WashingLinseedOil.html

THE SUPERIORITY OF UNREFINED COLD PRESSED LINSEED/FLAX OIL

* A friend asked me to comment on an article downgrading and questioning the value of COLD PRESSED
LINSEED OIL. The article can be seen on the Natural Pigments website, a company selling artists
materials. Copyright laws prohibit me from copying copyright protected text if I sell the information, but
the Copyright laws permit “FREE USE” of copyright protected writings by others if it is not sold, and if it
is presented for EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES. It is for Educational reasons that I respond to the article
written BY Mr. George O’Hanlon, which is posted at: http://naturalpigments.com/education/article.asp?
articleid=124

The article makes a questionable ‘scientific’ attempt to lower the value and importance of COLD
PRESSED LINSEED OIL, while touting the NEW ADVANCES ( from 100 years ago??? ) of ALKALI REFINED
linseed oil… and of their NEW PRODUCT soon to be available online ( their 100 year old “NEW” product =
money profits). Financially powerful companies of Linseed Oil production and sales advertise their use
of “SCIENCE“, because the factual information I advance is not in their financial interests.

Their website has a place for persons to send in a REVIEW of the article. I tried, but it would not accept
my submission, even though I brought it down to less than the required 225 characters. Therefore, the
following RESPONSE is here posted on my website.

MY RESPONSE

Greetings. My name is Louis R. Velasquez, I am the author of the book, “Oil Painting with ‘Calcite Sun
Oil”: Safety and Permanence without Solvents, Resins, Varnishes, and Driers” . My website, www.
calcitesunoil.com , provides a brief overview of issues regarding Linseed oil for artists. After reading
the article by George O’Hanlon, I am obligated to respond for educational reasons. The article is long. I
will delete those statements from Mr. O’Hanlon’s article that are basically irrelevant and unneeded. I will
not take Mr. O’Hanlon’s meaning or words out of context, and I will try to be as accurate as possible with
my comments. I offer my comments for the purpose of education, not for any other reason. The
sentences in ITALICS are those from the article by Mr. O’Hanlon.

About Drying Oils for Painting
All about the oils artists use in painting
By George O'Hanlon

* The subtitle is my first criticism of the article. It certainly does not provide ALL the information about
the oils. And, the information in the article LEAVES OUT important facts, that had they been INCLUDED,
would invalidate some statements in the article.

H:…there are two major producers of linseed oil in North America and at least two in Europe, but there are many
brands of linseed and stand oils offered by artist materials companies. Artist materials companies do not have the
resources to process linseed oil..

* This is an important observation by Mr. O’Hanlon. Gone are the days when the 15th century Van Eyck
brothers, the creators of the finest preserved oil paintings in history , and the other Old Masters
pressed their oil COLD from the seeds, without any modern machinery or chemical treatments. Modern
industry produces a linseed oil, much changed from the PURE, UNREFINED, COLD PRESSED, LINSEED OIL
[ actually it is FLAX SEED oil , as in nature, “LIN” seeds do not exist.]. Read my website for detailed
information on the effects of the industrialized product on the linseed oil [ flax oil] artists now use ( my
website offers better options, now available).

H: [ modern] Linseed oil is obtained by various methods, including pre-expelling, followed by hexane extraction of the
resulting press cake. The oil is refined to remove phosphatides and gums, which naturally occur in the oil.
Subsequent refining through post-desliming with sulfuric acid and phosphoric acid yields oil with virtually no traces of
phosphatides or gums. Further post-treatments include lye neutralization and earth bleaching, which yields a very
light drying oil. The natural smell of linseed is removed through vacuum steam distillation. Removing the thin layer of
wax that covers each seed is the last stage of the refinement process. Dewaxing is done by cooling the oil to 4° C.
The cooled oil is held at this temperature until the waxes crystallize, which is then removed by mechanical filtration.

* Mr. O’Hanlon gives a graphic view of modern industrial production of linseed oil. This treatment
explains important facts that must and will be discussed here. He does not elaborate on the important
fact that what is sold as LINSEED OIL is the oil from FLAX seeds that is made for INDUSTRIAL use, and that
the oil ALSO from the FLAX SEEDS, and sold under that name, Flax Oil, is made for HUMAN
CONSUMPTON.. and that the FLAX OIL is UNREFINED COLD PRESSED LINSEED OIL. The art materials
companies that sell linseed oil, do NOT WANT YOU TO KNOW THIS, especially because FLAX OIL is 1/3
less expensive than the LINSEED oil sold in art stores!

H: … alkali refined oils have come a long way but cold pressed is still considered the best because of quality not
because of ease of extraction. This is a belief held on by many artists but not shared by paint technologists and
manufacturers.

* The article calls it a “belief not shared by paint technologists and manufacturers”. Manufacturers, and
the scientists, publicists, lawyers and advertising they hire to promote their product, have ONE overall
important objective: To make the business financially profitable, and to reduce the competition. An
industry that does not earn a profit cannot exist. The modern extraction and treatment of the oil
described graphically above, is calculated down to the penny. The process must be as efficient as
possible, to fulfill the huge world wide, market demand for linseed oil. The methods of the 15th century
Van Eycks are just not financially feasible. If TODAY’S oil was SLOWLY extracted, and SLOWLY cleansed
by ancient organic methods, then SLOWLY processed as they did it, the man hours required would make
the final product so expensive it would be unaffordable and demand would be low. In the recent past,
linseed oil, prepared like that of the Old Masters was available online. Made in Italy, 4 ounces cost $27,
and may not be available any longer. Modern industry quickly produces low cost linseed oil, and sells 8
fluid ounces for $12. UNREFINED FLAX OIL costs $8 for 8 oz., because less TIME, LABOR, MATERIALS are
required to produce the UNREFINED oil without the chemical refinement process.

H: Refined and aged oil makes a better oil vehicle for paint making than cold-pressed unrefined oil,….

* This is a statement the manufacturers would like you to believe 100% so you will buy their product. The
most important proof to DISPROVE their claim, is the concrete evidence we have of oil paintings made
by the Van Eyck brothers in the early 15th century, and the oil paintings of other Netherlandish masters
of that era. Their nearly 600 year old oil paintings were all made with UNREFINED, COLD PRESSED
LINSEED OIL that were organically processed without chemicals. First, the oil was left to STAND STILL for
long periods of time, allowing any particulate, foreign matter and debris to SETTLE to the bottom of the
container. After this slow wait period, the oil was further CLEANSED of its mucilage ( which is invisible)
by one of several different methods. Sometimes the oil was treated with attapulgite/fullers earth, to
reduce the yellow coloring that is natural and normal to linseed oil, but the yellowing CANNOT be
removed from it permanently by any means… regardless of what is written or advertised by the
manufacturers. Finally, it was polymerized by SLOW exposure to summer sun and air to evaporate the
natural moisture. This entire process took over a month to complete, and even much longer for
maximum cleansing. It is worth repeating: The finest preserved oil paintings of history, were made with
UNREFINED, COLD PRESSED LINSEED OIL… not with the Alkali REFINED linseed oil described above by
Mr. O’Hanlon

H:…..because refined oil does not contain "breaks", combined water, waxes and other impurities that may cause the
oil to yellow with age.

* Alkali REFINED linseed oil yellows as much as UNREFINED cold pressed linseed oil, period. Notice the
author’s use of the word “MAY” when cautioning of the yellowing of the oil. One would think that
SCIENTISTS could be more accurate than to say “MAY”, when truly accurate scientific tests would show it
DOES, or, DOESN’T cause yellowing. The fact is, all linseed oils yellow, just some more than others.
Modern refinement techniques have NOT removed the yellow from linseed oil. A good example of
UNREFINED oil that has not been cleansed, is this: IF one does not CLEANSE the UNREFINED cold
pressed linseed oil, it will retain the particulate matter that WILL turn Amber-brown. ALKALI REFINED oils
have removed the particulate, but have also removed important molecular components of the oil, its
fatty acids, causing Alkali Refined linseed oil to become a very slow drying oil. Properly processed
UNREFINED Cold Pressed linseed oil as done by the Van Eycks, will produce a naturally fast drying oil
that will dry within 30 hours. In stark contrast, to show the slow drying, the Alkali refined linseed oil hand
ground into paint, requires 7 days to dry for the Alkali Refined STAND oil, and 6 days for the MODERN
Alkali Refined Linseed oil that they claim to have ’sun thickened’ ( for an unspecified period) , OR, 3
days for Alkali Refined Linseed that has been sun thickened for 60 days in the summer sun. It is
important to know that 6 factors impact the drying of oil paint (1) the oil itself (2) the pigment it is mixed
with (3) the thickness of the film (4) the environmental temperature (5) the humidity (6) the ventilation.

H: The reason why cold-pressed linseed oil is recommended in artists literature is due to one fact: cold-pressed
linseed oil has a high acid value compared to ordinary alkali-refined linseed oil. High acid value makes drying oil
better for grinding pigments. Up until the last 100 years, only cold-pressed oils had a high acid number considered
suitable for grinding colors. However, during the last hundred years, manufacturers have been producing high acid
value refined oils and even high acid value stand oils or polymerized oils.

* First the Modern Refinement removes the FATTY ACIDS, now, they are reintroducing the ACIDS? The
article makes this statement of HIGH ACID value, then follows with the fact that it has been produced for
the past 100 years, then follows with a claim that SOON, this high acid value oil will be available ONLINE
in their company store. Fresh pressed unrefined oils are neutralPH/ non-acidic, and as they 'cure', the
acid quantity increase. This is part of its molecular structure. A structure that has been negatively
impacted by industrial refinement as described above.

H: Stand oil is a partially polymerized but unoxidized linseed oil [and] is made by heating the oil to abut 300° C.
(570° F.) in the absence of oxygen. Stand oil is also called heat-bodied oil. It is not a good binder because it is too
viscous……

* The viscosity of an oil has NO NEGATIVE IMPACT on grinding with dry pigment to make paint, and it is
easily proven that (thickened) polymerized linseed oil will dry to the TOUGHEST film of linseed oil. It is
much stronger as a binder than UNPOLYMERIZED ( thin/ not thickened) linseed oil. Its just EASIER to
grind unpolymerized linseed oil with dry pigment, than it is to grind polymerized linseed oil with dry
pigment into paint.

H: Sun-thickened oil was the polymerized oil from the 18th century and Stand oil from the 19th century.

* This statement contains an obvious typographical error. The author must have meant to say that PRIOR
to the 19th century, the polymerized, MODERN ALKALI REFINED STAND OIL did not exist. Prior to the 19th
century, artists used several methods to THICKEN ( polymerize) their oil. Sun Thickening was the best of
the methods, though there were other organic non-chemical methods.

H: Henry W. Levison . Undoubtedly, yellowing in the dark is the result of thermally induced oxidative reactions. ….
[long article eliminated because the results are simple, as shown next].

* MY NOTE: The Levison study was a scientific effort to demonstrate how linseed oil paintings, stored in
darkness WILL become more yellowish in tone. Science proves what the Old Masters already knew. It
also showed that the purity of the paint, and the elimination of the yellow has a simple solution: the
expose of the painting to sunlight.
MY NOTE: the remainder of the article has information that is often repeated and found in many sources,
and has been deleted.

MY NOTE: See the study by H.W.Levison at http://aic.stanford.edu/jaic/articles/jaic24-02-002.html*

HOW DOES LINSEED/FLAX OIL DRY?
Science proves linseed oil does not dry by evaporation, but through oxidation. The following quoted
excerpts are from an academic source:

period of exposure to air. …. The term "drying" is actually somewhat of a misnomer …the oil does not
harden through the evaporation of water or other solvents, but through a chemical reaction in which
oxygen is absorbed from the environment …… The "drying", hardening, or, more properly, curing of oils
is the result of an exothermic reaction

... One simple technique for monitoring the early stages of the drying process is to measure weight
change in an oil film over time. Initially, the film becomes heavier, as it absorbs large amounts of oxygen.
……Then oxygen uptake ceases, and the weight of the film declines as volatile compounds are lost to the
environment.…
Moisture generally refers to the presence of water, often in trace amounts… Moisture is also sometimes
used to refer to the liquid form of solvents other than water… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moisture

… A solvent is a liquid that dissolves a solid, liquid, or gaseous solute, resulting in a solution. The most
common solvent in everyday life is water. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solvent

Mucilage is a thick gluey substance produced by most plants and some microorganisms…Mucilage in
plants is thought to aid in water storage and seed germination …http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mucilage

[ end of academic source quotation]

My tests show that exposing linseed oil OUTDOORS to HIGH heat and DRY ventilation of summer sun will
create a FAST drying ( within 30 hours or less) viscous oil ( the moisture in the oil is evaporated by the
heat). And, my tests show that exposing linseed oil INDOORS in the shade, to no HEAT of sun, and
ventilation that is not dry, will result in a slow drying viscous oil ( the oil continues to retain its natural
moisture). The article above describes the ABSORPTION of oxygen as the oil is ‘drying’. We know
moisture has mass and WEIGHT. We know oxygen contains certain amounts of moisture, depending on
the humidity ( the oil absorbs it and gains in weight).
And, we know moisture will EVAPORATE from the oil ( causing the oil to lose weight).

CLEANSING UNREFINED FLAX OIL OF ITS MUCILAGE
'THE REBIRTH OF THE OLD MASTERS' SUPERIOR OIL'

THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT OF OIL PAINTING
IS THE CLEANSING OF THE UNREFINED FLAX OIL of its MUCILAGE

This invisible, complex ingredient, natural to FLAX oil causes Linseed/FLAX oil to become
brown over time as the oil absorbs oxygen and moisture for hundreds of years.
The moisture causes the mucilage to ferment, decompose and turn brown.
IF NOT removed from the oil, it causes paint made with it,
to become lower in tonal Values, lower in Chromatic brilliance, and alters purity of Hue.
Science has proven it is Mucilage and NOT the LINSEED/FLAX oil that DARKENS a painting.
My photos below should convince the most difficult unbeliever of this danger.
Science also proves that Resins in oil paint become yellow and brittle with age.
The book has several methods to cleanse your unrefined oil of mucilage.
It takes between one to five days and results in oil that is far superior
to any LINSEED OIL on the market today.

Modern Industrial refinement of Linseed/Flax oil uses caustic lye chemicals to
remove the mucilage from the oil...the problem is that this refinement process also
removes the very important fatty acids that give the oil its durability, hardness on
drying, and that ever important pliability that allows paint made with it to last for
hundreds of years. Yes, it is the important fatty acids in the oil that cause the
yellowing, but, the yellowing is not a real problem.

OIL Paintings in well lighted rooms do not yellow.
The real problem is the irreversible ' browning'
caused by the mucilage if it is not removed.

LINSEED OIL and FLAX OIL are NOT , in our modern world, NOT ONE AND THE SAME,
even though both are pressed from the same FLAX SEED.
IT IS ABOUT "TRUTH-IN-LABELING" LAWS, HERE IS WHY:

GROUP ONE IS LABELED: LINSEED OIL
There are NO 'LIN' seeds in nature. Linseed oil is pressed from 'FLAX SEEDS."
The oil with the word, 'LINSEED OIL", is sold for industrial purposes, such as for waterproofing wood, boats, etc, and for making
artists tube paints and for making mediums. It is sold in hardware stores, and some is sold in art stores for artists to use.

GROUP TWO IS LABELED " FLAX OIL" or " FLAX SEED OIL".
The oil with the label, "FLAX OIL", is sold in health food stores and is traditionally intended for human
consumption...now..ARTISTS have discovered its important SUPERIOR properties that are missing in the highly processed and
refined art store 'Linseed oil". UNREFINED FLAX OIL is closest to the natural oil used by the Old Masters.
This oil is UNREFINED and must be cleansed before it is used by artists. It is the "SUPERIOR /LINSEED/FLAX OIL" of the Old
Masters, once it has been organically cleansed and slowly sun thickened.

For several years I have used the Gamblin brand, of Cold Pressed linseed oil.
The Gamblin label does not specify it is UNREFINED. Why does the label NOT specify it is UNREFINED?
I do not know the answer, except to say, that INDUSTRIAL linseed oil is treated much differently than FLAX OIL.

INDUSTRIAL linseed oil receives some form of ' FINE' treatment to improve clarity and remove particulate causing turbidity, though
possibly, not the Alkali Refinement that. WHEN IT IS ALKALI REFINED, it is clearly stated on the label.

I have used GAMBLINS ' Cold Pressed" Linseed oil for several years and can state this oil works well with the concepts in my
book, BUT, I CANNOT IN ALL HONESTY say it is equal to the FLAX OIL bought in the health food stores, whose labels CLEARLY state
the oil is UNREFINED. We are all aware of laws governing FALSE ADVERTISING, if a company were to LABEL an oil as UNREFINED...
and if it were not true .... the lawsuits would follow.

The Old Holland brand from the Netherlands is POSSIBLY the finest Unrefined, unfiltered cold Pressed linseed oil.
I do not know what, if any, additional processing the oil is given after pressing.
It is much more expensive than the Gamblin oil.
It MUST be cleansed before sun thickening. I have used it and seen the particulate in the bottle..

I use the Flax Oil sold by the Barleans Company.
The label says it is Unrefined, unfiltered Cold Pressed. Though I know this oil is subjected to up to 110 degrees F., by the
machinery used during pressing of powerful machinery, I believe this low temperature for a few hours does not harm the oil.

IN FACT, after it is cleansed at home, the oil will be placed in hot summer direct sun rays for 30 continuous days, with
temperatures varying from 90 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This HIGH QUALITY oil is much less expensive than ALL the industrial
linseed oils. Like all unrefined oils, it MUST be cleansed before sun thickening.

NOTE: The linseed oil sold by Barleans comes in two grades; Light clear yellow and dark cloudy 'particulate filled".
When the Linseed oil is pressed with high pressure, the seeds are ruptured causing the oil to be cloudy with much 'particulate'
( sediment, husks, mucilage) included in the oil. The oil is allowed to settle for a period ( the company does not say how long). The
dark colored particulate eventually settles and the clear oil rises. Both are bottled and sold.

The clear oil is the one to buy, but even this clear oil must be cleansed before sun thickening because like ALL UNREFINED,
UNFILTERED COLD PRESSED LINSEED OILS, it contains much particulate and much of it is microscopic in size and invisible to the
unaided human eye.

Do not buy the DARK OIL with added 'particulate', the label says, " HIGHEST LIGNAN" , as it is unnecessary work for you to cleanse.

SPECIAL THANKS TO MY FRIEND, MARSHA PIPER FOR
PROVIDING THIS VERY VALUABLE EDUCATIONAL LINK
TO UNDERSTANDING SPIKE OIL.. THE SOURCE BOOK
WAS PUBLISHED IN 1896 ..BUT IT IS A VERY VALUABLE
SCIENTIFIC REFERENCE. IT CAN BE READ ONLINE.
DIGITIZED RECENTLY BY UNIV.OF CALIF. SEE Page 564
- 568 ; Lavender/Spike

http://books.google.com/books?id=u6VAAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA
567&lpg=PA567&dq=lavender+spike+oil&source=web&ot
s=Ms_C50PmbC&sig=PWqt0P9G2I-LwB1x_rzpMWg2on4
&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=9&ct=result#PPA
567,M1

MUCILAGE : PROOF OF ITS DARKENING AND BROWNING
The photo on your left shows the freshly gathered Mucilage. It is pale, white opaque that you see on the bottom of the jar. The next photo shows the same jar 45 days later and the
Mucilage is becoming brown. Notice the oil is becoming lighter by exposure to a sunny room with sunlight -NOT due to direct SUN RAYS. The third photo shows the same jar. Now
the oil has become almost colorless and the mucilage is brown. The last photo on your right was taken 12 months after the first photo. It shows the brown umber color of the
mucilage. This is the proof of that mucilage will cause oil paint to darken and brown , if not removed. The Old Masters knew this. Notice the oil is very pale. Notice the very large PURE
WHITE COLORLESS oil bubble. This bubble is the thinness used in oil painting layers. ( All Photos on this website are copyright protected, 2004-2008)

PHOTOS ABOVE: ORGANICALLY CLEANSED UNREFINED FLAX OIL CLEANSED WITH THE VEL-TAUB METHOD

IT IS the finest Linseed/Flax oil available today, and superior to any Industrial Linseed Oil on the market..
PHOTO ON YOUR LEFT shows the cleansed oil after 5 days.
PHOTO ON YOUR RIGHT shows the cleansed oil after it was Sun Thickened.
The artist determines the degree of viscosity of the oil.
The longer it is left exposed to the sun, the thicker it becomes.
Rembrandt used a very viscous oil, Velazquez preferred a moderately thick oil.

CLEANSED UNREFINED FLAX OIL IS EASY TO SUN THICKEN
FULL INSTRUCTIONS ARE IN MY BOOK

Cennino Cennini, the 15th century Renaissance master
wrote that Sun Thickened Linseed oil is the finest oil for oil painting.
His words resound loudly to today's oil painters.

Photo on the left is the Walnut Oil cleansed by the VEL-TAUB
METHOD after 15 days. The cleansed oil is bleached to a
beautiful pale color equal to my finest Linseed FLAX OIL in color.
The VEL-TAUB METHOD requires the oil to stay out for only 3 to 6
days. But, I was busy and I left it out for 15 days.
The bottle of the California Oil is empty. The natural color of the
French oil is clearly seen, and the California oil was similar in
color
I have nothing against Walnut Oil. I do not use it because it is not
necessary. It is misleading for some websites to praise it while
denigrating Linseed FLAX oil . There is no justification for that
approach to teaching.

Rembrandt used Walnut oil very little and it was found in his dark
paint. Velazquez used it very little also. The greatest masters of
oil painting relied on the finest Linseed Flax oil for their
masterworks. Pacheco himself said he never used walnut oil.

WALNUT OIL and LEONARDO DA VINCI are forever grouped together. This oil has been used by many artists because of its pale
color....of course it is as dark umber yellow as Linseed Flax Oil. Is it better than Linseed Oil? No it is not. The best oil is the oil that has
been organically cleansed of its mucilage. A reputable artist I know does not cleanse his Walnut oil, preferring to let gravity settle the
mucilage. He is sadly mistaken as gravity does not settle it. My testing used an expensive Unrefined Walnut oil imported from France that
sat in my cupboard for over a year and a half without moving. , and a California USA product. The photo directly below shows both in the
first step of the VEL-TAUB METHOD after a week. The bowl with the writing is the California oil. The French oil contained the most
mucilage indicating that it was, as the bottle said..the first pressing. Its mucilage is thick, and the black dots are bugs.

WALNUT OIL
REQUIRES CLEANSING OF ITS MUCILAGE

This is the SUPERIOR OIL of the OLD MASTERS.

A NOTE ON HOW THE OLD
MASTERS CLEANSED THEIR
OIL OF MUCILAGE:

Some websites use the EASTLAKE method
of 'washing' their oil with Sand , Salt, and
Water. It is a long laborious method. The
method is only one of numerous methods
contained in old manuscripts.

Mr Charles Eastlake .....was NOT AN OLD
MASTER. He was a 19th century theoretician
who researched older manuscripts- along
with many other scholars- in trying to
RECONSTRUCT the Methods the Old
Masters used to cleanse their oil. Mr.
Eastlake was and is highly respected for his
efforts, HOWEVER, Science has proven him
wrong on many counts. He like others did not
have today's science, and he used his best
guesses to make statements.

Francisco PACHECO ... WAS an Old Master
.... and he was the teacher of Diego
VELAZQUEZ..
Pacheco taught Velazquez his simple and
QUICK method on how to cleanse his
unrefined oil by using Lavender Flowers,
Alcoholic liquor and sunshine. That complete
method is included in my book. The method
removes all the damaging mucilage from the
oil within one day.

VELAZQUEZ paintings are in excellent
condition when their age of 350 years is
considered. Pacheco's method has proven
itself to be permanent and Archival.
EASTLAKE'S reconstruction method has not
yet stood the test of time.

THE PHOTO ABOVE SHOWS THREE EXAMPLES OF CLEANSED OILS
1. On the viewers left: Unrefined Walnut oil, cleansed by the Vel-Taub
Method. It was left out 15 days, but it has not been sun thickened.
2. The middle photo shows Unrefined Flax oil cleansed by the Pacheco
Method. Then, it was further cleansed with the Vel-Taub method for 3
days, as a test to see if ALL the mucilage had been removed. IT HAD. It
has not been sun thickened. It is the clearest oil of the three. A beautiful
transparency that is crystaline in quality. This oil has the odor of
Lavender because the flowrs contain spike solvent..
3. On your right is cleansed and sun thickened Unrefined Flax oil,
cleansed by use of the Vel-Taub method.

SWEDISH LINSEED OIL PROCESSED FOR PAINTING HOUSES IS NOT
RECOMMENDED FOR FINE ART OIL PAINTING

Linseed Oil is FLAX OIL. There are NO ‘LIN” seeds in nature.
There is a strong world wide demand for Linseed Oil, and the flax plants are grown around the globe. The oil processed for
INDUSTRIAL uses is labeled, “LINSEED” oil. The same oil, but processed for human consumption is labeled, “FLAX” oil. The oil the
Old Masters used was raw, unrefined, cold pressed FLAX oil. After it was freshly pressed, it was full of mucilage and of vegetable
particulate caused by the crushing of the seeds. This particulate is pulverized seed husks, dirt and other matter. If the oil is left to
STAND STILL ( the original use of the word STAND OIL), much but not all of the particulate drops to the bottom. However, no matter
how long the oil is left to stand, gravity will not drop all the mucilage. The Old masters found this out and tried everything to remove the
mucilage. I have pasted some parts from the website of the Swedish company, ‘Allback’. Here is their website, and I encourage you to
read it. These snips of their site are on the FAQ section. Today, different words are used to describe the MUCILAGE. Some call it a ‘
BREAK”, and others like Allback Co. call it PROTEIN.
There site speaks for itself. Their product is processed oil made for painting houses, not for FINE ART painting.

THE FOLLOWING IS FROM THE ALLBACK WEBSITE

http://www.solventfreepaint.com/faq.htm#lead

Organic Linseed Paint from Allback, Sweden.
Allback Purified Organic Linseed Oil
The raw linseed oil is purified and refined through the addition of oxygen to produce boiled or "cooked" linseed oil. This process
eliminates protein and improves aspects such as the drying time, shine and purity.
Uses: 1) Thinning the linseed paint. 2) Maintenance of old linseed painted surfaces. 3) May be used as a first coat on extremely dried
out wood. 4) Add a few ounces of paint to the boiled linseed oil to create a stain. 5) Excellent for long term storage of paint brushes.
Purified linseed oil is used as a binding agent in Allback linseed oil paints. The raw oil is used for the glazing putty. This paint … lasts
50 years on the exterior of a building. Maintain every 5-10 years with the Purified Organic Boiled Linseed Oil or the linseed oil wax.
What is "boiled" linseed oil and linseed oil paint? … Allback linseed oil and linseed oil paint is made from cold pressed flax seed
grown in a northern, colder climate. ….The cold pressed oil contains about 30% protein that is removed in a cleaning process. The
removal of the protein is crucial for preventing mold and mildew. When the protein is removed, the oil can be boiled and sterilized. This
is contrary to the linseed oil products available in most paint stores. These products are NOT actually boiled even though they are
labeled "boiled". Linseed oil that has the protein cannot be boiled, it is technically impossible (the oil will become explosive when
heated.) .If the linseed oil is not boiled and sterilized it does not dry. Substantial amounts of chemical driers have to then be added to
these "unclean" linseed oil products. The Allback linseed oil and paint is completely free from any chemical driers and dries naturally
within a few days. ….
Will the linseed white paint yellow? Linseed oil paint of good quality yellows very little and only in the absence of daylight (like under a
flowerpot.) The yellow tint disappears if the patch is exposed to daylight. …..

How does linseed oil paint work?
The linseed oil in the paint gradually oxidizes with the air. After five to ten years it fades, hence why we encourage the application of a
layer of warmed, cleaned, boiled linseed oil. The capillary effect of the linseed oil in the paint will continuously penetrate into the wood
and prevent moisture from entering. This will maintain the wood perfectly

How does Allback clean their linseed oil? After the flax seed have been cold pressed, the oil is heavily stirred and then stored. The
protein in the oil will sink to the bottom after approximately 4 weeks. The oil is then pumped off the surface. This process is repeated
until the oil is cleaned. Low heat is used to speed up the separation of the oil and the protein. It is very important for the quality of the
paint to remove as much protein as possible. The linseed oil can then be boiled and sterilized. When the oil is sterilized, it dries and the
need for any added chemicals is eliminated.

What else is linseed paint good for?
Linseed paint is also excellent for rust proofing anything from steel, house hardware to automobiles…….

READ the REVIEWS on AMAZON
Published in 2004 and revised in 2008
A new book with a Revolutionary
method of Oil Painting based on
Rembrandt and Velazquez.

Three ancient SAFE archival materials
allow the ELIMINATION of all
HAZARDOUS solvents and materials
commonly used in Oil Painting.

Artists around the globe have bought
the book and are painting with CSO.

THE 'CALCITE SUN
OIL'/EMULSIONS method of Oil
Painting is on YOUTUBE ...
COPY and PASTE THIS URL TO
YOUR BROWSER

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj
y1rULu7sg

THE FOLLOWING METHODS ARE DESCRIBED IN THE BOOK

1. THE VEL-TAUB METHOD:
I improved Frederic Taubes‘ incomplete unworkable method , and made it workable and practical by adding TWO
additional Steps to his process. I named the method “VEL-TAUB”, to honor Taubes, and to identify it educationally.
NOTE: Frederick Taubes (b.1900-d.1981). Please see his fabulous paintings at www.frederictaubes.com
This practical method, allows one to ‘ cleanse’ and ‘ sun’ the oil, within 14-28 days. Extra care must be taken on
decanting the oil because the separated mucilage is very easily reintregrated into the cleansed oil.
My book provides an effective method to reduce this problem.
The cleansed oil produced by the VEL-TAUB METHOD is a wonderfully pure transparent oil.
Once the oil is CLEANSED, it is ready to be SUN THICKENED.
Both oils , the cleansed non- thickened, and the cleansed-sun thickened, are very important, each with different
properties and uses.

2.THE PACHECO METHOD:
Velazquez' teacher was Francisco Pacheco who wrote a book titled, "El Arte de la Pintura", published in 1649.
This method is fully described. The use of Lavender flowers leaves a solvent in the oil. I include it in the book
because of its historical importance. The photo to the right shows an example of the crystalline quality of the oil
cleansed with the Pacheco method.

3. THE PSYLLIUM -ALCOHOL METHOD:
Is a SAFE variation of the Pacheco Method I developed because the Pacheco Method uses Lavender flowers
that leave a Spike solvent in the Oil. This NEW method is completely safe.

4. THE CROCK POT METHOD:
This method I developed accelerates the cleansing of the oil when dry calcium carbonate powder is used as the
cleanser.

A BRIEF HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF CLEANSING
THE LINSEED/FLAX OIL FOR OIL PAINTING:
The best reference source I have read on this subject is by A.P. Laurie, in his book, “The Painter’s Methods and Materials”,
Dover Publications, New York, 1967. This book has withstood the test of time, and is still available. A.P. Laurie was a scientist*
with a special interest in Artist‘s materials and historical manuscripts.

Mr. Laurie cites ancient manuscripts on the subject of how ‘drying’ oils were cleansed. He begins with a 5th century account
by Aetius, and mentions the 8th century Lucca Manuscript, then mentions Theophilus in the 11th century , Eraclius in the 13th
century, and Cennino Cennini in the 14th century, concluding that linseed, poppy and walnut oils were processed and used
since ancient times. He relates that the extracted oil, by however means it is extracted, is NOT pure, that it contains impurities,
mucilage, and other foreign matter. He states that fresh extracted oil dries very slowly and that artists made the oil dry faster
by processing it in a variety of forms; boiling, exposure to air, and exposure to sun and air. He cites that the bleaching of oils by
sun exposure was known in the time of Dioscorides, and that boiling oil with litharge was known in the time of Galen, A.D., 103-
193.

Mr. Laurie states that the method of mixing the oil with water came much later in history, that processing the oil by exposing it
to air sun and water was a much more recent development that dates to Padre Gesuato of 1557 and even more recently in the
De Mayerne manuscript of 1620. I note that the dates of these later developments - washing oil with water- coincide with
following the Italian Renaissance of the early 1500’s when experimentation and seeking knowledge was the norm.

Since the industrial revolution of the 19th century, raw materials of all kinds are processed for the market as efficiently and
quickly as possible. The main force behind the market is to earn a profit. Under those conditions, the product frequently
suffers, though technology has made modern life more convenient.
Artist’s linseed oil is produced on a very large scale for a world wide market. Gone are the days of the Van Eycks and
Rembrandt when the flax seeds were pressed with a hand manipulated screw press to extract the oil. Even today’s cold
pressed linseed oil is extracted by machinery that inadvertently warms up the oil because of the friction of the high pressure
machinery. I was assured by a USA manufacturer of flax oil ( which is the same oil as linseed oil) that the temperature of the oil
never reaches the boiling point. I am aware of only one company that claims to use no electrical machinery in pressing the oil,
and that is the “Old Holland” company in The Netherlands. They claim to use only windmill power as was done in the 17th
century. Most linseed oil today is labeled as Alkali Refined Linseed Oil because it is treated with a caustic chemical called
Sodium Hydroxide in their Alkali Refinement process to cleanse the oil.

The Alkali Refinement of Linseed/flax oil has removed important molecular components of the oil and caused it to become a
very slow drying oil. Knowing this, I have sought out the pure cold pressed Unrefined, Unfiltered linseed oil. Unrefined linseed oil
requires cleansing, but cleansing as the Old Masters did it…without caustic chemicals.

LINSEED OIL VS FLAX OIL - THE DIFFERENCE !!

CLICK ON THE PAGE
TITLED:
UNREFINED FLAX OIL
for additional
instructions on this
important subject

MY EXPERIMENTS IN THE REMOVAL OF MUCILAGE FROM THE UNREFINED FLAX OIL

Several years ago I began the task of trying ancient and newer methods to remove the mucilage. I spent a lot of time
studying encyclopedias on the subject of chemistry.

Several years ago I identified PSYLLIUM HUSK as an important NEW ingredient unknown to the Old Masters.

I have been asked how I came to made that important ingredient choice.
Its comical, but had I been a young man, I never would have thought of Psyllium Husk as beneficial to this study.
However being past 60 years, the body gets sluggish and one learns how Psyllium Husk works. Its just Magical.
It puffs up when it comes in contact with water, moisture or dampness. PSYLLIUM HUSK is one of the most
important ingredients I developed and it was in direct response to the use of PACHECO of lavender flowers.
BEFORE identifying Physillium Husk, I tried numerous ingredients and At one time I had EIGHT 4X8 tables covered
with jars of experiments. They were everywhere .

THE METHODS IN MY BOOK AND ON THIS SITE ARE THE CULMINATION OF THE STUDIES.
ALL OF THEM WORK VERY WELL. I am grateful to Francisco Pacheco's knowledge that allowed me to develop my
Psyllium-Alcohol Method which is based on his.

The PSYLLIUM-ALCOHOL METHOD is by far the easiest. BUT the new improved instructions of that method in the
book have been upgraded and are on my site. I do understand the oil problems of my friends who bought my book
living in Alaska, Amsterdam, Maine Canada and lots of cold European countries. My hope is that as artists discover
the great superiority of the SUPERIOR OIL of the Old Masters, that some day the demand will cause wealthy
investors to finally produce it to all artists worldwide. I will be so proud to have been a pioneer to get that
accomplished. Meanwhile we are left on our own to produce our own superior oil

WARNING! DENATURED ALCOHOL !!
I cannot stress enough for artists who experiment with cleansing the oil...that they avoid use of DENATURED
ALCOHOL. This substance is inexpensive and is pure ethanol with added toxic chemicals to prohibit humans from
drinking it. This is caused by Tax laws and regulation. To cleanse the oil effectively, alcoholic liquor has sufficient
ethanol alcohol to do the job, and liquor's content of water helps too in that it causes the husk to puff up, something
pure alcohol will not do.
DENATURED ALCOHOL IS DANGEROUS and I personally suffered damage to both of my eyes, leading me to obtain
medical care. Both eye whites turned blood red and my skin area was also chaffed . Months later, I lost sight in one
eye for 6 weeks. So, please be careful.