Here you will find answers to your top 5 burning questions on R&F Pigment Sticks®. From how to store your paint, to drying times, working with tube oil paint and Blending Medium, and whether you need to varnish, this post is packed with info.

For our inaugural Artist Insights column, we are joined by Lorraine Glessner who highlights her go-to colors and unpacks why these paints are always in her palette.

We chatted with R&F founder Richard Frumess about Mars pigments and, more specifically, the Mars paints in R&F’s color line: Mars Yellow (Light and Deep), Mars Orange, Mars Red, Mars Violet, and Mars Black. These colors can often be overlooked in favor of their brighter, splashier neighbors, but the Mars family has a lot to offer the painter who prefers nuance.

Miriam Hoffmann is a contemporary mixed-media portrait artist who lives and works in Atlanta, GA. She taught herself to paint in 2020 after taking an online course. We spoke with Miriam recently about how she works with R&F Pigment Sticks®, what her studio day looks like, and why she is drawn to portraiture.

Many of you have written to inquire: can R&F Drawing Oils™ be used on paper? The quick answer is yes; you can use R&F Drawing Oils™ on paper. However, as we note in our literature, on our website, and on color set packaging, if an artist is concerned with the long-term archival stability of their artwork, we recommend preparing the surface with a size and gesso or choosing a paper specifically made for oil applications. If an artist is playing, sketching for their own enjoyment without concerns for long-term archival stability, then any paper or sketchbook will work just fine.

R&F is pleased to introduce the newest addition to our paint line - R&F Drawing Oils™. Taking inspiration from our Pigment Sticks®, Drawing Oils™ offer a smooth & portable drawing experience with a harder formulation (less oil, more wax). We’ve received many questions about our Drawing Oils™, so we put together a blog post to address your top five questions.

We sat down with R&F founder Richard Frumess recently for another edition of Ask Richard, our segment where we pick his brain on color, paintmaking, and other esoteric art-related questions. In this illuminating conversation, we chatted about the 19 different colors in R&F’s paint lines that are categorized as Complex Earths.

Andrea Carracedo was born in Comillas, in the northern coast of Spain, and currently based in Banyoles, Catalonia. Inspired by dramatic landscapes, colors and light, she paints encaustic artworks, often using a highly textured accretion technique. Andrea is a Core Artist Instructor for R&F Handmade Paints and a member of International Encaustic Artists. This year Andrea is hosting the first encaustic retreat in Spain, between Banyoles and Girona, Catalonia.

Originally from the UK, Nicola Bennett is based in the South Island of New Zealand. She draws inspiration from chefs and local farms to create paintings that celebrate the sensory intricacies of cooking with everyday ingredients. Nicola's formal training includes a BFA from Leeds in the UK and an MFA from Whitecliffe College of Arts and Design. We spoke with Nicola recently about the relationship between food and art, her favorite color, and painting intuitively.

We’re back with another edition of Notes On Color - our platform for sharing our thoughts on color. Meet Phthalo Blue, Phthalo Turquoise, and Phthalo Green. Don’t be fooled by their dark top tones. These colors pack a punch.

Jenny Nelson is a painter and arts educator. She has taught classes and workshops at Truro Center for the Arts, Provincetown Art Association and Museum, Woodstock School of Art, and the Nantucket Artists Association, among others. We spoke with Jenny recently about finding shapes, the role intuition plays in her work, and how she navigates challenges in the studio.

At Brown Pink, artists can design their own residency taking advantage of the fully stocked studio; curated art collection; and spacious, thoughtfully arranged living quarters to book a week-long stay.

R&F Artist Instructor Joanna Kidney was born in Dublin and is based in County Wicklow, Ireland. Her practice considers the immensity and the mystery of being human. It is a web of interrelated ideas around consciousness, perception, temporality and holism. Through drawing, painting and installation, her work offers open, poetic prompts, and a contemplative space.

We chatted recently with 2023 artist-in-residence Henry Curchod about his time at Brown Pink in August. He was honest about both the challenges and benefits of solitude, and of doing an artist residency. We found the conversation interesting and hope you do too.

Kelly Milukas began as a sculptor and expanded to work in a range of media including watercolor, photography, cast resin, pastel, and encaustic. Many of her projects include a focus on the intersection of creativity and science, such as her nationally exhibited “Keys to the Cures” series.

The number one question we get at R&F on the daily is - “How long do Pigment Sticks® take to dry?” We answer as best we can, pointing out that drying times are affected by a number of factors including: how thickly the paint is applied, the absorbency of the surface, the ambient temperature, exposure to light, and even the surrounding colors.

Lora Murphy was born in Ireland and educated in Ireland, the United States, and Italy. Trained as an oil painter, she now works primarily in encaustic and mixed media, describing her inspiration as stemming from “what drives us, as human beings, and our consciousness.” Her work is infused with the connection she feels to her female ancestors and a desire to honor their struggle. It is often layered with symbolism that draws upon her studies in Jungian and archetypal psychology and alchemy.

This week we feature artist Mike Tapogna. Mike’s work is vibrant and driven by color. In his artist statement he describes his process as one of change and discovery. “Consciously or otherwise, I paint for a balance between subject and surface. Through addition, deletion and sometimes total destruction of the painted canvas, I am able to find new and unexpected possibilities.”

R&F Blending Medium is essentially Pigment Stick® without the pigment. It is ideal for glazing colors, can be worked directly into a color to increase the color's transparency, or used to blend colors together on the surface. R&F Blending Medium with Drier contains a small amount of Cobalt Manganese drier to speed up drying time. The use of a drier can affect color, so it is best used under a layer of Pigment Stick®.

We’re kicking off a “how to” series with a guest blog by R&F Core Instructor Julie Snidle. Julie has been working with wax-based media since 2004. An artist with both classroom teaching experience and a corporate training background, Julie has taught at Penland School of Craft and teaches workshops nationwide. Her work has received numerous awards and can be found in private collections and public spaces.