D001 D701 Crimson / Cramoisie - PR122 Quinacridone Magenta (organic, quinacridone), PR184 Permanent Rubine (organic, monoazo)

Series: A

Lightfast: **

Pigment 1: PR122 Quinacridone Magenta

Quinacridone Magenta came from a red violet aniline dye that was first produced in 1858 by Natanson. It was called Magenta to commemorate a battle in Magenta, Italy. Over time, Magenta became the standard colour name for a deep, violet red. Although quinacridone compounds became known in the late 19th century, manufacturing methods to make them practical for use as commercial pigments did not begin until the 1950s. PR122 has become particularly popular in the formulation of Magenta for CMYK process printing.

Pigment name: PR122 Quinacridone Magenta

Pigment Type: organic, quinacridone

Chemical Name: n/a

Properties: Quinacridone Magenta is a semi-transparent and powerful bluish red with an impressive mixing range. It makes an excellent glazing colour and is one of the bluest of the Quinacridone colours. The pigment's properties vary considerably, depending on how it is ground. Quinacridone pigments have relatively low tinting strength in general. For this reason, quinacridone colours are often expensive because more pigment is required in the formulation.

Permanence: Quinacridone Magenta offers excellent lightfastness in most media, but some have argued less lightfast in watercolour form. Although Quinacridone Magenta received only a passing grade of "fair" under ASTM test protocols, other test results have rated the pigment very good to excellent. Transparent reddish violet pigments, in general, have more problems with lightfastness than any different range of colours. PR122 has often been used as the Magenta of CMYK (four colours) process printing because it offers a better tradeoff between tinting strength and lightfastness than other pigments in its class.

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

Alternate Names: Acra Red, Quinacridone Violet (PV19), Thalo Red Rose.

Pigment 2: PR184 Permanent Rubine

Permanent Rubine is often used as a principal component of Magenta in process colour printing. It replaces the widely-used pigment Lithol Rubine (PR57:1) in applications where lightfastness is paramount.

Pigment name: PR184 Permanent Rubine

Pigment Type: organic, monoazo

Chemical Name: n/a

Properties: Permanent Rubine is a transparent, bluish red pigment with high tinting strength

Permanence: Although not absolutely permanent, pigment PR184 has excellent lightfastness and is considered superior to other comparable transparent red pigments.

Toxicity: Permanent Rubine has no acute toxicity.

Alternate Names: Permanent Rubine F6G, Rubine Red, Permanent Magenta.