Art Section 4 Flashcards
It was until the dawn of the_______________ and the development of _______________ in the ______th century most colorants for oil paint were derived from ________________
Enlightenment, chemistry, 18, nature
How did the discovery of Prussian blue change the use of fine blues for painters?
Before it was a luxury item that was not used as much because of its expense as well
What does it mean by fine blues were chemically stable?
They do not fade when exposed to light (unlike other pigments)
What is ultramarine?
An expensive saturated cobalt blue color
How is ultramarine produced?
By grinding the lapis lazuli stone into a fine powder
Where is lapis lazuli stone mined from?
Mountains of Afghanistan
What type of religious paintings was ultramarine specifically depicted in?
Virgin Mary’s clothing
Who discovered Prussian blue?
Jacob Diesbach, a German colormaker
True or False? Diesbach was purposely trying to create a new blue pigment.
False. The discovery of prussian blue was an accident.
What was Diesbach originally trying to make?
a standard batch of cochineal red lake (which required iron sulfate and potash)
What alchemist did Jacob Diesbach purchase his potash from?
Johann Konrad Dippel
What did Diesbach do differently when purchasing his potash from Dippel?
Asked for previously used potash (as he was trying to spend less)
What happened when Diesbach tried to make red lake with the previously used potash that was contaminated with animal fats?
It originally turned pale
Then the mixture turned purple when he tried to concentrate it, and then deep blue
What was Dippel’s explanation for why the pigment turned blue?
He thought that it was a reaction between iron and sulfate and the contaminated alkali
What is the real explanation as to why the Diesbach’s pigment turned blue?
The alkali had reacted with Dippel’s oil to make potassium ferrocyanide which then combined with iron sulfate to make iron ferrocyanide or Prussian blue
Early example of the use of Prussian blue in an oil on canvas composition in 1720
The Italian Comedians by Antoine Watteau
Why does Prussian blue appear so little in The Italian Comedians?
When it was made in 1720, the powder was expensive and rare
Benefits of Prussian blue
-Non toxic, stable, 1/10 of the cost of ultramarine
-Dry powder that could be mixed with any binding agent (chalk or oil) to color paper, canvas, or a different binding support
Disadvantages of Prussian blue
When mixed with other colors, the pigment becomes diluted which makes it more sensitive to UV light
A Girl with a Kitten
-Most likely by Jean-Baptiste Perronneau (a French artist who used pastels)
-Prussian blue is used on the girl’s vibrant dress and in the duskier, shadowed blue of the background
-Evidences muted colors, feather textures, and soft colors of the medium
What are pastels?
type of colored chalk applied to a textured paper
Why was Prussian blue used much more in A Girl with a Kitten than in The Italian Comedians?
It was much more common as it was being produced in manufacturing centers across Europe by 1740 than in 1720
Antoine Watteau used the first synthetic pigment to evoke a sense of
Romanticism
