White spirit (AU, UK and Ireland) or mineral spirits (US, Canada), also known as mineral turpentine (AU/NZ), turpentine substitute, and petroleum spirits, is a petroleum-derived clear liquid used as a common organic solvent in painting. There are also terms for specific kinds of white spirit, including Stoddard solvent and solvent naphtha (petroleum). White spirit is often used as a paint thinner, or as a component thereof, though paint thinner is a broader category of solvent. Odorless mineral spirits (OMS) have been refined to remove the more toxic aromatic compounds, and are recommended for applications such as oil painting.
A 2-litre (3.5 imp pt) container of white spirit
Oil painting is a painting method involving the procedure of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on canvas, wood panel or copper for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of the world. The advantages of oil for painting images include "greater flexibility, richer and denser colour, the use of layers, and a wider range from light to dark". But the process is slower, especially when one layer of paint needs to be allowed to dry before another is applied.
Mona Lisa was created by Leonardo da Vinci using oil paints during the Renaissance period in the 15th century.
Thin blade used for the application or removal of paint. Can also be used to create a mixture of various pigments.
A section of the earliest discovered oil paintings (~ 650AD) depicting buddhist imagery in Bamiyan, Afghanistan
A detail from the oldest oil paintings in the world (~ 650 AD), a series of Buddhist murals created in Bamiyan, Afghanistan