Gamblin gives artists the tools to paint in any style they choose, with confidence in the permanence of their work and the safety of their studio. With Gamblin Artist Oil painting materials, artists can apply traditional techniques or methods of contemporary masters to transform oils and mediums of the highest quality into permanent works of art.
1980 Oil Colors
True color. Real value.
Gamblin 1980 Oil Colours are made with the same dedication and pure pigments that go into Gamblin Artist’s Oils. In addition, Gamblin uses the same process of mixing, milling, filling, and hand labeling.
In order to reduce the cost of oil colours, some manufacturers use gels and waxes to stiffen colours and replace traditional pigments with less expensive ones.
Gamblin’s approach is different. 1980 colours are formulated with pure pigments, the finest refined linseed oil and marble dust (calcium carbonate). More affordable colours have been made with these three ingredients since oil painting began.
With 1980 colours, artists experience colours that are true, without homogenized texture or muddy colour mixtures. Gamblin’s approach of using both traditional raw materials and processes ensures that artists experience the luscious working properties that they expect from their oil colours.
1980 Oil Colours are available in 37 and 150ml tubes.
GAMSOL Odorless Mineral Spirits
Gamsol is the safest solvent that allows oil painters to utilize all traditional painting techniques without compromise.
Primary Uses for Gamsol:
- Thinning oil colors. A little goes a long way; stiff oil colors relax immediately when a little Gamsol is added. Be careful not to thin oil colors too much with solvent alone, this can compromise the ability of the paint to form a paint film.
- Modifying painting mediums. Our Galkyd line of painting mediums are formulated with Gamsol, so they readily accept Gamsol as a thinning agent. Note: Gamsol should not be added to painting mediums made with natural resins (dammar, copal, mastic). They require strong solvents such as turpentine.
- Studio clean-up: brushes, palettes, palette knives, etc.
How does Gamsol achieve this level of performance and safety? Most solvents available to artists come from the industrial paint industry where solvent power and cheapness is prized. Gamsol is special: it is made for products and processes that come into more intimate contact with the body such as cosmetics, hand cleaners, and cleaning food service equipment.
Gamsol is a petroleum distillate but all the aromatic solvents have been refined out of it, less than .005% remains. Aromatic solvents are the most harmful types of petroleum solvents. In addition, Gamsol’s flashpoint allows it to ship via air cargo as a non-hazardous material.
All of these factors have lead to Gamsol being used widely in oil painting classrooms; in those classes, there are no solvent odors, only the wonderful smell of oil colors.
Gamsol is available in the following sizes: 4.2 oz,16.9 oz, 33.8 oz, 128 oz.
Oil Painting Mediums
True to historic working properties. Safer. More Permanent.
At Gamblin, our mission is to lead oil painting into the future. To us this means crafting materials as they ought to be, not just as they have been. Our contemporary mediums are true to historic working properties, yet safer and more permanent.
Painting mediums offer a great deal more than simply extending oil colors. Mediums modify the working properties of oil color from the tube – from a fluid consistency for expressive mark making to a stiff paste for creating thick, crisp marks. Painting mediums also broaden the visual qualities of our colors – from increasing the transparency of paint layers, to creating a range of surface qualities, from high gloss to matte.
When a painting is completed, all of the thought, effort and emotion that went into it are reflected in the artist’s marks. Choosing the appropriate painting medium can be an essential part of making oil painting your own. With a painting medium that fits your needs, you can get into the flow of painting faster and stay there longer.
Contemporary Oil Painting Mediums
Our contemporary oil painting mediums are true to historic working properties, yet safer and more permanent.
Galkyd
Galkyd thins oil colors and increases transparency and gloss. When used in greater proportions with oil color, Galkyd will level brush-strokes, creating an enamel-like surface. Galkyd is our fastest-drying painting medium. Thin layers will be touch-dry in approximately 24 hours.
Galkyd Lite
Galkyd Lite thins oil colors and increases transparency and gloss. When used in moderation with oil colors, Galkyd Lite will retain brushstrokes. Galkyd Lite is more fluid and less glossy compared to Galkyd. Thin layers will be touch-dry in 24 to 30 hours.
Neo Megilp
Neo Megilp is a contemporary version of Maroger. This soft gel medium maintains the body of oil colors, increases transparency and flow, and imparts a smooth, silky feel. Neo Megilp dries at a moderate rate and remains workable for hours. Neo Megilp gives colors a satin gloss.
Galkyd Gel
Galkyd Gel is a stiffer gel compared to Neo Megilp that holds thicker, sharper brushmarks and dries more quickly. Galkyd Gel increases transparency of oil colors and creates impasto.
Cold Wax Medium
Cold Wax Medium is made from naturally white, pure beeswax. Formulated to knife consistency, Cold Wax Medium makes oil colors, Gamblin Mediums, and Gamvar thicker and more matte.
Solvent-Free Painting Mediums
Solvent-Free Gel
Gamblin Solvent-Free Gel is the only solvent-free painting medium that supports a broad range of painting techniques with minimal compromise.
Solvent-Free Gel gives colors more flow and transparency, yet holds the shape of your brushmark. Solvent-Free Gel has a moderately fast drying rate and increases gloss. Made from safflower oil and alkyd resin, Gamblin Solvent-Free Gel is non-toxic and contains no Gamsol or petroleum distillates.
In comparison to other solvent-free mediums, Gamblin Solvent-Free Gel supports the broadest range of painting techniques with the least compromise across color, dry time, texture and mark-making. To ensure proper drying of paint layers, Solvent-Free Gel should be used in moderation with oil colors. No more than 25% by volume. To avoid wrinkling, apply mixtures of Solvent-Free Gel and oil colors thinly.
To paint solvent-free, we recommend Gamblin Safflower Oil for cleaning brushes while you are working. After your painting session, brushes can be further cleaned using Gamsol and/or soap and water.
Solvent-Free Fluid
Gamblin Solvent-Free Fluid painting medium gives oil colors more flow and transparency. It has a moderately fast drying rate and increases gloss. Made from safflower oil and alkyd resin, Gamblin Solvent-Free Fluid is non-toxic and contains no Gamsol or petroleum distillates.
To ensure proper drying and prevent beading-up of paint layers, Solvent-Free Fluid should be used in moderation with oil colors – no more than 25% by volume. To avoid wrinkling, apply mixtures of Solvent-Free Fluid and oil colors thinly. For underpainting, we recommend adding Gamsol to Solvent-Free Fluid.
Safflower Oil
To paint solvent-free, we recommend Gamblin Safflower Oil for cleaning brushes while you are working. After your painting session, brushes can be further cleaned using Gamsol and/or soap and water.
Gamblin Safflower Oil is a pale, slow-drying oil. When used as a painting medium, Safflower Oil to colors increases flow and slows dry times. Use sparingly or mix with an equal amount Gamsol to create a traditional slow-drying, low-viscosity painting medium.
