Rublev Colours White Beeswax

Beeswax is used as a protective coating (varnish) in painting, as a paint binder, and as a stabilizer in oil colors. It is usually available in cakes, pastilles, or prills, either bleached white or in its natural yellowish color. It melts between 62–65° C. (144–149° F.) and will dissolve when heated in water, turpentine, mineral spirits, or oil. Beeswax does not oxidize and polymerize, as does drying oil, but rather solidifies as it cools to make a solid mass. It does not darken or change color with age, and it resists the action of atmospheric impurities more than resins or oils. On the other hand, it is more sensitive to temperature changes, becoming soft in heat and brittle in cold. It is also more sensitive to abrasion and rubbing than a dried film of oil or varnish.

White beeswax is the recommended choice for most painting techniques, calling for wax ingredients. Beeswax reduces the glossy quality of oil paints, giving them a more satin finish. It also extends the drying time of paints, making them thicker and more workable for longer periods of time. When making your own oil colors, you may add about 2% white beeswax when grinding colors. The wax helps to give the paint a more buttery consistency and guards against flocculation of the pigment.

Beeswax is used in the encaustic painting technique. The technique itself is straightforward. A pigment is added to molten beeswax and often resin (such as Venice turpentine or damar), which is then applied hot to the painting surface. The surface itself may be warmed, allowing for manipulation of the encaustic paint. It may also be cool, causing the brush stroke to solidify immediately. The final treatment is "burning in," which consists of passing a heat source over the surface and fusing and bonding the painting.