Williamsburg Handmade Oil Paint - Courbet Green, 37 ml tube

Pigment Information

This color contains the following pigments:

PB27-Hooker’s Green

PR102-Natural Light Red Iron Oxide

PY65-Hansa Yellow

Pigment Name

PB27-Hooker’s Green

Pigment Type

mix of organic pigments

Chemical Formula

C30H18FeN3O6Na

Properties

Hooker’s Green is a bright olive-green often sold in a yellowish shade and a bluish shade. Its transparency can range from dull and dark to bright and light because lightness and chroma vary based on manufacturer. Modern varieties have a rich, dark tone that provides a great range when mixing. Hooker’s Green is particularly good for landscape painting when a larger range of foliage is required. Dioxazine Violet is the best mixing compliment in watercolor form.

Permanence

The permanence and lightfastness of Hooker’s Green varies by brand. As a composite pigment historically mixed from Prussian Blue and Gamboge, its permanence is only fair. Modern replacements for Hooker's Green tend to be mixed with components that have more permanence, such as Phthalocyanine Green, Burnt Umber, and sometimes Hansa or Cobalt Yellow.

Toxicity

Hooker’s Green can be hazardous, but the toxicity level depends on the specific pigments used by each individual manufacturer or brand.

History

This pigment was originally an unreliable mix of Prussian or Iron Blue and Gamboge. Later, it became a more reliable mix of Cadmium Yellow and Phthalo Blue or Green. It was a staple green for 19th century landscape and botanical painters. Most modern Hooker’s Green paints are yellow greens with a hue angle around 140, or a mix of Phthalo Green and Burnt Umber.

Pigment Name

PR102-Natural Light Red Iron Oxide

Pigment Type

inorganic, natural

Chemical Name

iron oxide

Chemical Formula

Fe2O2

Properties

Natural Light Red Iron Oxide is a brick red pigment with a bright, scarlet top tone. Mineral sources vary considerably in both hue and transparency. It is generally opaque and has great tinting strength and hiding power, but more transparent versions are available. It creates salmon pinks when mixed with white. Natural Light Red Iron Oxide is often replaced by Mars colors or bright red oxides, which are cleaner and more powerful.

Permanence

Natural Light Red Iron Oxide has excellent permanence and lightfastness.

Toxicity

Natural Light Red Iron Oxide has no significant hazards.

History

Natural red iron oxide comes from the mineral ore hematite, called bloodstone by the ancient Greeks from the word hema, meaning blood. It is one of the oldest pigments, has been used by every major civilization, and was an important mineral for medieval alchemists. It was not widely used in artists' materials until the 17th century and was not produced in large quantities until the 18th century.

Pigment Name

PY65-Hansa Yellow

Pigment Type

monoazo

Chemical Formula

C18H18N4O6

Properties

This Hansa Yellow ranges from reddish yellow to greenish yellow with temperature shifts from cool to warm hues. It has good tinting strength and average to slow drying time.

Permanence

This Hansa Yellow has excellent lightfastness, particularly in the darker shades.

Toxicity

Hansa Yellow has no significant acute hazards, though its chronic hazards have not been well studied.

History

Hansa Yellows were first made in Germany just before WW1 from a series of synthetic dyestuffs called Pigment Yellow. They were intended to be a synthetic replacement for Cadmium Yellow.