These pigments, that is…
Color is all around us, often in synthesized shades and intensities that would befuddle our ancestors. However, the world before these new, chemically-derived pigments was far from monochrome. Humans have been experimenting with adding colors to our existing palette since well beyond the beginning of recorded history. Our eyes have the amazing ability to see a wide range of wavelengths of light, and the colors they’re interpreted as have been a part of the human story since beyond antiquity.
A new take on a color wheel using old colors
So first things first, in my opinion there’s a fuzzy line between natural and synthetic paints. Like many things, you tend to know it when you see it, but there are a fair few conflicting definitions that differentiate them. Humans have a knack for manipulating our environment, and all pigments tend to benefit from just a bit of meddling(1). In general, the differentiation that I generally accept is that naturally derived pigments are a material that exists in a natural state that can be turned into a usable paint through very few steps. Synthetic paints are derived via chemistry to combine elements that wouldn’t naturally occur. They also usually have absolutely bonkers names(2). Even by this definition, people have been making “synthetic,” paints for over 5000 years!
Natural pigments can come from three different sources. Minerals, plants(3), and animals are the three primary origins and were responsible for most(4) of the thousands and thousands of paintings, murals, drawings, and doodles that have been made and lost over the millennia.
Pigments derived from minerals include such hits as: ochres, siennas, and iron oxides. People figured out pretty early on that some simple processes could purify and intensify the colors that already existed, either through washing or roasting. Loamy earth could be processed into greens. Some clays into yellow. A good rule of thumb for these paints is that if it’s something you dig directly out from the earth, it’s usually an earth tone. Other minerals such as lapis lazuli and cobalt were expensive or dangerous to source but also provided vibrancy or shades we otherwise wouldn’t easily obtain until the industrial revolution(5).
Plants offer a huge variety of pigments than an artist can use to diversify their natural palette. If you(6) have ever encountered a pickled beet, you may know how much power plants can pack. Madder, woad, indigo, sumac, and even something as common as blueberries can be processed pretty easily to create colors that we recognize as alizarin, gamboge, and Indian yellow(7). Colors in this variety of source have been the most displaced by advances in synthetic pigments, largely due to their natural fugitive qualities(8).
Colors derived from animals are less numerous and aren’t exactly being actively innovated with(9). The only colors I could find that are still made and widely used are carmine, the natural variety of which is derived from an insect, and bone black, which I’m sure you can imagine the source of(10). In a world where we’re continuing to learn about the ecological impacts people have on the environment, it becomes increasingly difficult to justify the things needed to turn animals into paint(11).
So are naturally derived paints better or worse than synthetics? Where do we even draw the line between the two? After all, all the carbon chains and molecular gubbins(12) are just the result of more complex human interactions with elements that come from the world around us. Nothing is better or worse than anything else; some things are just better suited for particular projects. I hope this short article sparks some thought when you’re next looking to fill a hole in your palette!
(1) I promised myself I wouldn’t go into a huge rant about the difference between dyes and pigments in the main article, but I’m doing a short one down here since it’s always fascinated me. There, that’s it. That’s the whole rant. Brevity is the soul of wit.
(2) Phthalocyanine, quinacridone, dioxazine, and benzimidazolone don’t sounds like your standard, garden variety pigments.
(3) Ok, y’all I just stood at the precipice of a massive internet hole that I’m calling “Can you make pigments out of fungus?” and decided NOT to jump into it. The short answer is overwhelmingly yes. There’s a LOT of nerdy scientists out there (who we love and treasure as artists for giving us colorful presents) talking about this and the potential benefits.
(4) When I said earlier that people have been making synthetic pigments for over 5000 years, I was referring to Egyptian Blue. This color, called caeruleum by the Romans, fell out of use during the middle ages because helpful chemistry was put on hold in favor of gargling mercury and stuff. The chemical composition, CaCuSi4O10 or CaOCuO(SiO2)4 definitely doesn’t feel like something that’s dug up, strained, and dried and was a majorly cool thing. Progress isn’t linear. If those molecular gubbins got mixed up, blame squarespace and my brain made up significantly of freeze-dried ramen.
(5) Most good science has, unfortunately, historically been the result of capitalist greed or war. The industrial revolution saw not only changes in how science was practiced and codified, but also these powerful forces that drove it either intentionally or accidentally. Alas, science follows funding!
(6) Or an article of your clothing
(7) Unlike other plant-based pigments that were often grown, dried, and ground, Indian Yellow was instead processed by cows. It’s a kinda weird and wild adventure that lasted from 1883 until 2018. I didn’t really know whether to put this color under plant or animal derived because nature is weird and wild. You can read about it here: https://www.winsornewton.com/uk/articles/colours/spotlight-on-indian-yellow/
(8) The colors themselves aren’t criminals or on the run in particular, but they do fade more quickly under sunlight than their lightfast cousins. I stood on stood at the precipice of another massive internet hole that I’m calling “photochemisry and lightfastness,” and I accidentally dipped my toe in before remembering that’s not really what this article is about.
(9) It’s a hard sell in today’s age to swing “I decided to kill and crush up all these creatures and make paint out of them,” as an ecologically mindful thing.
(10) Hint: it’s bone. That’s been blackened. With fire.
(11) The famed Tyrian Purple, or Royal Purple, of the Roman emperors was labor intensive and would require as many as 250,000 shellfish in order to make one ounce of purple. It’s not hard, knowing what we know now, to imagine a better way of doing things.
(12) A technical term used by organic chemists, alchemists, and me