Amenemopet’s well-used artist’s palette, above, now resides in the Egyptian wing of New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The Anatomy of Paint: Pigment and Binder
“For the twentieth-century painter, who normally regards paint as a pasty substance of a certain color that can be squeezed from a tube, it is hard to imagine that to artists not only of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, but also of the seventeenth, the eighteenth and the first half of the nineteenth century, each pigment presented its own inherent possibilities and limitations. Some pigments could not be worked-up with oil; some pigments could only be safely mixed with one or two other pigments; some pigments could only be used transparently and yet others only opaquely. Other properties, too, such as color permanence, workability, drying qualities, and so on, could differ so strongly from one pigment to another that it was normal to use a given pigment in pure form or mixed with a limited number of other pigments when modifying tone and color.” Wetering, Ernst van de. Rembrandt: The Painter at Work. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004) 142. In fact, many mixtures of paint in Vermeer’s painting usually contain no more than two or three different pigments.
Raw umber and synthetic ultramarine
pigments in powder form
Artist’s paint consists primarily of two components: pigment and binder. In order to produce paint, pigment and binder are ground into a stiff paste which must have three requirements: it must be brushable, it must adhere permanently to the support’s surface and it must not alter significantly in time. In the Netherlands canvas and panel were preferred as supports but copper was also used for fine work such as flower painting and small-scale genre scenes. Through chemical analysis, it would appear that Vermeer employed the same materials to produce his paints as those employed by his contemporaries.
Pigment
Pigment is the actual coloring substance of paint. Pigment has body in contradistinction to purely visual color. It is usually of mineral or organic origin although some, like the all important lead white, were and still are artificially produced. Pigments vary considerably in weight, transparency and physical structure. For example, alizarin comes in the form of an extremely fluffy, light-weight powder, one pound of which will almost fill a half-gallon can. A pound of vermilion will go into a four-ounce jar. On the other hand, earth pigments and the touchstone lead white are so bulky that one can easily perceive their granular structure with the naked eye.
LOOKING OVER VERMEER’S SHOULDER
The complete book about 17th-century painting techniques and materials with particular focus on the painting of Johannes Vermeer.
by Jonathan Janson | 2020
Looking Over Vermeer’s Shoulder is a comprehensive study of the materials and painting techniques that made Vermeer one of the greatest masters of European art.
Bolstered by the author’s qualifications as a professional painter and a Vermeer connoisseur, every facet of 17th-century and Vermeer’s painting practices—including canvas preparation, underdrawing, underpainting, glazing, palette, brushes, pigments and composition—is laid out in clear, comprehensible language. Also investigated are a number of key issues related specifically to Vermeer’s studio methods, such as the camera obscura, studio organization as well as how he depicted wall-maps, floor tiles, pictures-within-pictures, carpets and other of his most defining motifs. Each of the book’s 24 topics is accompanied by abundant color illustrations and diagrams.
By observing at close quarters the studio practices of Vermeer and his preeminent contemporaries, the reader will acquire a concrete understanding of 17th-century painting methods and materials and gain a fresh view of Vermeer’s 35 works of art, which reveal a seamless unity of craft and poetry.
While not written as a “how-to” manual, realist painters will find a true treasure trove of technical information that can be adapted to almost any style of figurative painting.
LOOKING OVER VERMEER’S SHOULDER
author: Jonathan Janson
date: 2020 (second edition)
pages: 294
illustrations: 200-plus illustrations and diagrams
formats: PDF | ePUB | AZW3
$29.95
CONTENTS
- Vermeer’s Training, Technical Background & Ambitions
- An Overview of Vermeer’s Technical & Stylistic Evolution
- Fame, Originality & Subject Matte
- Reality or Illusion: Did Vermeer’s Interiors ever Exist?
- Color
- Composition
- Mimesi & Illusionism
- Perspective
- Camera Obscura Vision
- Light & Modeling
- Studio
- Four Essential Motifs in Vermeer’s Oeuvre
- Drapery
- Painting Flesh
- Canvas
- Grounding
- “Inventing,” or Underdrawing
- “Dead-Coloring,” or Underpainting
- “Working-up,” or Finishing
- Glazing
- Mediums, Binders & Varnishes
- Paint Application & Consistency
- Pigments, Paints & Palettes
- Brushes & Brushwork
A piece of unprocessed lapis lazuli from which the pigment natural ultramarine is made.
After being first separated from gross impurities, the raw pigment must be thoroughly cleansed and carefully ground to the proper coarseness. Some pigments must be finely ground while other lose their color if they are over ground. The great part of artist’s paints were once made with earth pigments, or natural inorganic pigments—simply put, colored clumps of earth each with a different color. An example for a natural mineral pigment is the popular yellow ochre, which is made from extracted earth. An example of a modern manufactured mineral pigment is cobalt blue, which is made from oxidized cobalt compounds.
Earth pigments were the first pigments used by mankind and include such colors as the siennas, the umbers, green earth and a wide range of ochres. These pigments are usually heavy in weight and lightfast. They have good wetting properties and produce opaque, solid colors. Another great advantage of earth pigments is that they are entirely stable in all painting media and do not interact chemically with the sensitive pigments making them suitable for mixing with almost every pigment available to the artist. Ochres are the most opaque of the earth pigments.
Artificial inorganic pigments, on the other hand, are colors that are manufactured rather than found. Many of these pigments were made and discovered by the alchemists of antiquity. Verdigris, Naples yellow and the all-important lead white fall into this category.
Natural organic pigments have sources that are either vegetable or animal, rather than earth or mineral. Organic pigments can be natural, derived from plants, or manufactured, made from complex hydrocarbons. Examples of ancient organic pigments are indigo and red madder, Indian Yellow (urine from Indian cows fed only on mango leaves), sap green, and bone black (calcinated bones). Modern manufactured organic pigments, having been originally derived from coal-tar based dyes, now include almost any shade of color imaginable. Almost all the pigments used in modern artists’ paints are man-made chemicals, developed in many cases as substitutes for rare, expensive, or unstable natural colorants of plant, animal, or mineral origin.
Binder
The binder, commonly called the vehicle, is the film-forming component of paint. A pigment should not dissolve in the binding medium nor be affected by it. Many colors, such as lead white or umber, accelerate the drying of the oil; others, such as the lakes and vermilion, retard this process. In general the dense, heavy pigments dry well and quickly, since they require little oil.
Although egg tempera had been exclusively employed as the painting medium in medieval times (and is still employed by some specialists), it presents serious limitations for painters used to the flexibility of oil painting. By the time Vermeer began painting, tempera had almost been completely abandoned for its many shortcomings.
Tempera paint could not be stored, so each color was mixed when it was needed and once dry on the palette, it cannot be used again. Because it dries very quickly, artists had to paint small areas of the composition one at a time. The fast drying time made smooth blending difficult if not impossible and painters had to use time consuming and problematic techniques to paint over a dried layer of tempera without disturbing the underlying one. In general, tempera painting has to be executed quickly and lightly and is exceedingly tedious when compared with oil painting. Although paintings executed with tempera have a lively, colorful appearance, when dry, the dark passages appear significantly lighter in tone giving a total impression of diffused daylight. It is therefore impossible to suggest the strong contrast that was necessary to convincingly describe form and above all light, perhaps the foremost prerogatives of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century painting.
The advantages of oil painting in respects to tempera are so many that they are almost impossible to inventory. Oil paints can be blended to create infinitely fine gradations even with ordinary brushes. It is possible to overpaint as many times as is necessary covering entirely the lower paint layers. Both the natural opacity of some pigments and transparency of others can be exploited to suggest a truly vast array of optical effects. Furthermore, great quantities of oil paint can be applied to obtain textured surfaces while at the same time it permits the accomplished artist to create the finest details imaginable with ease. Unlike tempera, dark tones remain dark and a painting properly executed in oils has an agreeable glossy or semi-glossy appearance. Oil paint allowed the artist to develop rich colors, depth and shading from light to dark creating outstanding atmospheric effects. Painters could rework their initial thoughts and dramatically change the composition—there seemed to be no limit to the range of expressive possibilities that the oil paint medium could afford. Therefore, it is not surprising that today oil paint is universally considered the most flexible technique for artistic expression and has largely supplanted techniques of the past.
In order to produce good oil paint, pigment and binder are ground into a stiff paste which must have three requirements: it must be brushable, it must adhere permanently to the support’s surface and it must not alter significantly in time. Some pigments require long periods of grinding to make them usable and some must be ground only shortly otherwise they quickly lose their natural brilliance. Some pigments, like ultramarine, produce a fastidious stringy paint although additives may be introduced such as wax, alum, chalk or dryers to correct deficiencies or augment inherent properties. Linseed, nut and poppy oil were by far the most popular binders.
Through countless hours spent grinding pigments with a muller against a slab, Medieval and Renaissance painters learned invaluable information about their materials which aided them in creating masterpieces of their time. Although the knowledge gained through direct experience has been largely lost it is still possible to make suitable paints in the studio without excessive difficulty provided one comprehends the fundamental requirements of fine arts paint.
10 Reasons why you should use pigments to make your own paint?
Pigments are the key ingredient in paints and coloured art materials and, with a little knowledge and a bit of experimentation, it’s not difficult to produce good quality artist paints. Yes it will take longer than just squeezing it out of a tube, but there are advantages to doing it yourself.
- Quality Control – Making your own paints means you can omit the fillers and extenders which are often added to commercially made paints to reduce the manufacturing costs. Take advantage of rich hues and vibrant coloured paints that haven’t been diluted with cheaper ingredients.
- Omit unwanted chemicals. All of our pigments are non-toxic. If you are worried about what chemicals may be in your commercially made paints, making your own art materials will allow you to take control. You can determine what ingredients go into your paints, protecting your health and the environment.
- Save Money – Buying the materials to make your own paints is cheaper than buying them ready made. And the time you spend making the paints will allow you to become more knowledgable about the materials you are using.
- Long Shelf life – Unlike ready made paints that will eventually dry out, powdered pigments will last indefinitely if stored correctly. This will allow you to make enough paints for your requirements and ensure that your paints are always fresh and easy to use.
- Create bespoke Colours – By pre mixing pigments together you can create your own custom colours, unique to you. Just be sure to make a note of the quantities of each pigment you use in the paint so you can mix it again.
- BeVersatile – The same pigments can be used to make different types of paint, so if you like to work with different media, you can be consistent with your colours. As well as paints, powdered pigments can be used for making inks, pastels and crayons, they can also be used to tint handmade paper, plasters and clays.
- Enjoy the process. Making your own paints will give you a greater understanding of your art through the materials you are using. By getting to the grass-roots of paint making, you will discover the way that different pigments react with different binders, how some pigments result in an opaque paint and others a translucent medium. You can even experiment with different colour mixes and different types of binder. Who knows you may invent a new type of paint!
- Become part of the community – There is an ever growing community of artists who are passionate about making their own art materials. Experiment with different applications and become part of the makers movement that are producing some amazing bespoke art products.
- Share your Handmade paints – People love products that are handmade and once you are confident with the paint making process, you can share your paints with friends. Don’t forget, handmade paints make great presents.
- Become a professional Maker – Making your own paint could be the first step of an exciting new journey. Many artists love the idea of using bespoke handmade paints. Perfect your paint making process and you could soon be providing boutique art supplies to customers around the world.
How Vibrant Colors Have Been Used in Art Throughout History
From the beginning of recorded history, artists have sought vibrant colors to use in their art. Cave paintings used a mixture of animal fats and saliva with charcoal, iron-rich soil, or chalk to create a variety of earth-toned colors. Ancient Egyptians used rich red, blue, green, brown, yellow, and black pigments to paint hieroglyphs and works of art. Renaissance artists went into debt sourcing lapis lazuli to create brilliant blue for their masterworks in oil.
A detail from the throne of Tutankhamun which shows the pharaoh with his wife Ankhsenamun on the right. c. 1327 BCE, National Museum, Cairo.
Amenemopet’s well-used artist’s palette, above, now resides in the Egyptian wing of New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Art has pushed technology forward as artists continue to search for a broader range of hues and new materials from which they can bring their visions to life. This has been the case for thousands of years – and it remains today. In fact, here in Oregon, a team of researchers at Oregon State University discovered a new blue pigment in 2009. This is the first new blue pigment created in two centuries.
The Development of Oil Paints
Art and science are inextricably linked, one pushing the other forward alternatively for thousands of years. 64,000 years ago the first known pigments were developed to create cave paintings, and the arts have only blossomed since then.
While the development of pigments improved as societies became more global, the development of oil paints is considered one of the transformational moments in art. Before the development of oils, painters often used tempera paints. This paint is created by mixing egg yolks with pigment. Artists from ancient Egypt through the Middle Ages used tempera paints, and some Renaissance artists also used this type of paint.
Oil paints came on the scene around the 1400s. This type of paint was essentially a mixture of pigment and oil, like linseed oil. While it is unknown who invented the first oil paint, Jan van Eyck [pictured: Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck] is credited with mastering the use of these paints and increasing their popularity. By the end of the 15th century, oils became the primary medium used. The development of oil paints was pivotal to the art world because oil paints convey a wider variety of hues than tempera paints. Tempera paints provide rich color but do not allow artists to utilize subtle tonal graduations. Additionally, oils can be built upon to create a luster absent from works using tempera paints.
On top of a new medium, new pigments became available during the Renaissance. The post-dark-ages world was more open to exploration and global trade, bringing rich red pigments from The New World and ultramarine from Afghanistan and Egypt. New pigments and a new medium enabled artists to create brilliant works like Vermeer’s Girl with the Pearl Earring and Caravaggio’s The Inspiration of Saint Matthew.
Girl with a Pearl Earring, oil on canvas by Johannes Vermeer, c. 1665; in the Mauritshuis, The Hague.
The Inspiration of Saint Matthew (1602) is a painting by the Italian Baroque master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Commissioned by the French Cardinal Matteo Contarelli, the canvas hangs in Rome, Italy.
Prussian Blue – The First Synthetic Pigment
As technology advanced, scientists and artists sought new pigments. The first lab-made pigment was made both by accident – and purposefully. In the early 1700s, French chemist Jean-Baptiste Guimet was trying to make a synthetic red pigment when he accidentally created the vivid hue of Prussian Blue. This accidentally-on-purpose creation led to additional synthetic pigments designed over the next several centuries.
Blue arrives to Asia in the early 1800’s.
Katsushika Hokusai, circa 1829
In letters to his brother, Van Gogh professed the Japanese master had left a deep emotional impact on him.
“Starry Night”, van Gogh. 1889
Palette of Vincent van Gogh, 2007, 190x156cm, Copyright: Matthias Schaller, Musée d’Orsay, Paris.
[paint palettes of famous artists]
The Downsides of Synthetic Pigments
In many ways, synthetic pigments democratized the art market. Artists were willing to go into debt or leave paintings incomplete during the Renaissance era because pigments like ultramarine were prohibitively expensive. Lab-created pigments were cheaper and, as technology advanced, could be transported more easily. For example, paint that was once transported in pig bladders could now be transported, premixed, in tin tubes.
The Winsor & Newton paint tube, 1840-1911
According to Renoir: “Without tubes of paint, there would have been no Impressionism.”
One of the big problems with the original synthetic pigments was some were highly toxic. This issue pre-dates lab-created pigments as white was created using lead and cow dung. Still, the ubiquity of new, toxic paints exposed more artists to health problems.
However, that did not stop artists like van Gogh and Monet from using the new and brilliant colors now available to them.
You have likely noticed that van Gogh favored yellow in many of his paintings. The yellow he preferred was lead-based chrome yellow. This yellow both imbued his paintings with joy, light, and beauty and likely caused debilitating illness in the painter.
Fortunately, standards in pigment production have changed over the years. We no longer use lead and other toxins in paint, which means painters can turn their vision into a reality without harming their health.
When Brilliant Pigments Meet Art
Artists across the centuries sought to bring the beauty they saw around them and the emotions deep in their souls onto the canvas, pot, stone, skein, and other media. The development of brilliant pigmentation has allowed more and more artists to do so.
When you think of great artists, you likely recollect times when they utilized brilliant pigments – or strategically used contrasts to turn a color that may traditionally be dull into something vibrant. The Mona Lisa, for example, does not use brilliant pigmentation. Still, Leonardo Da Vinci used his artistic genius to draw the viewer in with only a few colors. You may also consider hues that draw the eye to a piece, even if the overall looks relatively monochromatic. This could be said of Monet’s Waterloo Bridge, Blurred Sun.
Monet’s Waterloo Bridge, Blurred Sun. 1903 Some artists are known for using brilliant colors. Vincent van Gogh and Georgia O’Keefe spring to mind when one thinks of bright, vivid colors.
Erin Hanson’s Limited Palette
While developments in pigmentation have provided artists with a broad selection from which to choose their palette, some artists choose to limit their palette to a crucial few in order to create maximal emotional impact through color. Erin Hanson is one such artist.
Hanson’s open impressionist works are notable for utilizing pure pigments with a premixed, limited palette.
“Pelican Sky” by Erin Hanson
This means that Hanson only uses the colors found on the outside of the color wheel in her paintings. She selects five pure pigments, then spends hours premixing her palette (before ever picking up a brush) to create the full range of hues that will appear in the painting from warm to cold, light to dark. Once she has her palette of pigments mixed, she places brushstrokes of oil paint one next to another so that no color will get muddied by blending.
This technique of minimal layering, long strokes, and pre-mixed, pure pigments applied to canvas is quintessential to Hanson’s Open Impressionist work. The Open Impressionism movement has inspired artists around the world to take up the brush or palette knife and create vibrant works of art, flooding the world with wonderful shades of color.
Explore art that uses vivid hues with a limited palette. Enjoy Erin Hanson’s landscapes here.
An Erin Hanson palette, 2022.
Erin Hanson in her studio, 2022.
Erin Hanson’s studio, 2022.
ERIN HANSON has been painting in oils since she was 8 years old. As a young artist, she worked at a mural studio creating 40-foot-tall paintings on canvas, while selling art commissions on the side. After getting a degree in Bioengineering from UC Berkeley, Erin became a rock climber at Red Rock Canyon, Nevada. Inspired by the colorful scenery she was climbing, she decided to paint one painting every week for the rest of her life. She has stuck to that decision ever since, becoming one of the most prolific artists in history. Erin Hanson’s style is known as “Open Impressionism” and is now taught in art schools worldwide. With thousands of collectors eagerly anticipating her work and millions of followers online, Hanson has become an iconic, driving force in the rebirth of contemporary impressionism.
