R&F Encaustic Paint Block - Ultramarine Blue, 40 ml
The reddest, deepest Ultramarine we could find. Beautiful glazing colour.
- Pigment Composition: PB29-Ultramarine [Blue]
- Paint Lines: Encaustic, Pigment Stick
- Opacity: Transparent
- Lightfastness: 1-Excellent
- Pigment Stick Drying Rate: Medium
- Classification: Synthetic Inorganic
- Chemical Composition: Sodium aluminum sulfo-silicate
- Safety Information: Conforms to ASTM D-4236
Pigment Name: PB29-Ultramarine [Blue]
Classification: Synthetic Inorganic
Chemical Composition: Complex silicate of sodium and aluminum with sulphur
Properties
Ultramarine is the standard warm blue, a brilliant blue pigment with the most purple and least green in its undertone. It has a moderate to high tinting strength and beautiful transparency. Synthetic Ultramarine is not as vivid a blue as natural Ultramarine. Ultramarine dries slowly in oil and produces clean, though granular, washes in watercolour. French Ultramarine mixes well with Alizarin colours in oil and watercolour form to create a range of purples and violets. It cannot be very interesting when mixed with white in acrylic form, but it mixes well with other colours. The shade varies based on the manufacturer. Considered a great colour for glazes, it is not suitable for frescoing.
Permanence
Ultramarine has excellent permanence, although synthetic Ultramarine is less permanent than natural Ultramarine. Because of its sulfuric content, it may discolour if exposed to acid.
Toxicity
Ultramarine has no significant hazards.
History
The name for this pigment comes from the Middle Latin ultra, meaning beyond, and mare, meaning sea, because it was imported from Asia to Europe by sea. It is a prominent component of lapis lazuli and was used on Asian temples starting in the 6th century. It was one of the most expensive pigments in 16th century Europe, worth twice its weight in gold, and so was used sparingly and when commissions were larger. Ultramarine is currently imitated by a process invented in France in 1826 by Jean Baptiste Guimet, making blue affordable to artists and extending the range of colours on their palettes.
