Oil Painting Mediums each have their own purpose and the artists chooses which they will use based on their particular need. The mediums will thin or thicken oil colour, make it dry faster or slower, glossier or more matte. All mediums contain oil or resin that fulfills the basic oil painting rule of ‘fat over lean’, meaning that if you paint in layers you should add more oil or medium to each successive layer to insure a good structure that will dry properly and will not crack.
At Jackson’s Art Supplies we understand that artists are looking for the best materials at the best prices. To answer this need we have created ranges of our own brand art materials. The Jackson’s brand means good quality and excellent value. Our range of six painting mediums for use with oil colours is no exception.
Artist Hannah Ivory Baker has painted using all the different Jackson’s Oil Painting Mediums in order to help describe them and how they perform so other artists will know what they can expect from the products. Read all the reviews.
This review is of the Jackson’s Glaze Medium, which is available in two sizes of tin and a sample jar.
Hannah Ivory Baker reviews
Jackson’s Glaze Medium
I have tried other brands of glaze medium in the past so have a fair idea about what to expect from the look and feel of the medium. However, whilst I occasionally apply areas of glazing to a painting to enhance contrast it’s not my preferred style and it’s not a method that I use often.
At first glance I liked the consistency and tack of this medium.
As usual, for the purpose of reviewing I wanted to keep the work fairly simple. So, given that I like painting fruit and veg and was drinking some homemade lemonade at the time, a Lemon seemed like a good and willing subject.
Underpainting using Jacksons Fast Drying Medium
1st glaze
I started by using Jackson’s Fast Drying medium with Raw Umber, Payne’s Grey and Zinc mixing white to create my under painting.
Once this was dry and with the rule of thumb ‘fat over lean’ ringing in my ears I embarked on the first glaze.
In this layer I was just working out background colour. I wanted it to be dark so decided to build it up using alternate layers of Prussian blue and Payne’s Grey. I also wanted to add a little warmth to the Lemon. At this point I only had a general idea about what I wanted the final piece to look like but quickly realised that I needed a firmer plan about what I wanted to achieve in each layer.
2nd glaze
3rd glaze
In the 2nd glaze I used Prussian blue to further ‘cool down’ the background and applied Cadmium yellow to the Lemon. The 3rd glaze was really about increasing the strength of the background and the colour on the Lemon. This was further developed using Payne’s Grey, Cadmium orange an Cadmium yellow. I also used a little turps to remove the colour on the ground at the bottom left where the light was going to come from.
Glazes 4-7
8th glaze
During layers 4 -7 I continued to glaze the background using Prussian blue & Payne’s Grey, continuing to build depth in order to make the Lemon stand out as much as possible. The 8th layer was just about amending the shadow to the left of the Lemon and softening lines. I also used some of the aptly named lemon yellow to soften the darker areas of the Lemon so that the descent in to the shadow on the rind was not quite as harsh.
I found that it was important to organise my glazes, ensuring that the darks were steadily built up and that the light was not painted over a dark area in order to maintain their brightness when the work was complete.
Hannah Ivory Baker’s finished oil painting
– with 9 glazes using Jackson’s Glaze Medium
The last couple of glazes were just about bringing everything together. Getting the light on the Lemon to look as I wanted it to and achieving a dark, blue-tinted background. (In theory one could probably glaze forever, as there’s no set amount of glazes that you need to stick to).
Writing this review essentially forced me to focus on glazing properly. I wanted to build the entire painting through glazing (which obviously you don’t have to do) in order to really get to grips with the medium.
My findings:
• The medium has a slight ‘tack’ to it, not too much at first but you can feel it after a minute or two of painting with it. This tack is necessary in a good glaze medium.
• As a result of the ‘tack’ it’s important not to go over layers too much when wet, as you will start to remove the paint you’ve just applied.
• Easy to manipulate and correct things – Use turps or the glaze medium itself to remove unwanted areas of glaze and simply wipe away with a cloth.
• Clarity of colour / Translucency. Each layer was glass-like, great translucency. Helped bring out underlying colours. Colours appeared deeper and more saturated as they were built up.
• Paint film showed an even tone when finished.
• The finish is high gloss and each layer of paint is glass like in clarity.
• Drying time – touch dry in a few hours. If applied in thin layers the drying time is nowhere near as bad as I thought!
• Slower drying than Jackson’s Gloss gel medium and much thinner in consistency.
• Re cleaning brushes – I thoroughly rinsed with turps and then used my usual Escoda Olive Oil brush soap (which you can get from Jackson’s). They looked as good as new after use.
With this method of painting, it really helped me to have a clear idea about the finished look I wanted to achieve and the process generally required a little more planning than my usual work does. In principle glazing is pretty simple, you just need a little patience to achieve the desired results.
Using this medium has certainly opened a new door for me as an artist. I figure, whether a seasoned ‘glazer’ or someone just starting out then this medium is well worth the money. Personally I have been stunned by it’s quality and feel that it more than holds it’s own when compared to some of the other, more expensive brands on the market. I will definitely continue to use it.
Artist Hannah Ivory Baker is a prolific oil painter and her paintings are among the most highly rated by other artists who use the social media account Twitter. Her work is energetic and exciting!
Hannah Ivory Baker has work in a group exhibition on at the moment:
‘Summer Farrago’ at
Highgate Contemporary Art
27th June – 6th September 2014
Click on the underlined link to go to the current offer on the Jackson’s Oil Painting Mediums on the Jackson’s Art Supplies website.
Postage on orders shipped standard to mainland UK addresses is free for orders of £39 or more.
