will darken if mixed with sulphur, so
should not be used in conjunction
with the cadmium pigments or with
French ultramarine. Lead white is
the fastest drying of all the whites.
In Europe, the nineteenth century
advances in the science of chemistry
and some hitherto undiscovered
pigments facilitated the creation of
some wonderful new and permanent
colours. The opening up of the
world through maritime exploration
with Asia and the Americas meant
the availability of minerals such as
Cobalt , Zinc, Chrome and Metallic
Cadmium. As we have seen, many
eastern countries had developed
their own pallet of pigments, and
some were very advanced.
A German chemist, Margraaf, is
thought to have discovered zinc white
in 1746. Until this time, the only white
pigments available had been based
on white lead, which was particularly
toxic. The original supplies for zinc
white came from China and South
East Asia, but in the late eighteenth
century, large deposits were found in
Europe and more local large-scale
production began. Titanium dioxide
was discovered in 1821 but it was not
until 1916 that it became commercially
available. Titanium white is unique in
that it is neither ‘warm’ nor ‘cool’ and
is very useful for an artist’s pallet.
Lamp black, also known as
Carbon black or Vegetable black,
was produced originally by burningvegetable oils. One of the most
ancient pigments, it was the black
pigment used in Egyptian wall
murals, and decorations. Vine black
was also a very old form of black
pigment, produced by burning vine
stems; this pigment has a bluish
black colour. It is a very slow drying
oil pigment and used under another
pigment layer, will create drying
cracks. Ivory black or Bone black
was invented by the Romans. For
higher grades of pigment, ivory was
burned to create a higher carbon
content.For lower grades, animal
bones were used. It is this black
that was used for the backgrounds
for Rembrandt‘s paintings. A
twentieth century pigment is Mars
Black. It is the only black pigment
which is considered non-toxic.
Mars Black dries readily and forms
a flexible surface. It is opaque
with a warm brown undertone.
There are hundreds of pigments
commercially available to artists
at specialist art supply shops.
With the right information, it is
possible to create your own
colours from scratch by adding
pigments to oil and suspension
media. It’s a great way to save
money on paints, especially if you
are painting larger works. Follow
the instructions given by the art
supply shop carefully, and use
good health and safety practices,
including a mask and gloves. nSpecial thanks to
Langridge Artist Colours
http://www.langridgecolours.com
For supplying the photographs“With the right
information, it is
possible to create
your own colours
from scratch by
adding pigments to
oil and suspension
media. It’s a great
way to save money
on paints, especially
if you are painting
larger works.”Feature