Olifa: Linseed Oil Varnish for the Egg Tempera Icon
“This process must be shown by someone who knows it. It cannot be communicated by reading.”- Leonid Ouspensky, talking about the
varnishing technique known as Olifa.
Having practiced the technique of olifa oil varnish for
more than 20 years, I can attest to the wisdom of this
statement. Olifa is a very difficult varnishing process to
learn, best done by watching or assisting someone with
experience doing it. I prepared the following instructions
for students to whom I have taught the process. If you are
new to varnishing with olifa, you really must find someone
who can show you how it works. These instructions may be
useful to someone having trouble with the process, allowing
for varying techniques of different schools. This paper
describes what my teacher taught me, together with some of
my own observations, and experiences. There are many parts
of the process that are unpredictable and irreversible.
The application of olifa should be tried and practiced
before being used for a finished icon. I strongly recommend
that a few small practice panels with a paint surface
similar to what is to be varnished should be made, and
properly dried. This varnishing technique is one that works
best if the varnisher understands what is happening during
the process, and knows what to look for.
The varnishing must be planned for a day when you can
remain with the icon into the evening. It is a process
that, once begun cannot be stopped or interrupted. Do not
varnish on a day where you have another commitment. Start
early in the day, as the part of the process that can be
physically demanding comes at the end of the day, when
strength can be low, and the natural light is gone.
The paint surface and
proper tempering of the colors:
The first consideration of
varnishing an icon painted in egg tempera is the condition
of the paint surface to be varnished:
(1) Is the paint cured (dried) enough? If the paint surface
is too new (a few days old, for example), the varnishing
process may dislodge certain colors, particularly reds,
making a muddy mess of the olifa. In a damp winter, the
paint surface takes longer to cure than in a dry summer. In
a dry climate, I would allow the icon to dry for 1-2 weeks.
In a humid climate, or in a rainy season, I would wait 3
weeks. A longer drying time is better but not usually
possible in my experience. Allowing the icon to sit in the
sun in a sunny window will facilitate the drying process.
Ouspensky usually coated his reds (vermilion or cadmium
red) with a little pure egg medium as an extra precaution
against dislodging color.
(2) Are the colors tempered enough? To add egg yoke medium
to the pigment is to temper it. If the colors do not have
enough egg, the result will be poor, with
“under-tempered” colors letting go and making
the varnish dirty. In my experience, the paint surface
should have a slight shine, but not a high gloss.
Consistent tempering can be helped during the painting of
the icon by the daily application of a wash of very diluted
medium prior to the day’s work (one brush full of egg
medium, and seven of water). Evenly and adequately tempered
colors will be much easier to varnish. If the surface is
very matte, and has no surface reflection at all, like a
piece of velvet, it is under-tempered, and will give
trouble during the varnishing. Colors that are not tempered
enough will varnish unevenly, leaving dry spots that are
difficult to fix.
(3) Gold leaf can present difficulties. Prior to the olifa
process, I varnish gold leaf (water gilded) with shellac,
also covering all lettering, lines of haloes, and contours
that overlap onto the gold. Shellac painted over paint that
sits on gold (lettering and haloes) will hold it in place
during the olifa process.
OLIFA
RECIPE:
2 ml liquid cobalt acetate dryer
250 ml refined linseed oil
or
.8 ml liquid cobalt acetate dryer
4.25 oz refined linseed oil
or
8 ml liquid cobalt acetate dryer
1 quart refined linseed oil
These recipes have the same
proportions; the different measures are given to
accommodate the differing measures in which linseed oil is
sold in the U.S.
Drop the liquid cobalt dryer into the linseed oil with a
calibrated measuring dropper (fig 1). Stir thoroughly (fig
2). I usually keep new olifa on a window sill, so that the
light and heat of the sun will thicken it a little. In my
experience, old olifa is superior to newly made olifa. New
olifa is thin and brown. With time, it changes color to
become a beautiful golden amber, it thickens somewhat, and
works better (fig 3: on the left. two year old olifa; on
the right newly made olifa). When making a new batch of
olifa, I mix a little aged olifa into the new batch, which
seems to facilitate this beneficial aging process. It is
also a good idea to keep the olifa in a wide mouth jar that
is larger than the volume of olifa being stored. The air
coming into contact with the olifa also helps to age it.
To varnish a work
executed in egg tempera:
The technique works best if the
weather is dry and sunny. It is possible to do the process
on a wet, rainy day, but it is much more difficult, not to
mention slower. During the process, the icon should sit in
sunlight, either in a window, or outside, if it is warm. If
the icon is sitting outside, you will want to watch over
it, and keep insects from landing on it. Some insects will
eat the egg in the paint. The icon should also be shielded
from birds flying overhead. If the weather is bad, an
ultra-violet heat lamp (or several, for a large icon) may
be used.
I've taken to using latex gloves while doing olifa to
prevent contact with the cobalt dryer. Since where I tend
to work with such large amounts of olifa, it seems the
better part of wisdom.
1. Application of the olifa
The varnishing should begin early in the day, as soon as
the sun is strong enough to warm the surface of the icon.
The icon and the jar of olifa should be warmed in the sun
for about 10 minutes. With the icon lying flat, the olifa
is then poured out onto the surface (figs 4-5), and spread
with the fingers over the entire surface of the panel (figs
6-8). Put the icon, lying flat, in the sun, or under an
artificial heat/light source. If using a heat lamp, instead
of sunlight, be careful to:
(1) keep the lamp far enough from the icon to make the
surface warm, but not very hot. Too much heat could damage
both the paint film and the gilding; and,
(2) make sure that the surface is warmed evenly by moving
the panel slightly every few minutes. Some heat lamp bulbs
direct a pinpoint of very strong heat onto a small part of
the surface, and this will make the varnish film develop
unevenly.
How much olifa to pour onto the surface is a matter of
preference and experience. In theory, you cannot apply too
much oil, as the surface will hold only so much varnish
before it runs off the sides, and excess varnish will be
removed later on in the process anyway. I like to apply a
little less than the maximum amount of varnish the surface
will hold, as the less varnish that is used, the faster the
process will go. If you use too little varnish, it will all
disappear into the paint over the course of the day, or dry
too quickly, in an uncontrolled manner.
In the following few hours, 3 things will happen:
(1) The colors will absorb varnish, each absorbing
different amounts at different rates of time.
(2) The varnish will thicken, due to the action of light
and heat.
(3) A permanent film of varnish will slowly form directly
on top of the surface of the paint, and underneath
thickening linseed oil.
2. Redistributing the olifa throughout the
day
Leaving the icon in the light/heat source (fig 9), return
every 15 minutes and move the thickening olifa around with
your fingers, rubbing, in small circles, over the surface
of the panel (figs 10-12). During the first few hours, the
thin varnish will move and recede, leaving dry areas, and
you must redistribute it evenly. Within an hour or so, the
olifa will become thicker, and it will not leave dry areas,
but you must continue to move it around every 15 minutes,
as small pockets of varnish will coagulate, and you want to
break them up, redistribute them, and keep the developing
film evenly spread over the surface of the panel.
Two very
important warnings!
DANGER!
(1) The panel may become
too hot to touch if it is in strong sunlight or too close
to a heat lamp. If this becomes the case, move the panel
into the shade or indoors, (or turn off the heat lamp(s)
and let it cool, then move the olifa around with your
fingers. Continue to do this throughout the day.
(2) Be very careful when looking at the surface of the
varnish in direct sunlight. The sunlight’s refraction
in the oil surface is very strong, and can injure the eyes.
You could permanently injure your eyes, due to the
reflected light of the sun. Never look at the surface of
the oil directly. Again, here it is best to move the icon
into the shade, or indoors, and to attend to it there. When
using heat lamps, turn off the lamps before looking at the
icon, and working on it.
The olifa varnish will begin with the consistency of thin
oil, then become like honey, then become very viscous.
3. The developing paint film
After about 2 hours, you should notice a film of permanent
varnish forming right on the surface of the paint, and
under the thickening linseed oil. As you rub your fingers
across the surface of the panel, you will begin to feel
this film under the movable olifa, as it begins to stick to
the paint, and become one with the paint surface. This film
will thicken and harden, becoming the final varnish coat.
Although you could easily remove it at this point by
rubbing hard with your fingers, it will become firmer in
the coming hours, and finally, it will be impossible to
remove by the end of the process. You still rub the surface
firmly, but try not to rub so hard that you take this film
off altogether. If you feel small patches of coagulated
olifa on the surface of the paint, break them up as you
move the thickening olifa around. The surface should become
evenly thick.
4. Removing a little excess olifa
When you see that a good film of olifa varnish is forming
on the surface of the paint, you may carefully remove some
of the thickened olifa, leaving a good amount on the
surface to continue the process. Do this by lightly wiping
off olifa with your fingers systematically over the whole
panel, removing a square of olifa about the size of your
hand at a time (figs 13 -14). Removing the extra thickened
olifa accelerates the varnishing process, which you may or
may not want on a given day. This removed thickened olifa
can be stored in a small glass jar for later use and
retouching (fig 15). How do you know when or if you may
remove some of the olifa? Experience counts for much here.
You may remove some of the olifa when there is enough of a
film formed on the surface, and there is more olifa on this
film than you will need to complete the process. You may
not have put enough olifa on the icon at the beginning of
the day to remove any now. You may find that the olifa is
not thickening as fast as you would like, and need to
remove quite a bit to accelerate the drying. There are many
possibilities at this point. You can only discern what is
“enough” or “more than enough” by
experience, trial and error. Practice panels will help the
beginner. NOTE: Some varnishers skip this part of the
process, removing the excess olifa in one step only, as
described below.
5. Influencing the speed of the varnishing process
There are two ways that the varnishing can be relatively
speeded up or slowed down: 1. You can remove the unneeded
thickened olifa, or not. 2. You may vary the amount of time
you leave the icon with the developing olifa in the sun (
or under the heat lamps.) Take the icon out of the light
and heat source to slow the process down.
6. The final removal of all the excess olifa
When the olifa becomes so thick that it begins to
“grab” your fingers, and the panel moves around
as you attempt to redistribute the olifa, it is time to
remove the rest of the excess olifa, leaving a thin film
behind, which becomes the varnish coat. The time it takes
to reach this point after the initial application of the
olifa varies: 2-3 hours at least, but you may need 5-6
hours(or more). This depends on atmospheric conditions, how
much olifa you have applied, the age of the olifa, and the
condition of your paint.
To remove the excess olifa: have a large knife (not too
sharp) and a lint-free towel ready (cloth or paper). Scrape
off a section of olifa with your hand from the lower left
hand corner of the panel (fig. 16- 17). If you are
beginner, start small, about 6 square inches. You may take
more off at a time, when you gain experience. Scrape the
thickened olifa off your hand with the knife (fig. 18-19),
and wipe the knife with the towel, or scrape it into a tin
can if you have a lot of olifa on the knife (fig. 20).
Remove all the olifa in this way, moving across the panel,
(working in 6 square inch sections,) then continuing up the
panel, working systematically. You will have to press very
hard to remove this thickened olifa. If you are acting at
the correct time, you will be taking every bit of the olifa
which can come off. You will probably have to go over each
part of the surface several times. If there is pigment that
does not have enough egg medium in it, it will smear at
this point, which is not really fixable. If this does
happen, I suggest that you take off all the excess olifa,
loose paint and all, and try to fix the icon when the
varnishing is completed if you can.
NOTE: I have begun to use a soft rubber silk screen
squeegee to remove olifa (fig 21). With it, the olifa may
be removed very quickly (fig 22-26), if necessary (and
sometimes it is necessary to move very quickly.) You can
leave the thickened olifa on the panel longer, because you
can remove it quickly. Removing the olifa by hand is
usually very strenuous, exhausting, and difficult.
However you choose to remove the olifa, work systematically
up the panel, then turn the panel sideways, and work at a
right angle to what you have been doing (figs 27-30).
Gilded areas should have the same film as the paint, but be
careful over gold. The pressure of your hand should be
firm, but do not make any quick pulls over it, as gold or
shellac may be caught in a suction, and pulled off, with
disastrous results.
How much olifa is taken away? Olifa is removed until a thin
layer of hardened olifa is left on the surface of the
paint. The texture of the paint can be seen, when examined
against the light (figs 31-32). You should be able to see
any thick brush strokes. This is also a matter of personal
preference. The olifa may be thicker or thinner, depending
on the decision of the varnisher. If an icon is for a
church, it should have a substantial varnish. The icon will
be very shiny and very tacky at this point. It should be
leaned with the varnished side towards a wall, in an
environment as dust-free as possible.
If you remove the olifa too soon, it will disappear into
the paint, leaving the paint dry and unvarnished. If this
happens the icon may be varnished a second time in the same
way. If you try to take off the excess olifa too late,
however, you will be left with a thick, sticky film of
linseed oil which never becomes totally transparent or
evenly shiny. The work can certainly be ruined at this
point, and there is a good case for believing that this
process is best learned only by making painful mistakes in
the early attempts at the varnishing. In this way the
limitations and the characteristics of olifa are learned.
Do not try this for the first time on an important work.
Try it on test panels.
7. The final step of the process: “brushing”
the varnish
After 15 minutes, lay the icon flat on the table, taking
care not to touch the surface of the varnish. Gently but
firmly brush the surface with the out-side half of the palm
of your hand or with your fingers. Begin in the lower
corner of the icon and brush in slow, downward strokes,
moving sideways across the panel with each stroke, thus
treating the bottom 6 inches, or so of the panel. Hold the
bottom of the panel with one hand, and brush with the other
hand, pulling your hand towards you. Repeat for the next
horizontal 6 inch band, and continue to move up the panel
until it has been brushed entirely You need be able to see
the reflection of the light on the surface of the varnish,
so position yourself accordingly, with the panel between
you and the light source. It is easier to see the surface
of the varnish in daylight rather than in electric light,
so sit opposite a window, if possible, with the icon
between you and the window. As the olifa begins to dry and
harden, brushing it will make the surface mat, but then the
shine slowly returns (fig 33). Doing this for the next hour
or so, every 10 or 15 minutes, will make the icon less
sticky and shiny. When not brushing the icon, it should be
leaned, face against the wall.
If the olifa makes a squeaky noise, or if the varnish
becomes very dull, and won’t become shiny again, it
is time to stop. For this reason, always begin in the lower
corner, and pay close attention to what happens when you
brush the olifa: does it become dull, then become shiny
again? All is well, and you may progress. Does the varnish
make a frightening sounding squeak or become very dull, not
becoming shiny again? It is probably time to stop. It will
be very sticky, but this should go away overnight, although
it will be a little tacky for a few days. Lean the panel
towards a wall, and do not touch it until the next day. I
have gotten into the practice of not touching the icon
until two days after I varnish. The difficulty here is to
stop touching the varnish before the time when it is too
late to touch it, and to learn to watch for the signs,
which can only be learned through experience.
If the icon is not brushed in this way, it will remain
shiny and sticky. A good olifa surface is slightly glossy,
but not altogether shiny. It should not look
"candy-coated." It should not be sticky.
If the icon is tacky after two days, try putting it in the
sun, or in a sunny window. This should help in the drying.
The olifa may be slightly tacky for several days. If it is
very shiny and tacky, it probably was not brushed enough.
It should dry with time, anyhow. Do not touch the surface
of the varnish until it has cooled. When the fresh olifa is
warm, it is also soft, and fingerprints can become
permanent.
Occasionally, it is necessary to do a little retouching.
Sometimes, a little of the paint which lies on top of gold
comes off during the varnishing. This is pretty easy to
fix. Mix up the paint in the usual way. Mix in a little ox
gall (available at most art stores). This is a wetting
agent. It helps the paint not to bead up on the
non-absorbent olifa. Do your repairs; let dry an hour or
so. Carefully, varnish over the repairs or retouchings with
a little shellac. This method cannot be used for large
areas, but for small repairs only. Remember that the
shellac will degrade and discolor in different ways that
the olifa, so add shellac, or any other retouch varnish to
the olifa, bearing that eventuality in mind.
To ship an icon with fresh varnish, I wrap it in brown
paper, wrap the wrapped icon in cardboard, then box the
whole thing. The brown paper will usually not adhere to the
varnish. Never wrap an icon in plastic.
An Alternate
Method
Rub a small amount of olifa into the surface of the icon.
Let it sink into the paint completely. If after 1 hour, if
there is still some varnish collecting in pools on the
surface of the icon, wipe most of it off, leaving only a
little behind to sink in. Leave overnight. Pick up the
process, by putting in more olifa, the next day, and
proceed with the process described above. This method is
one that consolidates the paint surface ahead of time, and
has proved easier for some people.
A sample olifa
scenario
The following scenario is a
record of the varnishing of a small icon (8 X 10 inches) by
Leonide Ouspensky in 1981 in his Paris studio. The weather
was cold and rainy outside, but the studio was adequately
heated by a small wood stove, which provided a good, dry
heat source for the process.
9:30 (AM): The icon is warmed by being put face down on top
of the little wood stove. NOTE: The stove was giving out
very little heat from the top. The same could be achieved
by standing the icon near a radiator, or laying it in the
sun, or under a heat lamp. Do not place an icon directly
onto a heat source. It will damage the icon, if the heat is
at all strong.
10:00: The olifa is applied.
10:15: The olifa is rubbed and spread around the surface of
the icon.
10:30, and each 15 minutes following: The olifa is rubbed
and spread. NOTE: The stove had feet, and was raised about
9 inches off the floor. The icon lay face up, during this
time, under the stove, where the panel remained warm, but
not hot. Two pieces of thin wood were placed to cover the
sides of the area under the stove to prevent drafts.
12:00 noon: Some of the thickened olifa is removed, and
stored in a small jar for retouching and restoration.
12:40: The olifa had thickened noticeably, and had formed a
good film on the paint surface. The olifa was carefully
rubbed and smoothed. The fingers leave tracks now, which
soon disappear back into the olifa.
1:20: The icon is removed from the heat. It is very tacky,
and it is difficult to move one’s fingers across the
sticky surface. The olifa is worked and spread, making sure
that the developing film is even. The rubbing continues
each 15 minutes.
2:00: The olifa is removed by hand & fingers with great
physical effort. This takes about 15 minutes. The icon is
very sticky and very shiny. It is turned to the wall.
Each 15 minutes thereafter: the icon is brushed as
described above, and then turned to the wall.
4:00: The brushing stops. The varnishing is complete except
for the overnight drying.