Understanding Oil Painting Mediums

The Alchemist Joseph Wright
Oil painting mediums have probably been around as long as painting has, but never, perhaps, has there been more uncertainty and confusion about their properties and uses, especially among beginning painters. In this article we discuss their properties, allowing you to compare the various tried-and-true formulas. While not intended to be an exhaustive examination of all possible medium formulas, we hope this article will help you to understand mediums better and to choose one that is best for you. You’ll learn some of the history of painting mediums, what doesn’t work, and what the modern safer replacements for the old formulas are.

History

The earliest known pigments were earth colors, literally made from colors found in the earth, ground into a fine powder, and then mixed with a liquid vehicle, such as water. Once applied, the water would evaporate and leave the pigment on the surface. Unless protected form the eleme…