Preamble
This is the forty-eigth post in a new Art Resource series that specifically focuses on techniques used in creating artworks. For your convenience I have listed all the posts in this new series below:
Drawing Art
Painting Art - Part I
Painting Art - Part II
Painting Art - Part III
Painting Art - Part IV
Painting Art - Part V
Painting Art - Part VI
Home-Made Painting Art Materials
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part I
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part II
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part III
Historical Notes on Art - Part I
Historical Notes on Art - Part II
Historical Notes on Art - Part III
Historical Notes on Art - Part IV
Historical Notes on Art - Part V
Tempera Painting
Oil Painting - Part I
Oil Painting - Part II
Oil Painting - Part III
Oil Painting - Part IV
Oil Painting - Part V
Oil Painting - Part VI
Pigments
Classification of Pigments - Part I
Classification of Pigments - Part II
Classification of Pigments - Part III
Pigments for Oil Painting
Pigments for Water Color
Pigments for Tempera Painting
Pigments for Pastel
Japanese Pigments
Pigments for Fresco Painting - Part I
Pigments for Fresco Painting - Part II
Selected Fresco Palette for Permanent Frescoes
Properties of Pigments in Common Use
Blue Pigments - Part I
Blue Pigments - Part II
Blue Pigments - Part III
Green Pigments - Part I
Green Pigments - Part II
Red Pigments - Part I
Red Pigments - Part II
Yellow Pigments - Part I
Yellow Pigments - Part II
Brown and Violet Pigments
Black Pigments
White Pigments - Part I
There have been another one hundred and thirteen posts in a previous Art Resource series that have focused on the following topics:
(i) Units used in dyeing and printing of fabrics;
(ii) Occupational, health & safety issues in an art studio;
(iii) Color theories and color schemes;
(iv) Optical properties of fiber materials;
(v) General properties of fiber polymers and fibers - Part I to Part V;
(vi) Protein fibers;
(vii) Natural and man-made cellulosic fibers;
(viii) Fiber blends and melt spun fibers;
(ix) Fabric construction;
(x) Techniques and woven fibers;
(xi) Basic and figured weaves;
(xii) Pile, woven and knot pile fabrics;
(xiii) Durable press and wash-and-wear finishes;
(xvi) Classification of dyes and dye blends;
(xv) The general theory of printing.
To access any of the above resources, please click on the following link - Units Used in Dyeing and Printing of Fabrics. This link will highlight all of the one hundred and thirteen posts in the previous a are eight data bases on this blogspot, namely, the Glossary of Cultural and Architectural Terms, Timelines of Fabrics, Dyes and Other Stuff, A Fashion Data Base, the Glossary of Colors, Dyes, Inks, Pigments and Resins, the Glossary of Fabrics, Fibers, Finishes, Garments and Yarns, Glossary of Art, Artists, Art Motifs and Art Movements, Glossary of Paper, Photography, Printing, Prints and Publication Terms and the Glossary of Scientific Terms. All data bases in the future will be updated from time-to-time.
If you find any post on this blog site useful, you can save it or copy and paste it into your own "Word" document for your future reference. For example, Safari allows you to save a post (e.g. click on "File", click on "Print" and release, click on "PDF" and then click on "Save As" and release - and a PDF should appear where you have stored it). Safari also allows you to mail a post to a friend (click on "File", and then point cursor to "Mail Contents On This Page" and release). Either way, this or other posts on this site may be a useful Art Resource for you.
The new Art Resource series will be the first post in each calendar month. Remember - these Art Resource posts span information that will be useful for a home hobbyist to that required by a final year University Fine-Art student and so undoubtedly, some parts of any Art Resource post may appear far too technical for your needs (skip those mind boggling parts) and in other parts, it may be too simplistic with respect to your level of knowledge (ditto the skip). The trade-off between these two extremes will mean that Art Resource posts will be hopefully useful in parts to most, but unfortunately may not be satisfying to all!
White Pigments - Part I [1]
Some classifications of white pigments include several of the material grouped separately in this series of posts under the heading of 'Inert Pigments.' Under the present heading, only those pigments which retain their color and opacity when in ground oil are listed.
White lead is one of the earliest artificially manufactured pigments recorded; it was employed in China as far back as we have any history of the materials of Chinese paintings, and was used in the earliest periods of European civilization. It was used in a variety of products.
The earliest use of lead white (LW) in different regions.
World's earliest synthetic white lead cosmetics found in China.
White lead has very desirable properties when ground in oil: it has the lowest oil absorption of all white pigments. It unites with oil to form, a buttery paste, which has fine brushing qualities, and it is noted for its opacity or hiding power and its pleasing tonal characteristics.
White Lead Crystals.
White lead produces paint films of great durability. Its two defects are its toxic nature (see future posts), and the fact that the surface of white lead paint films is liable to turn dark brown, when acted upon by air, which is polluted with sulphur dioxide fumes. The latter defect is of slight consequence in oil paintings, where the pigment is usually well protected and locked in by oils and varnishes, or in varnished tempera paintings, or in undercoats; but it definitely precludes the use of white lead in all the other artistic painting media.
Out of the shadows: chiaroscuro painting restoration (6th June 2022).
Due to the selective use of light, many paintings that use chiaroscuro have large areas of flat, dark pigment. This presents a challenge for care and restoration as it presents an easily disturbed shadow that does not easily hide disturbances in the same way a busy, colorful painting would. Secondly, dark pigments from the late 18th century and early 19th century often included a tar-like additive called bitumen, a substance that does not age well and may cause major visual concerns.
White lead brushes out poorly in most water mediums. Should an oil painting be affected by sulphur, as described above, the remedy is quite simple which will be discussed in a future post. However, the only conditions under which this darkening would be likely to occur would be such as are found in kitchens, stables, industrial or factory buildings, and outdoors in localities where soft coal is burned. Artistic oil paintings are not usually exposed to such conditions. Under the conditions which prevail in easel painting, the best white leads in oil, will not react with any of the approved permanent pigments, even those which contain combined sulphur, provided these are of high quality.
The best grade of White Lead is usually known to artists as Flake White, a corroded basic lead carbonate made by what is known as the old Dutch process, though essentially this process is the same as that described by Theophrastus and used in ancient Rome and Greece.
Flake White.
The number of modern lead compounds made and used industrially under the name 'White Lead' is large. All are inferior to 'Flake White'; basic sulfate and silicate white leads are used because of their lower costs. Cremnitz White, a nineteenth-century develpment, is made by the modification of the process, which allows it to be more carefully controlled; it is a somewhat purer, a more brilliant white, but it has less opacity.
Cremnitz White in Walnut oil.
Various authorities rate one slightly above the other; for artists' use, both are superior to the rest of the industrial white lead pigments. The basic raw material of the Dutch process, or flake white, is metallic lead; that of Cremnitz White is litharge. Fortunately, all these distinctions were extremely minor, for it is doubtful whether much if any true Cremnitz White has been sold to artists in recent times, despite the continued use of this name. Either Flake or Cremnitz White can be taken to mean the highest quality basic lead carbonate for artists' use.
It is also doubtful whether any manufacturers make a distinction between the various kinds of White Lead in artists' oil colors; the differences are small enough that if a pure basic lead carbonate with best pigment properties is selected, the product will be satisfactory. Much White Lead in oil is made by blending more than one variety.
White Lead has always been the basis or principle pigment for oil painting. Its properties in oil, as regards to grinding, drying, brushing, and other manipulations, and its opacity, flexibility, and durability are so superior to those of other whites and, in fact, most other pigments, that it is not only a standard of comparison by which the physical properties of other pigments are judged, but it is beyond some of the rules and restrictions which govern the correct application of colors. Old portraits, which have been thinly painted except in the faces, where a heavier coat of paint consisting of Flake White has been used, are often found to have disintegrated except for their faces, which are in perfect condition; and it is not uncommon to find other old paintings in which white lead areas, thin or thick, have outlived both impasto and very thin coats of other colors.
A 16th century painting. Mary Magdalene with an Ointment Jar was purchased at auction with an attribution to the Master of the Mansi Magdalene (1490-1530). The long history of the painting had seen it undergo alterations and historic restoration campaigns that were not completed to a safe 21st century standard until recently.
The success of the oil painting technique as a standard easel painting process for several hundred years has been based largely upon the use of this pigment, and its exclusion from many latter-day palettes has resulted in a lowering of some of the good qualities of the technique. Because of these points and because none of our other whites is entirely perfect in oil, Flake White still remains in use as a pigment for oil painting, despite the claims of zinc and titanium whites.
Reference:
[1] The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques, R. Mayer (ed. E. Smith) 4th Edition, Faber and Faber, London (1981).
This is the forty-eigth post in a new Art Resource series that specifically focuses on techniques used in creating artworks. For your convenience I have listed all the posts in this new series below:
Drawing Art
Painting Art - Part I
Painting Art - Part II
Painting Art - Part III
Painting Art - Part IV
Painting Art - Part V
Painting Art - Part VI
Home-Made Painting Art Materials
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part I
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part II
Quality in Ready-Made Artists' Supplies - Part III
Historical Notes on Art - Part I
Historical Notes on Art - Part II
Historical Notes on Art - Part III
Historical Notes on Art - Part IV
Historical Notes on Art - Part V
Tempera Painting
Oil Painting - Part I
Oil Painting - Part II
Oil Painting - Part III
Oil Painting - Part IV
Oil Painting - Part V
Oil Painting - Part VI
Pigments
Classification of Pigments - Part I
Classification of Pigments - Part II
Classification of Pigments - Part III
Pigments for Oil Painting
Pigments for Water Color
Pigments for Tempera Painting
Pigments for Pastel
Japanese Pigments
Pigments for Fresco Painting - Part I
Pigments for Fresco Painting - Part II
Selected Fresco Palette for Permanent Frescoes
Properties of Pigments in Common Use
Blue Pigments - Part I
Blue Pigments - Part II
Blue Pigments - Part III
Green Pigments - Part I
Green Pigments - Part II
Red Pigments - Part I
Red Pigments - Part II
Yellow Pigments - Part I
Yellow Pigments - Part II
Brown and Violet Pigments
Black Pigments
White Pigments - Part I
There have been another one hundred and thirteen posts in a previous Art Resource series that have focused on the following topics:
(i) Units used in dyeing and printing of fabrics;
(ii) Occupational, health & safety issues in an art studio;
(iii) Color theories and color schemes;
(iv) Optical properties of fiber materials;
(v) General properties of fiber polymers and fibers - Part I to Part V;
(vi) Protein fibers;
(vii) Natural and man-made cellulosic fibers;
(viii) Fiber blends and melt spun fibers;
(ix) Fabric construction;
(x) Techniques and woven fibers;
(xi) Basic and figured weaves;
(xii) Pile, woven and knot pile fabrics;
(xiii) Durable press and wash-and-wear finishes;
(xvi) Classification of dyes and dye blends;
(xv) The general theory of printing.
To access any of the above resources, please click on the following link - Units Used in Dyeing and Printing of Fabrics. This link will highlight all of the one hundred and thirteen posts in the previous a are eight data bases on this blogspot, namely, the Glossary of Cultural and Architectural Terms, Timelines of Fabrics, Dyes and Other Stuff, A Fashion Data Base, the Glossary of Colors, Dyes, Inks, Pigments and Resins, the Glossary of Fabrics, Fibers, Finishes, Garments and Yarns, Glossary of Art, Artists, Art Motifs and Art Movements, Glossary of Paper, Photography, Printing, Prints and Publication Terms and the Glossary of Scientific Terms. All data bases in the future will be updated from time-to-time.
If you find any post on this blog site useful, you can save it or copy and paste it into your own "Word" document for your future reference. For example, Safari allows you to save a post (e.g. click on "File", click on "Print" and release, click on "PDF" and then click on "Save As" and release - and a PDF should appear where you have stored it). Safari also allows you to mail a post to a friend (click on "File", and then point cursor to "Mail Contents On This Page" and release). Either way, this or other posts on this site may be a useful Art Resource for you.
The new Art Resource series will be the first post in each calendar month. Remember - these Art Resource posts span information that will be useful for a home hobbyist to that required by a final year University Fine-Art student and so undoubtedly, some parts of any Art Resource post may appear far too technical for your needs (skip those mind boggling parts) and in other parts, it may be too simplistic with respect to your level of knowledge (ditto the skip). The trade-off between these two extremes will mean that Art Resource posts will be hopefully useful in parts to most, but unfortunately may not be satisfying to all!
White Pigments - Part I [1]
Some classifications of white pigments include several of the material grouped separately in this series of posts under the heading of 'Inert Pigments.' Under the present heading, only those pigments which retain their color and opacity when in ground oil are listed.
White lead is one of the earliest artificially manufactured pigments recorded; it was employed in China as far back as we have any history of the materials of Chinese paintings, and was used in the earliest periods of European civilization. It was used in a variety of products.
White lead has very desirable properties when ground in oil: it has the lowest oil absorption of all white pigments. It unites with oil to form, a buttery paste, which has fine brushing qualities, and it is noted for its opacity or hiding power and its pleasing tonal characteristics.
White lead produces paint films of great durability. Its two defects are its toxic nature (see future posts), and the fact that the surface of white lead paint films is liable to turn dark brown, when acted upon by air, which is polluted with sulphur dioxide fumes. The latter defect is of slight consequence in oil paintings, where the pigment is usually well protected and locked in by oils and varnishes, or in varnished tempera paintings, or in undercoats; but it definitely precludes the use of white lead in all the other artistic painting media.
Due to the selective use of light, many paintings that use chiaroscuro have large areas of flat, dark pigment. This presents a challenge for care and restoration as it presents an easily disturbed shadow that does not easily hide disturbances in the same way a busy, colorful painting would. Secondly, dark pigments from the late 18th century and early 19th century often included a tar-like additive called bitumen, a substance that does not age well and may cause major visual concerns.
White lead brushes out poorly in most water mediums. Should an oil painting be affected by sulphur, as described above, the remedy is quite simple which will be discussed in a future post. However, the only conditions under which this darkening would be likely to occur would be such as are found in kitchens, stables, industrial or factory buildings, and outdoors in localities where soft coal is burned. Artistic oil paintings are not usually exposed to such conditions. Under the conditions which prevail in easel painting, the best white leads in oil, will not react with any of the approved permanent pigments, even those which contain combined sulphur, provided these are of high quality.
The best grade of White Lead is usually known to artists as Flake White, a corroded basic lead carbonate made by what is known as the old Dutch process, though essentially this process is the same as that described by Theophrastus and used in ancient Rome and Greece.
The number of modern lead compounds made and used industrially under the name 'White Lead' is large. All are inferior to 'Flake White'; basic sulfate and silicate white leads are used because of their lower costs. Cremnitz White, a nineteenth-century develpment, is made by the modification of the process, which allows it to be more carefully controlled; it is a somewhat purer, a more brilliant white, but it has less opacity.
Various authorities rate one slightly above the other; for artists' use, both are superior to the rest of the industrial white lead pigments. The basic raw material of the Dutch process, or flake white, is metallic lead; that of Cremnitz White is litharge. Fortunately, all these distinctions were extremely minor, for it is doubtful whether much if any true Cremnitz White has been sold to artists in recent times, despite the continued use of this name. Either Flake or Cremnitz White can be taken to mean the highest quality basic lead carbonate for artists' use.
It is also doubtful whether any manufacturers make a distinction between the various kinds of White Lead in artists' oil colors; the differences are small enough that if a pure basic lead carbonate with best pigment properties is selected, the product will be satisfactory. Much White Lead in oil is made by blending more than one variety.
White Lead has always been the basis or principle pigment for oil painting. Its properties in oil, as regards to grinding, drying, brushing, and other manipulations, and its opacity, flexibility, and durability are so superior to those of other whites and, in fact, most other pigments, that it is not only a standard of comparison by which the physical properties of other pigments are judged, but it is beyond some of the rules and restrictions which govern the correct application of colors. Old portraits, which have been thinly painted except in the faces, where a heavier coat of paint consisting of Flake White has been used, are often found to have disintegrated except for their faces, which are in perfect condition; and it is not uncommon to find other old paintings in which white lead areas, thin or thick, have outlived both impasto and very thin coats of other colors.
The success of the oil painting technique as a standard easel painting process for several hundred years has been based largely upon the use of this pigment, and its exclusion from many latter-day palettes has resulted in a lowering of some of the good qualities of the technique. Because of these points and because none of our other whites is entirely perfect in oil, Flake White still remains in use as a pigment for oil painting, despite the claims of zinc and titanium whites.
Reference:
[1] The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques, R. Mayer (ed. E. Smith) 4th Edition, Faber and Faber, London (1981).
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