Sensitive colours in linseed oil…Why?

[IcyBlue]

Hi all,

Maybe this has been discussed before, but as a relatively new oil painter…I like to know about this. Why are sensitive pigments such as Cobalt Violet Light, Manganese Blue, Cerulean Blue, Ultramarine Violet/Rose…and some others made in Linseed oil? Why?? I initially tried OH, Michael Harding…

I was quite heartbroken when I saw that so beautiful Cobalt Violet Light go to an ugly dark maroon-red Brown …I found the dark variant darkened too (near black) though slower. I have some paintings ruined by this…Don’t know what to do with them???…toss them? :confused: …they also show wrinkling effects (linseed too?) …Attempts with over-painting even with Safflower Titanium white (Harding), then the Cobalt violet colours (even Lefranc) proved futile…Cross layer reaction??? The awful maroon-brown returned, abit more slowly, but it returned…:(

Sorry I dont have photos of these paintings…Hope one understands.

Recently I received a new Michael Harding hand-painted chart,…quite fresh, most colours where even a bit tacky. Already…I don’t know exactly how long it was kept in dark, already…Cobalt Violet Light (was already looking like a sickish skin-colour, quite reddened, no trace of the delicate violet showing), the Dark variant was also dull looking.

I wonder why do even premium paint makers like Old Holland and Michael Harding put these so delicate and mostly rather pricey colours in Linseed oil?…Why? To me , makes no sense, they are doomed to turn sickish maroon-red brown even black, green, dull-grey (Ultramarine Violet)…Find this heartless. Feels so wrong…Dont these makers know this??? I even found OH Manganese Violet turning brown on me…:eek:

I’m painting in confined spaces, and can’t guarantee strong light exposure at all times…No studio…

I tried Cobalt Violets of BlockX (those where delightful!…nothing dulled/darkened…regardless of light-exposure). Would MAIMERI PURO be another brand to try?? Safflower Oil or?

As far as I know BlockX Cobalts are in Poppy Oil…All their colours I tried were just beautiful…:)

[Gigalot]

If you want to prevent darkening effects in Cobalt Violet, then try to add Zinc White there. 10%-30% of it gives bleaching effect. Quality of linseed oil binder is also important. If you are not sure about linseed oil purity used by manufacturer, then remove it on absorbent surface and replace with your own, less darkening version or replace it with safflower oil. Add Zinc White because without Zinc, Cobalt paints have increased darkening properties. For light colors I can recommend to have reasonably low amount of oil, zero amount of any natural resins and some percentage of Zinc WHite addition. Never add natural resins, turpentine and Lavender essential oil into Cobalt or Manganese paints as such pigments are catalysts of natural resin browning process. Try OMS instead Use pure white underlayer for Cobalts to increase color purity. Do not use thick paint layers, Cobalt pigments paint must be applied thinly!

John Everett Millais “Ophelia” is a an interesting example of masterpiece where artist used many Zinc White thin underpainting layers to prevent green color darkening and to reach exceptionally pure colors. All pure colors were mixed with zinc or have Zinc White underlayer. This painting is real technical masterpiece!

However, after reading Tumosa-Mecklemburg’s articles, many artists try to avoid any Zinc content to prevent “Zinc-induced cracks and delamination” and looking for pure Lead White or Titanium White in Linseed oil binder. That gives maximal yellowing and browning effects to oil paint binder.

BTW, Salvador Dali used BlockX as his famous paints and he also loved BlockX Amber Varnish.
Williamsburg have their “Safflower oil paints” line. In the other hand, OH use cold pressed linseed oil as a binder. Cold pressed oil contains high level of impurities and prone to develop high level of darkening.

[IcyBlue]

Oops sorry I forgot to mention, that I use cobalt violet light (and deep) for its unique chroma, without any colour additives…glazed:

Intend to pick up some of this …soon
http://www.maimeri.it/en/products/oil/maimeri-puro/cobalt-violet-light-0012451.html

Here is a painting with BlockX cobalt violets, though the photo could have been better….

[Gigalot]

I always add pure Zinc White to Cobalt Violets. Such pigments itself forms weak and darkened paint films. Zinc White is semitransparent paint and just improve color.

[Ellis Ammons]

You can try to put them in the sunlight for awhile and see if the “brown” goes away. Some pigments don’t do well in the sunlight though and will fade if you leave them there. Certain oils and mediums will dry very dark if you let them dry in the dark. But putting them in the light will bring them back to some degree.

If it was me I would put them in sunlight for a week and see if they improve.

Not sure what the black strip is at the bottom. If that is how they dried it looks like some sort of chemical reaction. Not linseed darkening.

Check out my work in the acrylics Hall of Fame Camellia WIP
oil and acrylic paintings..

[p_nathan]

Williamsburg has a safflower line for these pigments.

hobbyist in oil.

[JCannon]

I don’t think that every paint made with linseed oil is doomed to turn brown. Similarly, I don’t think that paint made with walnut oil is doomed to deteriorate due to a fragile paint film, as some here have said.

Partisans of one binder or medium tend to overstate the deficiencies of the alternatives.

That said, I am a little bothered that OH is the only manufacturer still offering a true Magnesium Blue, and they use cold-pressed linseed oil as the binder. Since magnesium is a natural siccative, it would be better to make it with safflower. Safflower may be the slowest-drying of the oils used by artists, but it is also the least yellowing.

I’ve examined the cap of an OH Magnesium Blue tube, and the grotty brown oil seeping out was disconcerting.

[savras]

That said, I am a little bothered that OH is the only manufacturer still offering a true Magnesium Blue, and they use cold-pressed linseed oil as the binder.

I think you mean Manganese Blue. But OH wasn’t the only one, Vasari was the other. I think it was last year that OH finally has run out of the pigment (despite claims that their stock will last decades) and reformulated their Manganese Blue to 3-pigment mix. In other words Vasari is the only remaining brand offering genuine Manganese Blue (in alkali refined linseed oil).

Link Vasari Manganese Blue

[Gigalot]

I’ve examined the cap of an OH Magnesium Blue tube, and the grotty brown oil seeping out was disconcerting.

You can replace poor darkened oil to fine and light colored sunflower oil. Put paint blob on a piece of tea package or other absorbent material until oil paint became stiff and matte. Then scrap this concentrated Manganese Blue paint with palette knife. Add some amount of Sunflower oil or Safflower oil into it and mix carefully.

[JCannon]

I wrote “Magnesium”? Yeesh! I have to remember to stay away from the internet when I’ve had only four hours of sleep in the last 24…

[Marc Kingsland]

Hi all,

Maybe this has been discussed before, but as a relatively new oil painter…I like to know about this. Why are sensitive pigments such as Cobalt Violet Light, Manganese Blue, Cerulean Blue, Ultramarine Violet/Rose…and some others made in Linseed oil? Why?? I initially tried OH, Michael Harding…

I was quite heartbroken when I saw that so beautiful [B]Cobalt Violet Light[/B] go to an ugly dark maroon-red Brown …I found the dark variant darkened too (near black) though slower. I have some paintings ruined by this…Don’t know what to do with them???…toss them? :confused: …they also show wrinkling effects (linseed too?) …Attempts with over-painting even with [B]Safflower[/B] Titanium white (Harding), then the Cobalt violet colours (even Lefranc) proved futile…Cross layer reaction??? The awful maroon-brown returned, abit more slowly, but it returned…:(

Transparent violet and blue colours are more sensitive to this browning effect because the dried colour of linseed oil (amber) is across the colour wheel from violet/blue. So the tendency is towards darkness as the paint dries.
It doesn’t help that the pigments used for violet and blue often also require more oil than some other pigments to make a usable paint.
One semi cure is as Gigalot recommends, is to mix in a little zinc white. (titanium white tends to float a little oil on top) This will lighten and reduce the transparency of the colour a little, but it will go far to reducing the dulling browning effect you’re noticing.

insert pithy comment here.

[IcyBlue]

As said I want to use these delicate violets at full chroma…I would use Quin. Magenta if I wanted Magenta tints with white. Its the unique colour I’m after.

Here is a photo from a Michael Harding hand-painted chart…

Separate swatches is from BlockX colours…see nor darkening.

I dont know why M. Harding and a number of others stick with so (permanently) yellowing linseed with delicate cobalts???:confused:

Also wonder what to do with paintings with this ugly ‘cobalt’ darkening?…It seems permanent, and I’m no restorer, nor chemist.

[Anonymous]

Also wonder what to do with paintings with this ugly ‘cobalt’ darkening?…It seems permanent, and I’m no restorer, nor chemist.

Since using any other pigment is not an option,
There are only two things you could do to fix them.
Expose to light
Repaint them with a cobalt violet that does not darken.

I dont know why M. Harding and a number of others stick with so (permanently) yellowing linseed with delicate cobalts?

They simply prefer to use linseed oil rather than inferior binding oils.
As mentioned a number of times, in both this thread, and in the thread you posted a year ago about the very same thing, there are several other makers who make this color with other oils. That is pretty much all there is to it and there ain’t no more.

[Author]

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