Oil and wax on canvas | 11”x17” | I reworked my cold wax mix slightly by better melting and blending linseed oil into the beeswax. I then blended the wax-oil mixture with a small amount of mixing white and Gamblin’s solvent-free gel. This created a perfect impasto thickening medium that gives a beautiful satin/matte sheen to the paint. I was amazed how by actually thickening the paint I was able to better control it. It has become almost sculptural in nature.
Thank you! This one was tedious, but a lot of fun.
It looks very very neat.
Thank you!
@mbbrickner - if the painting lives in a very warm climate with all that wax, will it slide off the canvas or melt in some way? This is a very interesting thing you are discussing I would love to try it one day. I like how you did this main tree. Great buildings!
Thanks! Cold wax is an interesting medium. I was definitely concerned about that possibility. However, I did come across an article that tested fresh cold wax and cured cold wax in extreme heat. The fresh cold wax melted, but the cured cold wax did not. The key is how much drying oil or resin you add. For me, most of the paint that went on this canvas was probably no more than 25% beeswax — maybe 40% in a few spots. The rest is linseed oil, safflower oil, soybean alkyd, and pigment. Drying oils make cold wax very strong. One of the problems of using a cold wax that is thinned with solvent (like OMS) is that when the solvent evaporates, all that is left is just wax. By making a wax that is thinned with oils, it ensures that the mixture will cure as time goes on and become very strong, without becoming too brittle.
Thank you for a brief glance and physics/chemistry of the process! Very well explained.
You're welcome!
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The buildings, that fence .... unbeatable! 💖👍