NEW!Holbein Artists' Watercolor - Pearl Silver Violet, 15 ml Tube

Pigment Information

This color contains the following pigments:

PV23-Dioxazine Violet

PM1-Aluminum

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

PM1-Aluminum

Pigment Type

inorganic

Chemical Name

aluminum

Properties

Powdered aluminum is used to create silvery metallic and interference effects.

Permanence

Aluminum powder is lightfast, but it must be protected from oxidation. Under normal conditions, aluminum metal is protected by a thin layer of oxides that forms on the metallic surface.

History

Although aluminum is an abundant element in the Earth's crust, it was a semi-precious metal until the late 19th century, when an electrolytic process was developed for extracting aluminum from the mineral oxide forms in which it naturally occurs.