Color Swatch created using heavy to light application and was applied on 100 lb (163 gsm) drawing paper material.
This color contains the following pigments:
PBk8—Vine Black
Pigment Type
inorganic
Chemical Name
carbon
Chemical Formula
C
Properties
Black is a semi-transparent, slightly textured blue-black pigment with excellent hiding power. It has a finer grain than other black pigments, so it spreads better in watercolor. However, it is inferior in intensity, tinting strength, and chemical purity to the major black pigments.
Permanence
Vine Black has superior permanence and lightfastness because carbon absorbs light well.
Toxicity
Vine Black has no significant hazards.
History
Vine Black is a carbon based black traditionally produced by charring desiccated grape vines, stems, and wood from willow trees. These processes have been used since antiquity, though a superior artificial variety was developed in the United States in 1864 to make a black appropriate for watercolors.
Alternate Names
Blue Black, Charcoal Black, Coke Black, Cork Black, Drop Black, Frankfort Black, German Black, Grape Black, Kernel Black, Marc Black, Mineral Black, Peach Black, Spanish Black, Vegetable Black, Yeast Black. Blue Black has also been used to describe Ivory Black.
PBk7—Lamp Black
Pigment Type
inorganic
Chemical Name
carbon
Chemical Formula
C
Properties
Lamp black is a very opaque, heavily staining black pigment that does not have much covering or tinting power. It is typically the most opaque black in watercolor form. Though a very pure black, it tends to muddy slightly in mixtures. Natural sources may be brownish or bluish in tone because of impurities. When used in oil paints, it is one of the slowest drying pigments, and should not be used in underpainting or applied in layers underneath other colors.
Permanence
Lamp Black is very lightfast and absolutely permanent. It is used in all techniques in permanent painting.
Toxicity
Carbon itself is not considered hazardous, however other combustion products that are hazardous are often present as impurities when Lamp Black is produced from natural materials. For this reason, commercial preparations of the pigment should be considered slightly toxic. Avoid skin contact and inhalation. Where such impurities are present, Lamp Black is a possible human carcinogen.
History
Lamp Black is a carbon based black traditionally produced by collecting soot (known as lampblack) from oil lamps. It has been used as a pigment since prehistoric times. It is the black found in Egyptian murals and tomb decorations and was the most popular black for fresco painting until the development of Mars Black.
Alternate Names
Carbon Black, Channel Black, Furnace Black, Oil Black, Vegetable Black. Flame Black is an impure version of Lamp Black. An alternate spelling is Lampblack, in which the first syllable is stressed and the two words are elided to form a closed compound.
PB60—Indanthrene Blue
Pigment Type
organic, vat dyes
Chemical Name
complex, insoluble anthraquinone
Chemical Formula
C28H14N2O4
Properties
Indanthrene Blue is a clear, clean, deep blue organic pigment. It has moderate to high tinting strength and is not as overpowering as Phthalo Blue. Hansa Yellow Deep, Benzimidazolone Orange, and Raw Umber are its best mixing complements.
Permanence
Indanthrene Blue is permanent with excellent lightfastness in both masstone and tints.
Toxicity
Indanthrene Blue varies in its acute toxicity, though toxicity is generally slight.
History
Indanthrene Blue is the oldest vat dye, discovered and patented in 1901 by Rene Bohn. It is considered the first anthraquinone vat dye, a group of dyes characterized by excellent lightfastness. The pigment originates from this dye.
Alternate Names
Indanthrone.
PG7—Phthalo Green
Pigment Type
organic
Chemical Name
polychlorinated copper(II) phthalocyanine
Chemical Formula
C32H3Cl13CuN8 to C32HCl15CuN8 or C32H16CuN8Cl15 (PG7) or C32Br6Cl10CuN8 (PG36)
Properties
Phthalo Green is a transparent, cool, bright, high intensity color used in oil and acrylics. It comes from a Phthalocyanine Blue pigment where most of the hydrogen atoms have been replaced with chlorine, forming highly stable molecules. It has similar pigment properties and permanence to Phthalo Blue. It is slow drying and an excellent base color for mixing a range of bright greens. Phthalo Green is considered a very good alternative to Viridian because it is intense and mixes well and can be used to emphasize mineral colors in various tints. However, its tinting strength is very high, so it can overpower other colors. This pigment most closely resembles the discontinued and toxic Verdigris.
Permanence
Phthalo Greens are completely lightfast and resistant to alkali, acids, solvents, heat, and ultraviolet radiation. They are currently used in inks, coatings, and many plastics due to their stability and are considered a standard pigment in printing ink and the packaging industry.
Toxicity
Phthalo Green has no significant hazards, but it contained PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) until 1982.
History
This bright blue-green was developed in 1935 and has been in use since 1938.
Alternate Names
Bocour Green, Cyan Green, Intense Green, Monastral Green, Phthalocyanine Green, Rembrandt Green, Thalo Green, Winsor Green.
