Back to:Oil colours

MUSSINI®

Finest artists’ resin-oil colours (Series 10) 

  • Worldwide unique
  • 108 colours of highest brilliance: 60single pigment colours, 44 precious, transparent colours, unique special colour shades
  • Excellent mixing results with any other oil paint
  • Pleasant, modest soft resinous odor
  • Well-balanced and tension-free drying process

140 years of MUSSINI®

With the historical founding product of the Schmincke company from 1881, oil painters receive a unique resin-oil colour based on recipes of old masters. These recipes are based on the rich experience of Professor Cesare Mussini, who at that time worked at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. Countless masterpieces prove the advantages of this artists' colour: the high luminosity and the greatest possible lightfastness of the colours, the many glazing colours and the special light refraction properties of the colours resulting from the resin components make MUSSINI® a treasure among artists' paints.

A unique combination of painting oils and natural resin

Based on many decades of scientific experience, Schmincke combines a variety of painting oils such as linseed, safflower, and walnut oil with dissolved dammar natural resin. The amount of dissolved dammar resin to be added depends on the oil requirements of the respective pigment, so that each of the 108 colours has an individually balanced recipe.

Perfect mixability with all oil colors

Due to the well-balanced recipe based on selected painting oils, MUSSINI® is not a closed system despite the resin content - on the contrary: All colours can be mixed and combined excellently and without any additional painting mediums even with "normal" oil colours! This makes it easy for oil painters: existing oil colours can be combined with MUSSINI® colours and therefore the own palette can be upgraded. The selection of precious glazing colours as well as unique colours such as Caesar purple, Atrament or Byzantine blue will make expert painters rave.

Precious glazing colours

With the finest processing of precious glazing pigments, Schmincke creates a comprehensive range of transparent colours for the special glazing technique. The 44 glazing colours, including famous colours such as Florentine red or Transparent oriental blue, are characterized by the highest brilliance and luminosity as well as a very special and unique depth light-effect.

Harmonious drying

The unique formulation of MUSSINI® results in a special harmonious drying behaviour: The drying process, which initially takes place on the surface by oxygen absorption of the chemically drying oils, leads to an increase in volume. This is largely compensated by the solvent content of the dammar resin solution evaporating from the inside. This in turn allows oxygen to penetrate more easily into the deep layers of the colours and results in a tension-free, more harmonious deep and surface drying.

 

Individual drying times

The time required for a painting layer to dry is as individual as the colours in the MUSSINI® series. As the drying time depends essentially on four factors, the oils and pigments, each according to type and quantity, as well as the thickness of the paint layer and the temperature during drying, a "drying time scale (DTS)" with three drying categories was defined. Each colour in the MUSSINI® range is assigned to one of the three categories, which makes it easier for oil painters to better estimate the respective drying times of the colour and thus to harmonise the painting flow even better.

Quality since 1881

With the multitude of colouristic treasures, the well-balanced drying properties, a guarantee for long-lasting colour layers and the pleasant, modest soft resinous odor, MUSSINI® offers artists worldwide unique and finest resin-oil colours of the highest quality!

Drying time scale (DTS)

The drying time scale indicates when a paint layer of 30µm (or comparatively a thin brushstroke) of a colour on canvas has dried at room temperature (23°C/ 73°F). With this layer thickness, it can be assumed that the colour layer has dried through both on the surface and in the layer. Please note that the thicker a paint application, the longer the drying times.

Please note: The information on the various drying times via the drying time scale can only be found in the MUSSINI® brochure. This information is not shown on the label.

MUSSINI® Flake white substitute (10 101)

Flake white substitute is a replacement of the historical, but poisonous colour Chremnitz or lead white. Instead of lead white, MUSSINI® Flake white substitute contains a combination of the pigments titanium white and zinc white, formulated with safflower oil of a particularly pure and light quality as well as dammar resin. MUSSINI® Flake white substitute corresponds mainly to the historical colour both visually and in terms of painting technique and shows a slightly warm, semi-opaque white tone. Apart from its pure use, for example in portrait painting, it is also used to lighten colours without significantly changing their colour character. MUSSINI® Flake white substitute has a slightly lower opacity and brightening power than titanium white. When mixed with other oil colours, it also accelerates drying and stabilizes the film, like the historical Chremnitz white.

SCHMINCKE MEDIA: How Schmincke oil colours are made

Colours

Cesare Mussini (1804 - 1879)

Self-portrait
Professor at the Academy of Fine Arts, Florence. Master painter and keeper of the precious resin-oil recipes.

MUSSINI tubes over the years
MUSSINI tubes over the years