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Barnett Et Al 2006 - Colour and Art. A Brief History of Pigments.
Barnett Et Al 2006 - Colour and Art. A Brief History of Pigments.
Abstract
Human beings have had an inherent urge to leave their mark in the form of works of art since prehistoric times. This has driven
the quest for new and better pigments with which to make paints. This paper describes the origins and composition of earliest earth
pigments used by primitive man to decorate the walls of caves through to the synthetic pigments developed in more recent times.
Despite modern technology, the artist’s palette remains a mixture of the pigments used by cave artists, natural pigments used in the
middle ages, and modern organic compounds.
r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
0030-3992/$ - see front matter r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.optlastec.2005.06.005
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446 J.R. Barnett et al. / Optics & Laser Technology 38 (2006) 445–453
3. The Egyptians
of wood called ‘‘brazil’’. The country was named after from the lazulite crystals. The pigment produced from
the wood as it was a rich source of dyewoods capable of these pure crystals was light-fast. The combination of
producing the pigment. ‘‘Brazil’’ derives from the same the price of the semi-precious stones and the cost of the
root as ‘‘brazier’’ and is a reference to the red glow of process meant that ultramarine was more expensive than
the coals in the fire. The wood was powdered and gold.
steeped in lye (a solution of potassium carbonate), when Malachite and verdigris were used as greens, although
the colour turns an orange red. Adding alum to the lye others were added, including sap green, which was made
caused the pigment to precipitate. from the berries of Rhamnus (buckthorn). This was
Madder, derived from the root of Rubea tinctorum, used, mixed with alum, to improve the colour of
which contains alizarine, was also developed in the verdigris. There are also old recipes for making greens
middle ages. At the time, however, the brazil reds were from a variety of other plants and it is likely that
regarded as superior and were more widely used [7]. chlorophyll was the main pigmenting agent [7].
In addition to azurite, which had been used as a blue Orpiment and ochres continued to be used for yellow,
since the time of the ancient Egyptians, by far the most although other exotic sources were used, including bile
important blue in the middle ages was ultramarine. The from the gall bladders of fish and other animals.
name may reflect the strong blueness of the pigment, Gallstones were also a source of yellow.
meaning that its colour was bluer than that of the sea, Naples yellow was developed during the renaissance,
although it has been interpreted as meaning coming although it has been claimed that it was present on tiles
‘‘across the seas’’ or imported [7]. It was made by in Babylon from 16th century BC [4]. This is an opaque
grinding the semi-precious mineral lapis lazuli, a rock pigment comprised of lead antimonate (Pb(SbO3)2
containing the mineral lazulite, and was used in or PbSbO4), the natural mineral bindheimite. It was
Afghanistan in the sixth century AD (Fig. 7). Lazulite manufactured during the renaissance by heating a
is a complex sulphur-containing aluminium silicate lead compound such as the oxide or nitrate with an
(Na8–10Al6Si6O24S2–4). During the renaissance, the antimony compound (oxide or sulphide), or potassium
colour blue was associated with purity and ultramarine antimonate.
was used to striking effect in paintings of the Virgin Gold substitutes were also used to reduce the cost of
Mary, when she was almost invariably depicted wearing gilding in paintings. Tin sulphide was one such
ultramarine blue garments. The high price of the substitute which was known as mosaic gold and came
pigment also meant that its use was appropriate in the into use in the early 15th century when it was called
case of a noble subject such as the mother of Christ. This color purpurinus. Other substitutes included a mixture of
colour therefore best characterises the paintings of that egg yolk and mercury, to which was added saffron, bile
time. The lapis lazuli stone was ground, then mixed with or an extract from the greater celandine, Cheladonium
wax and kneaded in a lye bath to separate the impurities majus.
light-fast pigments. New hues have expanded the palette water evaporated bound the pigment to the substrate.
for water colourists and painters in oils and acrylics in The tendency of a thick layer of such paint to crack
terms of increased transparency, mixing or glazing. Like meant that it was essential to apply the paint in thin
the textile industry in the 19th century, the car industry layers or glazes, and is the reason for the highly finished
in the late 20th century became a major force for appearance of mediaeval paintings. In the 15th century
improvement of pigments. The painted surface of cars is egg began to be replaced by walnut or linseed oil as
exposed to extreme weather conditions and the pigments media. These dried more slowly than tempera and meant
used in the colours need to be light-fast. A large variety that the paint was more versatile.
of pigments are also demanded by manufacturers. This From the early 18th century colourmen appeared on
has led to spin-off benefits for artists. the scene to provide artists with ready-made paints.
Water colour painting also became a fashionable
pastime among the well off. In 1766 William Reeves
7. Manufacture of pigments set up in business supplying water colour cakes. Reeves’
water colours were a significant improvement on those
The earth pigments used by primitive humans were of his competitors as his discovery that the addition of
found as clays which could have been kneaded and honey to the colours prevented the cakes from cracking
shaped into ‘‘crayons’’ for use in painting and drawing. in storage. In 1783 the wigmakers Thomas and Richard
Such artefacts have been collected, for example, from Rowney abandoned the declining wig trade and began
Valle Caminica in Italy [1] and in the Lascaux caves [3]. preparing and selling artist’s colours. Constable and
It is clear, however, that there were early improvements Turner were among the famous artists they supplied
to the simple mixture of coloured clay and water, to with materials. A notable contribution by this company
produce paints with improved properties. Analysis of was the development of the first acrylic paints in the UK
the pigments from the caves at Niaux in the Pyranees in 1963.
showed that two distinct recipes were used for making The company of Winsor & Newton was founded in
up the paint, which included biotite, potassium feldspar 1832 by William Winsor, a colour chemist and
or talcum. These would have acted as what are now accomplished artist, and Henry Newton, a professional
called ‘‘extenders’’ or binders’’, making the pigment go artist. This combination of talents meant they were able
further and improving its adhesive properties [9]. to bring a scientific approach to the development of
For much of recorded history, artists or their pigments while being aware of the needs of the artist.
apprentices prepared their own pigments from the raw Their development of Chinese white, the first opaque
materials, which were mainly the minerals described white water colour in 1834, has already been mentioned.
above. The raw material was ground to a powder and, if In 1835 they also produced the first moist water colours
necessary, the pigment was extracted in processes which (as opposed to dry block colours) by adding glycerine,
are essentially unchanged to this day. Well into the 19th then developing first glass syringes (1840) and then
century, the paint boxes of artists, like those of Turner, collapsible metal tubes with screw caps (1842) in which
which have been preserved in various museums contain to sell them. In 1862 they introduced Aureolin yellow
jars of powdered pigment which would be mixed with a into the UK followed by Winsor yellow in 1899.
medium to make a workable paint that would bind to a Designers’ gouache paints were produced in 1937.
substrate. New colours continue to be added to those available
Winsor & Newton still make Rose Madder in the to artists. As recently as 1996, Winsor & Newton
traditional way, processing the roots to extract the dye. produced 35 new watercolours followed in 2005 by a
It is made into a ‘‘lake’’ by precipitating the dye onto a further 15.
particulate material such as alumina. The material is
filtered and dried to produce a fine powder pigment. All
equipment used is made of wood or stoneware to avoid 8. Pigments used today
unwanted reactions with the dye, which might affect the
pigment quality. Pigment and binder are then combined Although the focus of this paper has tended to be
in a mortar and the mixture milled, sometimes for UK-oriented, reflecting the input of material by Winsor
several days to ensure even pigment dispersion and that & Newton, the development of pigments has been, as we
the pigment granules are as small as possible. This have tried to indicate, an international activity. One of
intensifies the colour as perceived in the painting. the most prolific areas of publishing in colour is aimed
The artists of ancient Egypt and Rome mixed their at artists and those who appreciate art, a market which
pigments with media such as wax, egg or tree resin. By is truly international. A typical selection of recent
the 13th century, egg tempera painting, in which the publications [10–13] includes three published in North
pigment was mixed with water and egg before applica- America. For example, Ames’s ‘‘Color Theory Made
tion, was well established. The dried protein left after the Easy’’[10], in an American context, involves descriptions
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J.R. Barnett et al. / Optics & Laser Technology 38 (2006) 445–453 453
of commercial products from what is necessarily a pigments’’. The authors thank Winsor & Newton for
limited number of manufacturers, in which Winsor & supplying historical information and Simon Jennings for
Newton, a British manufacturer, is prominent. kind permission to use material from ‘‘Collins Artists
Artists today use a mixture of those modern synthetic Colour Manual’’ [15].
organic pigments which have high permanence and
intensity, and natural organic pigments and inorganic
pigments which have stood the test of time. The
pigments may be divided into earth, traditional and References
modern colours [14]. In the first group are the ochres,
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quinacridones, perylenes and pyrroles. Thus the relative [3] Kritzon C. How to paint a mammoth. Bull.Primitive Technol.
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[10] Ames J. Color theory made easy. New York: Watson-Guptill
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Acknowledgements New York: Barron’s; 2002.
[13] Sidaway I. Color mixing bible. Toronto: Elan Press; 2002.
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This paper is an expanded version of the presentation artist’s colour manual. Harper Collins; 2003. p. 12–4.
at the Colour and Design Conference by Sarah Miller of [15] Jennings S. Collins artist’s colour manual. Harper Collins; 2003
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