Gamblin 1980 Oils - Cobalt Violet, 37 ml tube

Pigment Information

This color contains the following pigments:

PV23-Dioxazine Violet

PV19-Quinacridone Violet

PV14-Cobalt Violet

Pigment Name

PV23-Dioxazine Violet

Pigment Type

organic

Chemical Name

carbazole dioxazine

Chemical Formula

C34H22Cl2N4O2

Properties

Dioxazine Violet is transparent and has very high tinting strength. It is a staining pigment, very dark valued when it is used at full strength. Concentrated, it paints out nearly black, but it mixes with Titanium White to form bright, opaque tints of purple. PV23 produces slightly redder shades than PV37. Because the hue can vary with the conditions of preparation and grinding, it may be offered in red shade, blue shade, and so forth.

Permanence

Dioxazine Violet has good lightfastness. There may be some concern about it fading or shifting in color in tints and washes. Some artists have reported that PV37, a molecular variant, is more lightfast than PV23.

History

Two molecular variants of Dioxazine Violet, PV23 and PV37, are available. They have similar properties, but mix slightly differently.

Pigment Name

PV19-Quinacridone Violet

Pigment Type

organic synthetic, quinacridone

Chemical Formula

C20H12N2O2

Properties

Quinacridone Red is a high performance, transparent pigment with an average drying time and uneven dispersal. It is another name for Quinacridone Violet (PV19) and Quinacridone Red (PR192). Quinacridone pigments have relatively low tinting strength in general. For this reason, quinacridone colors are often expensive, because more pigment is required in the formulation.

Permanence

Quinacridone Violet has excellent lightfastness and is considered the most lightfast organic pigment in this shade range.

Toxicity

Quinacridone Violet has no known acute hazards. Overexposure to quinacridone pigments may cause skin irritation. Quinicridone pigments contain a compound found to be a skin, eye, and respiratory irritant.

History

Although quinacridone compounds became known in the late 19th century, methods of manufacturing so as to make them practical for use as commercial pigments did not begin until the 1950s. Quinacridone pigments were first developed as coatings for the automotive industry, but were quickly adopted by artists.

Pigment Name

PV14-Cobalt Violet

Pigment Type

inorganic

Chemical Name

cobalt phosphate

Chemical Formula

Co3(PO4)2

Properties

Cobalt Violet is a pure hue that cannot be mixed from other colors. It is cool in its masstone, chemically stable, and semi-opaque. It has a weak tinting strength and is generally offered in a bluish and a reddish-violet shade. Cobalt Violet can be quite expensive, so it is used mostly as a top coat color. It is compatible with all painting media, but its light variety can change in oil form. It grays down considerably when mixed with white. Manganese Violet is a less costly substitute for the bluish variety of Cobalt Violet.

Permanence

Cobalt Violet has excellent permanence, and its lightfastness makes it more desirable than older organic dye violets.

Toxicity

Cobalt Violet is highly toxic by both ingestion and inhalation, particularly in dry pigment form. However, much of the material presently used to make paints of this color is non-toxic cobalt phosphate.

History

Cobalt comes from the Middle High German word kobolt, an underground goblin, because miners thought cobalt harmed silver ores. Cobalt Violet was the first real violet pigment and was described by Salvetat in 1859. The light variety of this pigment, developed in Germany earlier in the 19th century, was particularly poisonous due to its arsenic content. Cobalt Violet hues were the only permanent bright violets available to artists until the 1950s.