Pigments

This article explores the history, source, chemical composition, properties, compatibility, permanence, and toxicity of the pigments Ultramarine Violet (PV 15) and Ultramarine Blue (PB 29) in painting...

Cadmium sulfide compounds form a significant group of yellow to red pigments. The discovery of cadmium began with the medicinal use of another element, zinc. The very property that led to the condemnation of zinc white, which ultimately brought about the discovery of cadmium, is the yellow color, now most frequently used in paint, ceramics, glass, and plastics...

Azurite is composed of mineral basic carbonate of copper, found in many parts of the world in the upper oxidized portions of copper ore deposits. Azurite varies in masstone color from deep blue to pale blue with a greenish undertone depending on such factors as the purity of the mineral and the grade (particle size) of the pigment. Azurite was the most important blue pigment in European painting throughout the middle ages and Renaissance...

One way Venetian artists developed color in their paintings was to apply multiple thin, translucent layers that blend color in luminous, vibrant ways. Lomazzo described it in his treatise as painting “transparently.” This method of color mixing, known today as glazing, relies on being able to paint translucently, smoothly, and thinly. Glazes rely on achieving transparency which is antithetical to the opacity or hiding power of pigments. Venetian artists’ innovative use of materials aloe them to create remarkable glazes that are more complex than previously supposed by art historians...

Orpiment is a rich lemon or canary yellow with fair covering power and good chemical stability as a pigment. It is designated as brilliant yellow in Munsell notation 4.4Y 8.7/8.9. It is an arsenic sulfide mineral that occurs naturally in small deposits as a product of hydrothermal veins, hot spring deposits, and volcanic sublimation, although nowadays, it can be easily obtained artificially. The arsenic content makes it toxic, although it was also used in medicine, cosmetics, and as a biocide in ancient times...

Cinnabar has been mined and used as a precious resource by many cultures around the globe since at least the tenth millennium B.C. Cinnabar is also known as “vermilion.” The two terms are used interchangeably by both ancient authors and modern scholars because chemically, the two substances are the same, which is red mercuric sulfide (HgS). But “cinnabar” refers to the mineral, while “vermilion” is the synthetic pigment. Until the discovery of cadmium red in the early twentieth century, vermilion was the most widely used red pigment around the globe and the most vibrant red...

Lead white is the most important white pigment used in painting throughout history. It was known to the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans and was commonly used in the preparation of ointments and plasters, as well as cosmetics. It was first identified in the literature as a pigment by Pliny, who mentions it, among other colors, as used by the ancients to paint ships...

Italy is a land of painters and popes, pasta and polenta, and medieval castles and alpine mountains. Most importantly, it is the land of romance. Italy is also a land rich in minerals from which many different colored pigments have historically been used in some of the world’s most important works of art. This article examines a few of the many earth colors available from Italy by Natural Pigments...

Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, known as Raphael, was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired worldwide for its form, composition, and visual achievement of the Neoplatonic ideal of the human form. This article discusses his painting materials, such as supports, grounds, imprimatura, binders, pigments, and his use of glass powder...

Pearlescent pigments are usually mica platelets, synthetic or natural that have been coated with titanium dioxide, iron oxide, or another metal oxide. Platelets of coated mica can vary in size, shape, and thickness. The degree of these characteristics and the thickness of the coating determine the color and appearance of the pigment. Additionally, thickness and the coarseness of the particles determine the sparkle...

When we think of Mars, we think of the red planet angrily growling at us in the night sky. Its earthy red color is linked to blood and the Greek god of wars. The planet appears distant and non-threatening to us. But Mars is closer than you think. And it is in more colors than red. Mars is a group of synthetic iron oxide colors in a range from orange-red to violet, yellow, brown, and black. The variations of the iron oxide pigments are distinguished by a color descriptor, i.e., ‘Mars red’. Read the article for the complete story of Mars colors...

White pigments consist of natural or synthetic inorganic pigments. Inorganic pigments are easier to disperse in most paint vehicles than organic pigments. Nevertheless, many white pigments undergo treatment to improve their dispersibility, lightfastness, and weather resistance.  White pigments are used for white colors, tinting colors, and covering tones in paint...