Oil Painting mediums

Kama Pigments is proud to participate in the revival of traditional techniques in presenting our own line of oil painting mediums. This range of products is strengthened by traditional knowledge and adapted to the needs of 21st century artists.

What is a Painting Medium ?

Take for example the Kama Pigments Simple Painting Medium, which has the merit of being, as you might have guessed, pretty simple.
The solvent, rectified gum turpentine is used to dissolve the crystals of dammar resin and to dilute the polymerized linseed oil, which acts as the binder. These three ingredients (and some other additives, which will remain secret) produce an amber solution with a honey-like consistency that will delight even the most jaded of painters with its qualities.

Simple painting medium

ingredients :

• Stand Oil
• Dammar resin
• turpentine
• Driers

Firstly, this medium will increase paint adhesion to the support (be it canvas or panel), and reduce unintentional dripping. Once the turpentine evaporates, the paint, though still in the process of drying completely, offers a somewhat sticky surface, entirely suitable for more painting, which allows the eager painter to resume their work more quickly than usual.

Secondly, this painting medium will allow the painter to use much less paint (anyone care for saving money?) by taking advantage of the high tinting power of while still enjoying the brilliant color of the extra-fine oil paint from Kama Pigments’ Extra-Fine Oils. Stand Oil has the wonderful property of yellowing much less than raw linseed oil. This in addition to being more flexible (also reducing the risk of cracking).

The main reason why most artists use a painting medium is to control their drying times. Kama Pigments’ Simple Painting Medium normally dries in 24 to 36 hours, depending on atmospheric conditions such as humidity, ventilation, the thickness of the paint layers and the pigments present.

KAMA's Painting Mediums explained

 canadian balsam glazing medium

ingredients :

• Canadian balsam
• Stand Oil
• Turpentine
• Driers

This Glazing medium becomes completely transparent and gives a glossy finish that is unprecedented in paint alone. Moreover, the sweet scent of evergreen will fill your workshop.

It becomes sticky and less than an hour, but takes 48-72 hours to dry completely.

 rembrandt medium

ingredients :

• Beeswax
• Stand Oil
• dammar resin
• Driers

The name of this medium refers to the art of Rembrandt, characterized by high impasto, rather than being an authentic replica of the painting medium used by the Dutch master (for the curious, his painting medium was a mixture of sticky copal resin and boiled oil, it was very toxic and was directly responsible for the cracking and blackening of his works).

Rembrandt Medium is primarily used to obtain a smooth impasto and can be used in combination with other oil painting mediums, such as Kama Pigments’ Simple Painting Medium. It can take anywhere from 5 to 10 days to dry completely.

 beeswax paste

ingredients :

• Beeswax
• Turpentine

This wax paste has many uses. In particular, it may be used to thicken oil paint and to impart a more uniform consistency (especially when making oil paints from dry pigments). It can also be used as a thickening agent in combination with another painting medium.

Moreover, the technique of cold encaustic is practiced using a base of wax and turpentine, as found in this Beeswax paste.

 alkyd medium

ingredients :

• Alkyd resin
• Izosol
• Driers

This medium is made from a synthetic resin know as alkyd, it is mainly used because it accepts dryers well and therefore makes it possible to create a medium that speeds up the drying of oil paint. Its consistency is very thin and one should be carful not to liquify it's oil paints with this medium as it may cause wrinkles. Another variation, alkyd gel medium, offers a thicker consistency.

This oil painting medium dries in about 24 hours.

 alkyd gel medium

ingredients :

• Alkyd resin
• Izosol
• Natural clays
• Driers

This product is very similar to the Alkyd Medium, but it has a thicker consistency that will blend well with oil paints. Our two alkyd painting mediums are formulated without turpentine. It dries with a nice sheen, though it is less brilliant than dammar based mediums. Our Alkyd Gel Medium dries in about 24 hours, but it starts to become sticky in less than 60 minutes and it may be thinned with a little Izosol to dry faster still.

 alkyd butter

ingredients :

• Alkyd resin
• Izosol
• Natural clays
• Driers

Alkyd butter, which is also an alkyd-based medium, thickens the consistency of oil paint and allows it to dry much more quickly. It is particularly useful for painting thick impastos, where it helps to assure that the paint dries thoroughly.

Don't use more than 50% of this medium to the volume of oil paint as it may cause wrinkles.