GEL TEXTURE MEDIUM | GEL MEDIUM
Modern paint technology has facilitated the production of a true clear Gel Medium. The purpose of the Derivan Gel Medium is to act as a clear transparent gel gloss colour extender in the production of brilliant coloured glazes and as a transparent impasto for thick 3-dimensional brush and knife applications of Derivan Acrylics. Its prime requirement is to be thick and buttery whilst remaining fully transparent.
Available in 250ml size.
It acts as the main intermixing medium in acrylic painting when its rich buttery consistency is required for impasto work, 3-dimensional extrapolations, multi-layer work and heavy, smooth or textural glazes.
When dry, it maintains the structure, brushstrokes and textural effects of undiluted Derivan Acrylics colours. Its inherent firm and buttery consistency make it ideal for application by palette knife to achieve heavily textured grounds.
Reduced with water and Derivan Spreader Medium it adapts for thick but smooth flowing glazes.
Derivan Gel Medium, because of its viscous non-spreading consistency, enables the artist to apply thick and heavily defined brushstrokes.
It is well known that acrylic paints "surface" dry very rapidly but heavily imposed brushstrokes of paint take much longer to dry than thinly applied coats. The fact that the surface of the paint film dries rapidly causes moisture entrapment in the film underneath. This effect need not be detrimental to the painting as acrylic mediums are porous and allow for the gradual release of moisture during air drying. Nor does the artist experience any great problem of cracking or wrinkling because Matisse is a highly concentrated paint and once the available moisture has evaporated, the paint remains as a strong, solid, pliable and non-cracking film.
Avoid force-drying: The application of intense heat in order to prematurely dry paintings constructed with heavily imposed layers of colours is not recommended - the surface layers of paint can seal off, permanently trapping moisture underneath. Subsequently, the painting could crack and the canvas shrink or distort.
Derivan Gel Medium dries to a glossy finish.
Glass: Derivan Gel Medium can be applied directly to glass either by itself or with Derivan Acrylics.
Frosted glass finish: If a finish such as frosted glass is required, apply Derivan Gel Medium directly onto the glass.
IMPASTO TEXTURE MEDIUM | IMPASTO MEDIUM
Impasto, also known as modelling compound or texture medium is a medium that gives texture and heavy body to the paint. This medium is a heavy-bodied paint, free of colour pigmentation (it isn't a gel). It is most valuable for heavy-bodied impasto techniques, particularly when heavy built-up areas of colour are required.
Impasto Medium dries to a low subdued sheen which is similar to the sheen on a dried paint film of acrylic colour. It is equally water-resistant. Impasto Medium allows for free intermixing with the Derivan colours in any proportion. There is little visual colour loss when equal volumes of a Derivan colour and Impasto Medium are intermixed. Although Impasto Medium is not fully transparent when dry, it does not appear to alter the richness of Derivan colours in any way. Impasto Medium is also suitable for use as a light modelling compound.
Available in 250ml, 500ml and 2 Litre sizes
It can be applied by knife or brush in heavy blobs onto the original primed canvas and when dry, fully over-painted with Derivan colours.
Do not use Impasto as a transparent glue or size where its slightly milky opacity could cause some discolouration. However, it makes a high quality acid-free glue or size where transparency is not a concern.
VISCOSITY THICKENER
This medium has been designed to be stirred into your paint colour to give a thick buttery consistency.
Originally it was formulated to give the perfect paint thickness for screen printing. However, it is now widely used to thicken colours to achieve an impasto effect in painting.
Add 2 teaspoons of thickener per 250ml of paint. Use sparingly as this a very effective medium (not compatible with fluorescent colours).
How to thicken your paint up to get a real textured impasto relief feel to the paint.
You can use the sort of standard impasto mediums range. We make a couple of different products, a gel medium and an impasto medium. Very roughly, the difference is the gel medium will dry clear but not quite as much build as you will get with the impasto medium, which doesn't dry quite as clear.
Available in 250ml size.
When you thicken your paint with impasto or gel, you use equal parts impasto medium and the paint. With the viscosity thickener, you don't use anywhere near that; You just need to use a few drops to mix it in. Now it does take a little bit of mixing, but this will chemically thicken the paint. Impasto and gel mediums are built to reduce the colour as little as possible, but, to get an actual texture, you've got to put quite a bit in, and anything that's not colour is going to reduce the colour.
So by using the viscosity thickener, you get the same texture as the impasto medium. Still, you only need a couple of drops, and you get the impasto look but with no colour shift, which will thicken any water-based acrylic paint.
Once it dries and then the viscosity thickener dries quite matte, another thing to note with the viscosity thickener when you mix up the paint you want to use it all pretty well in one sitting. It might keep for a few days, but what will tend to happen if you add a little bit too much that is fine; however, it will tend to continue to swell if you're keeping it in a jar over a more extended period of time it will go quite thick and hard. Paint that has been thickened with Viscosity Thickener should be used within 48 hours or so.
So if you've got any water-based acrylic paint that's a bit thin and you want to thicken it up, or you want to make it thick like an impasto modelling Viscosity thickener is for you.