flax is highly refined as the process states in my early post above with a mechanical method of filtration
the ORganic Flax is refined w/ org compliance
the steaming does not exceed 120F
walnut oil is Expeller pressed w/o compromise quality refined by alkali
They are distributors but, buy from the same suppliers for consisten product Their drums are nitrogen purged and re-purged whenever opened to protect from air. and same with gallon jugs which are in opaque HDPE #2 plastic — heavy duty enough to stand on.
Hi, David
It’s great that you’re investigating other options for solvent free oil painting and sharing your info with people. I have a method using purified linseed oil and stand oil that I’ve used for almost twenty years if you’re interested in checking it out http://www.baughnormanoils.com/solvent_free_oil_painting.htm
Best Regards,
Terri
Hi I find your site very informitive. Question, I am presently enjoying painting thick with a palette knife: I do not want it drying right away during the 3 hrs I will work on it. I like to scrape out what I do not want and work back into in the painting so I have been using a slow drying medium SD. as an experiment. I do not want the painting to crack right away and I do not want it to take forever to dry. I have thought about trying lukas medium 5 but I do not want the paint to dry in a few minutes. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
thank you judy
Judy,
I’m not familiar with those mediums. I’m not sure whether you’re using mediums to adjust drying time or to change the handling properties of the paint. If you want to slow down drying, then adding a very small amount of clove oil (such as a small drop per thumbnail-sized blob of paint on your palette) will increase the paint’s open time (the time it stays workable).. Open time also depends what kinds of pigments and oils are used in the paint.
If you’re trying to adjust the handling properties, well then the right medium depends on what you’re trying to get the paint to do.
Hi David, Hi Judy; Regarding what Judy asked, I’d like to respond. Ill use CAPS:
“Question, I am presently enjoying painting thick with a palette knife:
IF USING TUBE OIL PAINTS, THIS IMPASTO APPLICATION WOULD NORMALLY BE SLOW DRYING PAINT, REQUIRING SEVERAL HOURS AND OR DAYS.
I do not want it drying right away during the 3 hrs I will work on it.
NORMAL OIL PAINT IN IMPASTO DOES NOT DRY WITHIN THREE HOURS, UNLESS IF AN ACCELERANT DRIER IS MIXED WITH THE PAINT..
I like to scrape out what I do not want and work back into in the painting so I have been using a slow drying medium SD. as an experiment.
IMPASTO OF NORMAL TUBE OIL PAINT, BEING A SLOW DRYING PAINT, AND THEN ADDING A SLOW DRYING MEDIUM TO IT, WILL CERTAINLY NOT DRY WITHIN 3 HOURS.
P I do not want the painting to crack right away
SLOW DRYING IMPASTO TUBE OIL PAINT WILL NOT CRACK BECAUSE THE SLOW DRYING OF THE OIL WILL INSURE IT TAKES ITS TIME TO DRY THROUGHOUT ITS THICKNESS, VS, THICK PAINT WHICH MIGHT BEGIN THE DRYING ON TOP, WRINKLING AS IT DRIES IN THE LOWER STRATA.
and I do not want it to take forever to dry.
ADDING A SLOW DRYING MEDIUM WILL ONLY DELAY THE DRYING EVEN MORE, SUCH AS ADDING CLOVE OIL.
I have thought about trying lukas medium 5 but I do not want the paint to dry in a few minutes.
SINCE I USE NO PAINT MEDIUMS WITH SOLVENTS, DRIERS, RESINS OR ANY MIXTURES OF THESE , I CANNOT TELL WHAT LUKAS #5 WILL DO. BUT IT SOUNDS AS IF IT WOULD ACCELERATE THE DRYING TO WITHIN MINUTES.
Any suggestions will be appreciated.
HERE I WOULD LIKE TO RECOMMEND THE ’ SUPERIOR LINSEED OIL’ OF THE OLD MASTERS. UNREFINED, COLD PRESSED, ORGANICALLY CLEANSED, SLOWLY SUN THICKENED IN THE SUMMER SUN. IT DRIES WITHIN 30 HOURS, OVERNIGHT, AND EVEN WITHIN 6 HOURS IF SOME PIGMENTS SUCH AS UMBER ARE USED. ALSO, IMPACTING THE DRYING OF ANY PAINT ARE THE 6 FACTORS: 1. THE MEDIUM USED 2. THE PIGMENT USED 3. THE THICKNESS OF THE PAINT 4. THE HUMIDITY 5. THE TEMPERATURE 6 THE VENTILATION.
THE SUPERIOR LINSEED OIL OF THE OLD MASTERS IS FULLY DESCRIBED ON MY WEBSITE, AS IS THE CHANGING OF THE CONSISTENCY OF PAINT BY USE OF TWO SIMPLE SAFE EMULSIONS AND DRY CALCIUM CARBONATE POWDER. RATIOS AND MIXING TECHNIQUES AND APPLICATIO METHODS ARE IMPORTANT PARTS OF THE PUZZLE.
GOOD LUCK= LOUIS
Hello:
I use “simple green” instead of solvents. I cannot say how it affects the longevity of the paints-thus I only use it to clean my brushes and for erasing back my underpainting.
What is nice, is that (minus the sludge) simple green can be dumped done the sink. It is biodegradable.
I almost gave up painting in oils because I was getting so sick from the fumes. I went on-line and discovered that a company was marketing “earth-friendly” and “health-friendly” solvents. Really, it was nothing more than simple green with a price increase.
Hope this helps.
–cheers!
Sarah,
I’d be leery of mixing it with paint that is intended to go on a painting I want to last. If it works for you, that’s great.
David,
I’m trying your egg medium with oil paints, but I have some questions:
Is there any problem if I use it in the first layer on hardboard primed with acrylic gesso, or should I use “true gesso”?
Do I have to wait till this first layer is dry to continue the painting with a second layer in oils?
Can I use the egg medium again in a third layer over the oil paint (to dilute the painting for fine detail)?
Thanks,
Jose
Jose,
I’m not certain about use of acrylic primer. I have not done it myself, and painting authorities seem to disagree. It is probably not the best practice for longevity, but probably not terrible, either. For studies or paintings you are not too worried about lasting a long time, I would not tend to worry too much.
I let it dry before continuing with undiluted oil paint, yes.
You can dilute with the egg medium in a third layer for fine detail, yes, although I would avoid doing that over large areas as cracking could occur. Even better is straight egg tempera (yolk, pigment, and water) painted right onto wet oil paint in fine detail areas. It works amazingly well.
Good luck.
Sarah please be aware that Simple Green cuts oily substances because it contains alkaline chemicles. This means it can have an extremely high ph value which as David pointed out can be harmful to your finished work…especially over time.
If you have a problem with the fumes you might try an artist’s grade of orderless mineral spirits. I’ve been using it for the last year and it works quite well and unlike turpentine is not nearly as toxic. Just make sure to buy the artist’s grade as the type you buy in the hardware store has trace minerals that aren’t refined out. Use the hardware store mineral spirits for cleaning brushes and the like!
And please don’t pour your used Simple Green down the drain! Even though you’re removing the paint sludge first, the pigment contaminants can still linger in the solution!
TOXIC FUMES AND HARZARDOUS MATERIALS: For Sarah and others who wish to discard use of hazardous materials in oil painting, and gain 100% control of the oil medium. Ive written extensively on this subject on this site. Several persons have found this link and contacted me on the same issue Sarah has expressed. Some persons are ultra-sensitive to any amount of toxic fumes from solvents, some becoming very ill. Ive heard these ill stories for years, and yes, though some companies garner profits with low fume solvents, the fact remains they are still toxic to many in the instant, and to many others who profess ‘safe use’, over time. I welcome dialogue, but please read my website first, in order to fully understand the issues.
respectfully, Louis R. Velasquez. You can reach my site by Googleing my name…
or the name of my site … calcite sun oil.
( EXCERPT FROM SARAH’S LETTER) I use “simple green” instead of solvents…….I almost gave up painting in oils because I was getting so sick from the fumes…….
Louis’ site can be found here:
http://www.calcitesunoil.com/
Mr. Velasquez your website says that your Calcite Sun Oil creates rich translucent colors.
How do you achieve this by mixing powdered calcium carbonate (which is an opaque white mineral) into oil? When I look very closely at your website photo of the 2oz. sample package of premixed Calcite Sun Oil it appears to be a murkey grey!
Your entry above states that Calcite Sun Oil will give me 100% control of oil paint.
Your testimonial comments on your website claim that Calcite Sun Oil produces thick stringy paint. Another seasoned artist’s testimony claims that ” It’s going to take me a while to experiment with it to figure out how best to handle it”
I am confused……
Andy,
Historically, calcite (chalk) was a common additive to oil paint. Velazquez, for example, used calcite very frequently, especially in glazes. Like a number of pigments that are white when in the form of a dry powder, calcite is very close to transparent when suspended in oil. Alumina stearate, another opaque white powder, is very often used as an additive to modern tube oil colors as an inexpensive extender and to adjust the handling and storage properties of paint.
It’s all a matter of the refractive index of air, liquid, or dried oil, and how that interacts with specific materials in powder form. The refraction properties of air are very different from the refractive properties of liquids or of dried oils.
Hi Andy, Please call me Louis. Thank you for the questions and for looking at my site. Good questions with very easy answers.
(Andy asked): your website says that your Calcite Sun Oil creates rich translucent colors. How do you achieve this by mixing powdered calcium carbonate (which is an opaque white mineral) into oil? (My Response): I did not ’ invent’ the addition of dry calcium carbonate to oil. it has a long history in oil painting. Before the 1600s, it was used as an inert additive to lead white, to extend the more expensive lead white. The problem they had..and what they discovered..is that too much calcium carbonate powder added to the opaque lead white,..made the lead white translucent. The ratio quantity to add was seen as a problem to control if they wanted the white to remain opaque. But, later painters like Rembrandt, and even more so, Velazquez, used it to create sumptuous translucent textures that could be rubbed in to create a thin color glaze like Velazquez did, or…used as impasto to create rich thick impasto, like Rembrandt did. The brief answer is that in Aqueous Hide Glue..the dry CC powder remains pure white…but when mixed with oil..it is 98% transparent. Jacques Maroger, famous and infamous in his time…. looked deep into Velazquez paint and thought it was WAX..modern science has proven there is no wax in Velazquez paint nor in Rembrandts ( as Maroger incorrectly assumed)..but what Maroger did not know is that the translucent material he was seeing was, as science from the late 1980 has proven.. Calcium Carbonate powder in the oil. What my formula has done is made a new modern mixture in correct proportions , as a ready made gel-like mixture of just those two ancient archival artists materials…the superior oil and the calcium carbonate powder. The superior oil is not the industrially produced alkali refined linseed oil you buy at todays art stores….but since the oil is adequately described on my site, ill not repeat it.
(Andy asked): When I look very closely at your website photo of the 2oz. sample package of premixed Calcite Sun Oil it appears to be a murkey grey! (My response): yes. its really tricky to our logical way of thinking. One would ask,’ WHAT? add that to my paint? No way!” But here are the facts and the reasons why great asters like Velazquez ( no relation to me) used it profusely, extensively, with all colors. The dingy beige color you see has no tinting strength at all. Add it to black, and the black oil paint stays as dark as the black from the tube. but, the black mixed with the CSO becomes a DEEP, RICH black that dries faster and harder than tube paint.White is another matter, it will get slightly off…but there are easy ways to restore the purity of the white. Its all in the book.
(Andy asked): Your entry above states that Calcite Sun Oil will give me 100% control of oil paint. Your testimonial comments on your website claim that Calcite Sun Oil produces thick stringy paint. (My response): yes. Once the ‘Calcite Sun Oil” ( called CSO for short) is mixed in equal amounts with tube oil paint, you get a viscous stringy oil paint..just like the paint you see in the masterpieces of Rubens, Rembrandt and others. But, the CSO is only part of the equation..the two Emulsions I formulated are the crucial second half. The Emulsions have several important functions, one of which is to thin the paint..so it is less stringy. CSO without the Emulsions is not fully succesful. But when both are used in conjunction, it allows you 100% control of the oil paint. I appreciate that you use references written by professional painters that are given on my web site’s TESTIMONIAL page……but you must be fair..as you are leaving out the numerous other highly positive comments made by those who express their delight with effusive language, in using the CSO and the Emulsions. But your reference is fair on its own merits and here is what I need to say. The comment about having to experiment on “how best to handle it”… is a natural response by a highly experienced professional oil painter of the highest talent..who is faced with a NEW and REVOLUTIONARY method..that he will have to LEARN. He needs to learn something brand new that he has never done before. But let me say: The method is so SIMPLE, you will laugh once you understand it and do it. Its so simple, but its foundation is very profound, and though if I were with you I could teach it to you in 15 minutes…. but, it needs a book to explain its academic foundation.
Andy, thanks for your questions. I hope I cleared up some of the confusion. With CSO and the Emulsions, you can discard all the hazardous solvents, resins, varnishes and driers…and you will be amazed at the control you will have of the paint, with Safety and Permanence.
sincerely, Louis Velasquez / calcite sun oil . Google either for direct contact to my website. thanks again and thanks to David also for his website.
Thanks David and Loius!
Its great to have other artists to talk to about this stuff!
So even though the oil mix with calcite may appear cloudy it dries clear! If I understand you correctly it’s like when acrylic emulsion is wet it too appears cloudy but dries clear. Right?
But I have seen Chalk or limestone submerged in water and they still appear white while under water! Oil must refract the light differently!
All else aside I do admit I have heard in the past that cold pressed oil is superior but these sources also stated that it was a darker drying oil. Maybe because it hasn’t been cleansed in the manner your method describes!
Thanks for the thoughtful response Louis. Sorry to be so blunt before!
Hello Andy, Thanks again for your previous and current letter. I appreciate questions..I taught High school as a second career, late in my life… High School ART. Questions stimulate the classroom and our minds..even if we are only listening to others dialogue. Its really magic. There are no ‘dumb’ questions, is what I would tell my students. We all learn differently too. Some can process all types of info, others not.
To respond to your current questions and observations. The acrylic medium is milkey white when wet and dries clear. The CSO is clear when wet or dry IF MIXED with color paint. Acrylic dries by evaporation of the water content. The CSO doesnt, it goes through an oxidizing process. It cures and the molecules change. Im not a chemist, but the academic sources explain it much better than I ever could.
Cold pressed flax ( linseed ) oil is a murky oil when pressed due to the particulate mixed with it. The heavier particulate settles quickly, but the mucilage remains in suspension…fooling you into thinking the oil is clean because it is clear and transparent. Industry uses caustic chemicals to cleanse the oil. This causes problems, altering its structure.
Unrifined oil needs to be cleansed of the mucilage, which is invisible to the unaided eye when dispersed in the oil. In the fresh state the gravity clarified oil is a bright yellow color. Cleansing the oil by traditional means, like the Old Masters, can result in the oil being of various yellowish tints. Some of my experiments result in a water white clear oil. ..and its never been out in the sun. The normal yellow color is bleached when placed out to sun thicken it, causing the oil to become water clear white…but when removed from the sun, it reverts to a beautiful pale straw color…and never back to the original bright yellow color. YOU mention DARKER oil…… oil can be made darker…permanently…by boiling it. I see boiling oil as unnecessary though ancient sources say some Northern artists would heat the oil over fire in a kettle. They were careful not to allow this to be for long, and they kept the temperature low. The reason they did this was to thicken the oil and to cause some evaporation of the inherent moisture in the oil that caused it to be a slow drying oil. THanks again to you Andy and to David.
sincerely, Louis
What I meant when I mentioned DARKER oil was that I have heard that AFTER drying…. cold pressed oil had a tendency to darken more than some other oils. NOT a trait I would desire in my oil! Thats why I then mentioned your organic cleansing method as a remedy to this!
Unfortunately time wise a lot of us don’t have the option of hand grinding our own paint pigments and slowly aging our linseed oil…..we just want to get painting! After all even the Old Masters had thier apprentices do that stuff!
To get back to the original topic…..I personally have no problems with modern solvents and practice the reasonable precautions as mentioned in the above article. I use oderless mineral spirits in place of turps though. Some may find as stated in the article above,that it doesn’t interact with the paint the same as turps…..this might be because it’s solvency power is less than turps. OMS will not disolve dammar crystals.
Andy,
Go to a museum where they have paintings from the 15th-19th centuries. They were mainly made with cold-pressed linseed oil. Have they gone bad? No? Then cold-pressed oil, used with reasonable care, is fine for painting with.
I have no fetish for cold-pressed vs. modern alkali-refined oils. But a good quality cold-pressed oil is perfectly OK stuff for painting, unless you add way too much to your paint or use it as a varnish.
The proof is in the pudding!
All else aside let the finished piece of art be the proof! If paintings this old have stood the test of time then cold-pressed oil is fine to paint with!
If I use cold-pressed oil( the kind that is available at my local art supply store) what have you found it’s drying time to be like compared to alkali-refined?
Do you recommend any brand of cold-pressed ( that would be readily found in an art supply store)?
HELLO DAVID AND ANDY, MAY PLEASE TYPE IN CAPS? IM NOT SHOUTING, JUST TRYING TO MAKE READING EASIER. YOU BOTH HAVE MADE VERY GOOD COMMENTS, AND I HOPE MINE ARE OF HELP.
ANDY SAID; What I meant when I mentioned DARKER oil was that I have heard that AFTER NOT a trait I would desire in my oil! Thats why I then mentioned your organic cleansing method as a remedy to this! LOUIS SAYS; ANDY, IVE COME TO THE UNDERSTANDING, AFTER SOME TESTING AND RESEARCH, THAT UNREFINED FLAX OIL (THIS BEING THE OIL USED BY THE OLD MASTERS) MUST BE CLEANSED OF ALL ITS PARTICULATE CAUSED BY THE PRESSING…AND OF ALL THE NATURAL INHERENT MUCILAGE THAT IS PART OF THE OIL’S STRUCTURE. THE OIL IS VERY COMPLEX, FULL OF NUMEROUS FATTY ACIDS, MOISTURE, MUCILAGE AND ONCE PRESSED, MUCH PARTICULATE. MUCH OF THIS REMAINS IN PERFECT SUSPENSION IN THE OIL, AND GRAVITY BY ITSELF ( GRAVITY SETTLEMENT LED TO THE OIL BEING CALLED ‘STAND’ OIL..BECAUSE IT WAS ALLOWED TO STAND STILL FOR MONTHS AND YEARS)..GRAVITY ITSELF WILL NOT FULLY REMOVE IT ALL.
MY TESTING , SEE PHOTOS ON MY WEBSITE..SHOW THE DISPERSED MUCILAGE IS INVISIBLE, BUT ONCE FLOCCULATED BY SOME MEANS.. IT IS A FUZZY WHITE SUBSTANCE, VERY COMPLEX IN STRUCTURE, PART AQUEOUS AND PART OLEAGINOUS. THIS MUCILAGE , ONCE EXPOSED TO AIR AND ITS MOISTURE..VIA THE LIVING BREATHING FILM OF EVEN DRY OR WET OIL…WILL FERMENT AND DECOMPOSE, AND TURN AMBER BROWN. THIS WILL LOWER COLOR CHROMA, HUE AND VALUE. AS YOU SAY, YOU DO NOT WANT THAT IN YOUR OIL. THE OLD MASTERS LIKE THE VAN EYCKS, WHOSE EXCELLENTLY PRESERVED 600 YEAR OLD PAINTINGS STILL SPARKLE, FOUND WAYS TO REMOVE THE MUCILAGE. SADLY, THEY DID NOT WRITE THEIR METHOD DOWN..OTHERS HAVE WRITTEN THEIR RECIPES, AS YOU MUST KNOW. I JUST WENT TO SPAIN IN FEBRUARY, AND THOUGH YEARS AGO I READ THE BRIEF EDITED VERSION OF VELAZQUEZ’ TEACHER, FRANCISCO PACHECO, I NEVER KNEW HIS METHOD OF REMOVING THE MUCILAGE FROM THE UNREFINED OIL. I AM BILINGUAL SPANISH/ENGLISH, I BOUGHT THE UNEDITED VERSION OF THE BOOK, ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN 1649. PACHECO WROTE ONE PARAGRAPH ON THIS ALL IMPORTANT SUBJECT; PARAPHRASED , ITS THIS; ONE POUND OF [SETTLED] LINSEED OIL. 2 OUNCES OF STRONG ALCOHOL [ LIQUOR]. 2 OUNCES OF LAVENDER IN GRAIN FORM. PLACE IN THE HOT SUN 15 DAYS, EACH DAY STIRRING IT. THEN DECANT. AS YOU KNOW, SPIKE OIL IS MADE FROM THE LAVENDER FLOWERS, AND IT IS A MILD SOLVENT. I AM STILL WORKING ON THIS METHOD- NO FIRM RESULTS YET.
ANDY SAIDLOUIS SAYS; SO TRUE. I AM NOT ADVOCATING ARTISTS THROW AWAY MODERN OIL PAINTING DEVELOPMENTS..BUT I AM TRYING TO EDUCATE OTHERS OF WHAT THEY ARE USING…AND OF A VERY IMPORTANT OPTION. ITS NOT FOR EVETYONE. MANY OIL PAINTERS ARE NOVICES, MANY REALLY DO NOT CARE ABOUT ARCHIVAL PERMANENCE, AND MANY FEEL THAT IF THEY ARE CAREFUL WITH THEIR MATERIALS, THEY CAN BE SAFE.
TO THE GENERAL POPULATION, THE CSO/ EMULSIONS OFFERS 100% SAFETY ( I TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION SOME PEOPLE ARE HYPO–ALLERGIC TO MANY SBSTANCES IN THE WORLD), AND ARCHIVAL PERMANENCE. I DONT THINK THE VAN EYCKS REALLY KNEW THEIR PAINTINGS WOULD STILL BE HERE ALMOST AS FRESH AS WHEN PAINTED…. AND I WILL NEVER KNOW IF MY FORMULATIONS ARE EQUAL TO THEIRS…. AS IT WILL TAKE HUNDREDS OF YEARS TO PROVE OR DISPROVE..BUT I CAN STATE WITH CONFIDENCE THAT MY FORMULATIONS ARE BASED ON THE ANCIENT KNOWLEDGE OF THE OLD MASTERS.
ANDY SAIDPARTIALLY DELETED]. LOUIS SAYS; I THINK YOU ARE MAKING THE CHOICE BEST FOR YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES.
DAVID SAID; Andy, Go to a museum where they have paintings from the 15th-19th centuries. They were mainly made with cold-pressed linseed oil. Have they gone bad? No? Then cold-pressed oil, used with reasonable care, is fine for painting with. LOUIS SAYS; THERE IS NO BETTER PROOF.
DAVID SAID; I have no fetish for cold-pressed vs. modern alkali-refined oils. But a good quality cold-pressed oil is perfectly OK stuff for painting, unless you add way too much to your paint or use it as a varnish. LOUIS SAYS; AGAIN, GOOD ADVICE…BUT ONLY IF YOU UNDERSTAND THE ISSUES ON THE ALKALI REFINED LINSEED OIL. AND UNDERSTAND THE PROPERTIES OF THAT OIL. ONCE YOU HAVE USED THE ’ SUPERIOR LINSEED/ FLAX OIL’, WHICH IS UNREFINED FLAX OIL WHICH HAS BEEN COLD PRESSED, ORGANICALLY CLEANSED, AND SLOWLY SUN THICKENED IN HOT SUMMER SUN…….YOU WILL KNOW ITS GREAT VALUE..AND THAT THIS OIL WILL ALLOW YOU TO DISCARD THOSE SOLVENTS, DRIERS, VARNISHES AND RESINS. THEY BECOME UNNECESSARY..AND IF USING ALKALI REINED OIL, THEY ARE SO NECESSARY.
ANDY SAID; The proof is in the pudding! All else aside let the finished piece of art be the proof! If paintings this old have stood the test of time then cold-pressed oil is fine to paint with! LOUIS SAID; YES, BUT ONLY IF ITS ORGANICALLY CLEANSED. TO USE IT AS YOU BUY IT, WHETHER FLAX OIL, OR WINDMILL EXPRESSED ‘OLD HOLLAND’ BRAND OF LINSEED OIL…TO USE IT OUT OF THE BOTTLE, FULL OF MUCILAGE, AND PARTICULATE..IS A BIG MISTAKE.. AND JUST LOOKING AT THE CLEAR OIL IN THE BOTTLE, AND THINKING IT IS CLEAN, WILL FOOL YOU COMPLETELY.
ANDY SAIDLOUIS SAID; BOTH OF THE OILS, WHETHER ALKALI REFINED LINSEED OIL..OR..THE UNREFINED FLAX OIL.. ARE VERY SLOW DRIERS AND ARE EQUALLY SLOW TO DRY. ANDY, THERE ARE OTHER FACTORS THAT IMPACT DRYING OF PAINT…AS IMPORTANT AS THE OIL ; THEY ARE; VENTILATION/ HUMIDITY/ HEAT… AND THEN THICKNESS OF THE PAINT… AND THE COLOR USED ( SOME COLORS ARE SLOW DRIERS OTHERS FAST DRIERS.).
ANDY SAID; Do you recommend any brand of cold-pressed ( that would be readily found in an art supply store)? LOUIS SAID; GAMBLINS IS VERY INEXPENSIVE..OLD HOLLAND IS VERY EXPENSIVE. I KNOW ILL BE THOUGHT OF AS REPEATING; THE ‘COLD PRESSED OIL YOU BUY IN THE ART STORE MUST BE CLEANSED BEFORE USING IT.
SINCERELY, LOUIS
Louis! I intentionally used quotes from your website previously and edited them in a way that served my viewpoints so that you might see how it feels when you take other people’s posts and use fragments to solicit your product. But judging from your last entry I don’t think you got that at all!
I started posting on this site because it seemed to be a free exchange of ideas amongst artists ……emphasis on the word FREE!
Must every statement you make be bent around to an infommercial?
Hi Andy, My most sincere apologies if iIve caused you or any other reader any grief.
respectfully, Louis
Louis and Andy,
I think it’s time to request that further discussion on this topic between you be conducted via private email.
Thanks.
Hello David, Your website has a good mission..to educate. Nelpast’s comments do not deserve a response. So David, keep up the good work. If Nelpast would like to Email me directly, he and I can dialogue. Thanks again.
Sincerely, Louis
Nelpast,
I’ve deleted your comment. There are plenty of places on the internet where trashing other artists is acceptable. This is not one of them.
its all in the consistency and appliqué, viz. technique (pick your poison)
@Louis R. Velasquez — Basic paint chemistry seems to be part and parcel of the training of artists from master to pupil even from the cave times and the renaissance, your innovation seems very logical as I myself have wondered how VanEyck and all the rest could have painted so large and so detailed inhaling toxic fumes where most people revert to water based to accomplish any finish to their work, as Pacheco states on some of his paints “es veneno y basta huir de el” and the painter was recognized on death thereof; but ill have to test the emulsion for fusing and smooth blending like Carvaggio etc. Facility of technique, and Im hoping the ‘lavato mezzopasto suceeds; abundance of palettes and endless treasures in design and the little seashells of Vermeer filled with ultramarine and water.
Thank you again David for your communication oriented website. And thank you for the notices I receive on updated enties on subjects that are of interest to me, and to others.
SAFETY and PERMANENCE are the two words to describe the method in my book. Both are so extrememly important to you and I and everybody, for obvious reasons. Regarding TOMBOLICHE’s post:
Tomboliche says he will have to …”test the emulsion for fusing and smooth blending…”. Let me say this because Tomboliche appears to be a very experienced and well read painter, and his statement is correct. Test the pudding.
Over many years of testing myself, painting and formulating, patenting the CSO , and using these materials in my own painting, I have had an epiphany: I believe that the Van Eyck ‘lost medium’, is really a TWO PART consideration. The first part is the medium itself– which I believe to be a very very simple mixture of egg and oil– but at the expense of sounding like an info mercial ( as Andy has said) I will tell you that to make th emulsion ( there are two of them/ they differe in viscosity) requires knowling how to make it. This formula knowledge by itself is incomplete because then THERE is the second part of the ‘lost medium”: the knowledge of HOW TO APPLY IT. This is crucial to know, because IF IT IS NOT applied correctly, it WILL FAIL.
Yes, I could describe here on Davids website the COMPLETE information, but I prefer not to. I have sold my book describing all this information, all across the USA, Canada, Australia and almost every European country. Unfortunately it is only in the English language at the moment. I know I have opened the door to truly oil painting without Hazardous materials,(natural and synthetic), such as solvents, varnishes,balsams, resins and driers. This is good. Soon other publishers and authors will follow. This is also very good.
In conclusion, the EMULSION and the APPLICATION method are both crucial to know. respectfully, louis
It looks real good, I wouldn’t hesitate to use white lead with it and rubber gloves as this could be close to the “albayade de baja suerte (Spanish white of ordinary luck) that was sold in those days. I suppose the cumulative effect of studio practice and concoctions created the creamy, fluffy saponified sheen seen to those works; they say some of those mediums contained sandarac or colophony even in smaller proportions to the polymerized oil. For me its always been a compromise but I like simple effective systematizations so I can proceed with less experimentaion, and so eating the egg yolk for breakfast is reasonable too.
EPHIPHANY: I mentined an epiphany in my last post. It happened when i read that Vasari ( the great artist and historian from the Renassance) wrote about the Van Eyck SECRET medium..also known as the LOST SECRET MEDIUM of Van Eyck… Vasari also wrote about trying Emulsions– BUT that they did ‘NOT WORK” for him. This was the caralist to inform me that he did not know HOW to apply it. Also.I will say this: the Emulsion is vey simple, and it does NOT contain any solvent material, be it turps, balsams or others.
Sincerely= Louis Velasquez
Yeah its definitely a Holy Grail but you know theres so much out there and even one masterpiece to the next is different, but for sure a medium you can fly with is wonderful and the simpler the better. Its great to be able to make a profesional looking emulsion so easily and economically. Usually things break down pretty fast for me or run out so willy nilly I use what Ive got, but mental parameters help to keep me within the area of what I can accomplish so it should be like Leonardo’s ladder taking one step at a time to get to the top. Modot who has very simple formulas say he knows all his paintings will be “landfill” Well this isn’t remotely related to paints http://s7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/truelockjaw/?action=view&current=casting-maquillaje-elRellano.flv
Winslow Homer was self trained, and he was a local fellow.
Well I really have no obection to using a little thinner as in my opinion the consistency of the paint must be cut to order at any given moment; I tried Methanol viz Aguardiente Crystal in the emulsion to no sure success.
In response to TOMBOBICHE; When using the CSO/EMULSIONS method, there are two ways to make the oil paint. 1. you can use CSO as your grinding oil, mixing it with the dry colored pigments. 2. You can mix 50/50 with tube oil paints. NOW: The handground paint dries much faster– within 30 hours. the tube oil paint is made with slow drying oil to allow for a long shelf life– no money loss to the makers. ALSO: when mixing CSO with tube paints, it requires very little thinning, if at all. thinning is not done by sticking your brush into a cup of liquid. Its correctly done by mixing ONE DROP ONLY of the emulsion into the paint, by grinding the two on a GRINDING TABLE. Its the way the Old Masters did it. Look at the self portraits of Remrandt and others—you do not see those little clip on cups on their hand palette..
Sincerely, Louis
PS: as to your failed Emulsion mixture. Im not surprized. To make two very simpleemulsions is easy. They are truly a wonder medium. BUT as Ive said, knowing the application method is 1/2 of that so called ’ secret’.
I love this invention Mr Velasques mainly because of the ease of use in the studio and thinner free environment. But Im also realizing that perhaps many other catalyzers could stiffen the paint such as store bought gelatin and the yolk too or both. But I truly respect this mixture because it forces you to paint correctly and quickly so the emulions are on top of the system. Ive worked grinding my own paint for quite a while with masonry marble slabs and squares after the manner of Pacheco, so Ive been using calcite for many years since I read Garrido but never got the viscocity going properly. It is a hands on dominion and I use more than what I should; couldn’t afford the Barleans but I can mix boiled oils and raw oils for the time being; and checking out the ILL if your book ever comes; mostly I want to take in all the formulas, manufacture and studio methods, so Im sure youre book should evolve from the fledling business that it is.
2) For me after getting the methodoxy I have to return to “el proximo golpe” which is focusing on art, and that invention is still very far off; I enjoy the California primitive and street art as it has alot of soul and blood and multi-color to it and the fusion between Taubes and El Greco is brilliant. So Im only trying to deal with as best all the knowledge I have searching for an epiphany that will further concretize any style I might have; all those considerations of technique into style and approach, color and paints and chemistry with medium are a mixture that is intertwined to get a flawless methodoxy for which I’m still searching, but have dozens of alternatives even in the handling of the oils which is a very subtle medium that may very well be only acclompised with calcite and emulsion= tombobiche
i paint in my bedroom without any medium or solvents, but is it still can be harmfull? and is it wrong to just use straight oil paints through out the whole painting with out any solvenst or medium?
Mish,
I’m not a materials expert. That being said, I know of nothing in oil paint that can cause harm just by breathing (unless you have a specific allergy). It’s still a very good idea to have adequate ventilation when you paint.
Using just oil paint when painting is just fine. Avoid big areas in which you paint with a lot of lean (low oil) pigments over fat (high oil) pigments. For example, don’t paint a lot of raw umber over a lot of ivory black. Other than that, you should be just fine.
I am doing a simple washing –probably not the best:
2 jars:
Edwards flax oil and compared with Barleans unrefined flax oil:
Both jars i put my attempt to wash the oils further:
PErrier water
salt
sand from our local beach(rinsed with water in cheescloth)
A gave it a good shaking and it is now sitting on a hot plate. I just don’t want to deal with silica and dont know if and how to clean sand for this oil washing process.
On D
K,
Thanks for the info on your process. Hope it turns out well.
What about Blue Ridge oils? Would you say that they could be painted without solvents as well?
Matoki,
I haven’t used a wide range of their paint, but it seems generally similar to Doak’s stuff. I imagine it would work OK.
Hi David, Thanks for sharing you expertise. I’m starting to oil paint, and am very sensitive to turpenoid which i use to clean my brushes. I would like to not use that and get linseed oil. I read somewhere on the internet that people are using vegetable oil as a cleanser. Would you recommend that? Or is linseed the best, and least toxic. My most important concern ( and everybody else’) is being as safe and toxic free as possible.
Thank you, and looking foward to hearing your response.
Johanna,
I’ve always been a little dubious about vegetable oils as they don’t dry and I get concerned that small amounts mixed in with paint might be problematic. Linseed oil (otherwise known as flax seed oil and available in health food stores) is non-toxic unless you happen to be allergic to it. It works fine for me. Best to store it so that it doesn’t contact oxygen, or it will harden. One good way to do that is to keep adding marbles or small stones to the container as you use it up.
Best wishes,
David
Thanks for your quick response! Keep up the great work. :)
David, I use tube oil paints and odorless mineral spirits to clean my brushes. I am a career portrait artist and paint two or three hours about four days a week. Is there a solvent I could use to clean my brushes and thin my paint, too, instead of mineral spirits? I wouldn’t mind if it behave a bit differently during application, I can adjust. But, would want to colors to stay true. I have read this site along with all of the comments but I really got bogged down in a lot of information and ended up pretty confused. Thanks for any help you might give. I think the odorless mineral spirits are making me sick. Nancy
Nancy,
One option is to use linseed oil for thinning and cleaning. Depending on your paining style (and brand of paint), just a tiny amount of linseed is usually enough to make the paint flow acceptably (too much can create problems with longevity of the paint film, but a little bit is not likely to create significant issues). Oil can also be fine for cleaning brushes, followed by soap.
Hope this helps.
correction: “I wouldn’t mind if it behaved a bit differently………but would want the colors to stay true.”
Hi David,
Thanks for posting this info and the egg formula– plan to give it a try. I’m a novice oil painter– but have not painted for several months because of you know what-SOLVENTS ;-). Wondering about the Linseed Oil– do you have success using the flax seed oil from a health food store? That variety would be much cheaper than buying it from a art supply store. Thanks!
Michelle,
I’ve not tried health food flax seed oil. I’d suggest avoiding it for paintings you would like to be permanent. You can buy linseed online pretty cheaply, especially since you don’t need a whole lot.