Winsor & Newton Professional Watercolor - Ostwald Gray, 5 ml

Pigment Information

This color contains the following pigments:

PBk6-Lamp Black

PW5-Lithopone

PY42-Yellow Iron Oxide

Pigment Name

PBk6-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 power. It is typically the most opaque black in watercolor form. Though a very pure black, it tends to muddy slightly in mixtures, is one of the slowest drying pigments in oils, and should not be used under other colors.

Permanence

Lamp Black is very lightfast and absolutely permanent. It is used in all techniques in permanent painting.

History

Lamp Black is a carbon based black traditionally produced by collecting soot (known as lampblack) from oil lamps. It is the black found in Egyptian murals and tomb decorations and was the most popular black for frescoing until the development of Mars Black.

Pigment Name

PW5-Lithopone

Pigment Type

inorganic

Chemical Name

coprecipitated zinc sulphide and barium sulphate

Chemical Formula

Zn + BaSO4

Properties

Lithopone is a low tinting strength, semi-transparent white pigment that is often used as a filler or extender in other colors, or as the base for laked pigments.

Permanence

Lithopone is absolutely permanent and lightfast.

History

Lithopone was discovered by G.F. de Doubet in 1850. It  was developed commercially in the 1870s as a substitute or supplement for lead carbonate, to overcome the many shortcomings of white lead pigment, including toxicity, poor weathering, and darkening in the presence of sulfur compounds. It is used most often in interior paints and enamels. Its use as a white pigment has been superceeded in many applications by titanium dioxide.

Pigment Name

PY42-Yellow Iron Oxide

Chemical Name

iron(III)-oxide, hydrated

Chemical Formula

Fe2O3 • H2O

Properties

Yellow Ochre provides artists with earthtones from cream to brown. It has good hiding power, produces a quick drying paint, and can be safely mixed with other pigments. Its transparency varies widely from opaque shades to more transparent ones, which are valued for their use as glazes. If gypsum is present, Yellow Ochre is not suitable for frescoing. (See Brown Ochre, PY43.) PY42 is made from synthetic iron oxides. PY43 is made from natural iron oxide.

Permanence

Yellow Ochre has excellent permanence because ochres are some of the most permanent pigments available.

History

Ochre comes from the Greek word ochros, meaning pale yellow. It was one of the first pigments to be used by human beings, and evidence of its use has been found at 300,000 year old sites in France and the former Czechoslovakia.