What role does linseed oil play in the 'viscosity printing' technique used for "Whirlpool"?

It is mixed with colors in varied concentrations to control blending

Answer: It is mixed with colors in varied concentrations to control blending
Linseed oil is mixed with colors in varied concentrations in the 'viscosity printing' technique to control blending and ensure that colors do not run into each other.

Whirlpool was a print made by India’s celebrated printmaker Krishna Reddy in 1963. It is a captivating composition created out of various shades of blues. Each colour blends into the other to create a powerful web of design. It is the result of a new technique in printmaking that he developed along with a well-known printmaker, Stanley William Hayter, in the famous studio called ‘Atelier 17’. This method came to be known as ‘viscosity printing’, in which different colours are applied on the same metal printing plate. Each colour is mixed with linseed oil in varied concentration to ensure that colours do not run into each other. The print’s subject matter, dealing with water current, aptly captures the technique based on understanding how water and oil behave with each other. This celebrated print is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, USA.