Traditional Oil Mediums/Varnishes

Sennelier’s extra-fine additives for oils are essential to fully appreciate the qualities of extra-fine oil-based paint. Our additives allow painters to follow their creative instincts by enabling them to alter the working properties of the colors to suit their artistic needs.

There are four types of additives: 

Thinners (also called spirits) enable you to modify the liquidity of the paints, by dissolving the pastes and thus make it easier to work with colors. Most often made with petroleum spirits and oils, thinners are used during the first stages of production in order to respect the “thick on thin” rule, allowing for quicker drying.

Mediums ensure the work’s cohesion to surfaces and can modify the drying time. They also change the consistency and appearance of the finish by modifying the gloss, highlighting particular areas or facilitating impasto techniques. Mediums are especially valuable when working Plein Air.

Driers, as their name suggests, speed up the drying process or, more accurately, the hardening of the paint. The role of driers is to both increase drying qualities of the paint and harmonize hardening types. They must be used in moderation.

Varnishes change the final appearance of the painting prior to any preservation of the work. These are used to protect a work from natural and chemical harm. They are to be applied only on completely dry paintings, in two phases.