Author / Perry

by Perry

Pigments

Selection of colors is complex and subjective. I’ll offer here a broad and somewhat concise starting point.

Here, I am talking about color selection and more specifically, raw dry pigments. Much of the advice here also relates to prepared tubed paint. I would perhaps add that the light fluffy powders of synthetic organic pigments (Quinacridone, Hansa, Phthalocyanine, etc.) are generally too difficult to handle in the average painter’s studio. Their tinting strength is so high as to overpower other colors on the palette, unless they’re cut with a filler such as chalk or blanc fixe – PW21.

Regarding pigments. There are a few sources for those, depending on color. Of course, Kremer, Natural Pigments, along with Jerry’s Artarama and Blick who’ll have a smaller selection. Ceramic supply companies will have several earth colors, titanium dioxide, and chromium oxide green, and they’ll be cheaper than the same colors from the other sources. For example, a pound of iron oxide red is five bucks from Mid-South Ceramics versus five times that cost from Blick.

So on to pigment selection. (click to skip to summary) The earth colors are by far the greatest bang for the buck. It’s dirt. Well, it’s iron oxide, which is dirt without any organic material like decaying leaves and bugs and such. Cave painters used earths, Rembrandt used them, we use them. 

Iron Oxide reds come in a range from bluish Indian Red through more orange English Red. Synthetic iron oxides are often called Mars colors. Any and all are useful. You can also forage for ochres.

Red and Yellow

Similarly, Iron Oxide Yellows, or hydrated iron oxide, come in a range from the lemony Limonite to the more orangey ochres and raw sienna. There are also synthetic Mars Yellows. 

For higher saturation reds and yellows, Cadmiums are the usual choice. They are pricey and some would say toxic. There’s not much research to back up their modern versions being of any concern though. Gone are the days of free unbound cadmium just roaming around in your paint. Manufacturers have refined their process and what cadmium is there, is bound up with Sulfur and Selenium and not “biologically available”. If for some reason, cost perhaps, you may want a substitute, there are Nickel Titanate yellows that are opaque and lemony, Chrome Antimony Titanate that’s warmer and somewhere between a Cadmium Yellow Medium and a Yellow Ochre. As for substitutes for Cadmium Red, there are Pyrrol Reds, which come in a similar range but somewhat more transparent.

There’s also a range of Green Earths or Terre Verte, they come in a blue-green to yellow-green. They have low tinting strength but are wonderfully delicate.

Green

Chromium Oxide green is a useful opaque sort of army green. For a bluer and more transparent green, there’s Viridian.

Blue

For blues, there’s Ultramarine (or French Ultramarine, as opposed to Lapis Lazuli). This pigment alone comes in a range from greenish to reddish, depending on temperature of manufacture. Similar to earth colors which often come in raw or burnt versions. All the colors mentioned so far are pretty inexpensive. Cerulean Blue and Cobalt blue are a couple nice ones that are pricier, both containing Cobalt. Prussian Blue is a favorite too, for its strength and subtlety.

Purple

My favorite purple is Manganese Violet. It’s every bit as nice as Cobalt violet but cheaper.

We’re coming around the color wheel, so a crimson is called for. The usual Alizarin Crimson is not lightfast so I can’t recommend it. Up until now, the colors I’ve suggested are all mineral based. In olden times, artists would use dried plant material, or even bugs like in the case of cochineal, for reds. We now have a huge range of synthetic organic reds and roses without going to war with any roses. Quinacridone and Perylene are good choices here. They’re both transparent and very lightweight powders with high tinting strength, so be warned about that. A little goes a very long way. 

For the achromatic pigments, there are just a few. Chalk (Calcium Carbonate, either in natural marble dust or precipitated) is a nice low tinting strength white with many uses from grounds to fillers or extenders for other pigments. I like the precipitated calcium carbonate because of its small particle size and easy mixability. 

White

Titanium White is a strong, very bright white that I often cut with chalk.

Black

The commonly used Ivory Black or Lamp Black, both carbon blacks, can be useful but don’t easily mix with tempera. Unless the very blackest black is required, an iron oxide black can be a more manageable pigment. Mars Black or Black Roman Earth are common names.

I believe that rounds out the range. I’ll summarize, with Color Index names. CI names allow us to know what pigment we’re looking for, no matter the name. For example, PR101 could go by at least a dozen names but they’re all iron oxide reds. The Color Index Number does not specify much about the actual color though. PR101 could be a huge range of reds, depending on the temperature it’s produced at or the other elements present, in addition to iron oxide.

  • English Red – PR101
  • Yellow Ochre – PY42
  • Raw Umber – PBr7
  • Nickel (lemony PY53 or warmer PBr24) or Cadmium based Yellow – PY35
  • Cadmium Red – PR108 or Pyrrol – PR254
  • Chromium Oxide Green – PG17
  • Green Earth or Terre Verte – PG23
  • French Ultramarine Blue – PB29 – I’d opt for the reddish variant if there’s an option
  • Cerulean Blue – PB35
  • Prussian too if you just can’t help yourself. Who could? – PB27
  • Manganese Violet – PV16
  • Quinacridone Rose – PV19 or PR122
  • Titanium White – PW6
  • Black Roman Earth – PBk11
  • Chalk – PW18

All these pigments are compatible with oil, watercolor, acrylic, tempera, casein, and most anything else. Only ultramarine is incompatible with the alkaline fresco.

If painting in oil, I’d suggest adding the following:

  • Lead White – PW1 – do not handle in powder form unless you have proper PPE. Often called Cremnitz White, this pigment is low tinting strength, slightly warmer, and in oil, has a brush feel that is unmatched by any other white.
  • Ivory Black – PBk9 – this color doesn’t readily combine with aqueous media. It’s a slow drier in oil.
by Perry

Pressure adjustment with voltage multimeter

What you see in the image above is a setup for calibrating a press with or without micrometer gauges. The usual procedure for calibration is to zero out the gauges by taking the roller to the bedplate and then setting the micrometer barrel & thimble to zero. The problem is that the roller isn’t just resting by gravity on the bedplate, it’s tightened down there by screws which can be out of level.

I thought up this method around Christmas 2021 when I couldn’t sleep one night. It uses a few pieces of Velostat film, some copper tape, card stock, and a multimeter. Velostat is used in packing electronics to avoid static discharge. It’s a plastic impregnated with carbon and it becomes more conductive when pressure is applied. Many artists and makers use this property to create all sorts of things so this isn’t exactly new. I’ve never seen it applied to this task though.

The image below shows the simple sandwich of card stock, copper tape, and velostat. I’ve had good results by marking a line on the press bed parallel with the roller, allowing me to insert the velostat sandwich under a scrap of felt to the same depth along the roller’s width. I then roll the bed under the roller to a marked point. I do this on each side of the roller and measure the voltage.

by Perry

Aluminum Stearate Paste

Some pigments may need some help in mulling a workable paint. A higher acid value oil such as Pale Grinder’s Oil is a good start, but if that still doesn’t do the job, a little stearate paste can be used. This is often used in commercial paint to gel the oil which prevents pigment settling, increasing shelf life. In low quality paint, its overuse as an adulterant leads to a greasy feeling paint.

Heat 250 ml linseed oil to 150° C (300°F)
Gradually stir in 50 grams of aluminum stearate powder

This heated solution can be poured into an empty tube or caulking gun cartridge. It will gel on cooling so it can be squeezed from the tube much like paint.

1 part of this solution may be added to 4 parts linseed oil, by weight, for pigment grinding.

Reference:
https://cool.culturalheritage.org/waac/wn/wn23/wn23-3/wn23-304.html

by Perry

Biscuits

  • 3 C self rising flour (Hudson Cream if you can find it) Sift if it clumps at all.
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda (this baking soda and powder isn’t really necessary if you’re using self-rising flour, but I just add some extra leavening because I want those biscuits tall)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • Pinch kosher salt
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter
  • 2 C (1 pint) buttermilk or enough to make a workable dough. Kefir works too.


Mix dry ingredients. Quarter the butter lengthwise, and flour the pieces so they don’t stick together. Cut the butter into tiny pats and toss them into the flour. The butter can also be frozen and grated but I didn’t like the texture of the resulting biscuit. Add buttermilk and mix lightly. Turn this very wet dough onto the floured counter and spread a bit. Sprinkle flour into it as you fold it onto itself and press it out again. You’ll want about a cup of flour handy on the bench for dusting. These sprinkled layers of flour make the biscuit cleave readily into two halves when baked.


When cutting your biscuits, a simple metal cutter is best. Cups or jars will press the dough and hinder raising. Also, just press straight down and come back up, no twisting. This also hinders raising. Place your biscuits touching. Even a biscuit needs a little help from its friends.


Bake at 450 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until browned on top.
Makes a baker’s dozen.

*pro tip: use a baking tray with a lip so that butter won’t melt out into your oven. You want to keep any butter on the tray so you get that crispy bottom!

Butter, cut lengthwise, powdered with flour so it doesn’t stick, and cut into tiny pats
Hudson Cream flour in the background. Dough in bowl before being turned out onto the bench.
by Perry

Cornbread

1 1/2 cup corn meal
1 cup self rising flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 or 4 eggs, depending on size
1 stick butter, melted in skillet
1 cup of buttermilk
1 tsp kosher salt

Preheat oven 400 degrees
Melt butter in skillet
Whisk dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then combine.
Heat skillet with a tablespoon of vegetable oil and whatever remains of the melted butter on stove while spooning batter into skillet.
Bake 20 minutes.

by Perry

Gum Arabic

Gum Arabic is a water soluble sap from the acacia tree. This is the binder for watercolor and gouache paints. We use it also in the fountain solution for polyester plate lithography.

Here’s the recipe, thanks to Natural Pigments.

  • 150 grams of gum arabic powder
  • 500 ml distilled water heated to around 140°F
  • a couple drops of clove oil as a preservative, optional

For a watercolor binder, it’s common to add a small amount of glycerin or honey as a humectant/plasticizer.

Refrigerate, especially if not using a preservative.

by Perry

Thick Oil Painting Medium

This is a simple medium to add to tube color in order to bulk up the volume of paint. It also makes the paint more transparent and lowers tinting strength. This can be useful when using colors like the pthalos.

  • 1500 grams Precipitated Calcium Carbonate
  • 400 grams Refined Linseed Oil

The batch makes about 1 litre of medium, perhaps 7 large tubes. This size batch can be mixed in a stand-up mixer for half an hour, scraping the sides periodically. For a smaller amount, a large mixing knife and a slab could be used but it will require much work.