Why Colors You See in an Art Museum Can’t Be Replicated Today

[theHandpuppet]

Why Colors You See in an Art Museum Can’t Be Replicated Today
A look into the history of the pigments used in spectacular art
By Victoria Finlay
smithsonian.com
November 14, 2014

(excerpt)

“We’ve been desperately trying to find someone who can handblow glass unevenly,” she said. “But they’re all too good. We haven’t found anyone yet.”

Yet it is this uneven surface, and the impurities that were mixed with the coloring elements—cobalt for blue, manganese for purple, gold for pure red—that make the shimmers that have captivated me for years, going back to that day at Chartres.

The stories of colors burst with improbable details. Vivid red comes from cochineal, extracted from South American bugs whose brilliant red pigment was once so valuable that people danced in the streets when they arrived twice a year into the port of Seville. Lead white—now banned for toxicity in the U.S.—was derived from lead corroded through contact with acid and manure. Prussian blue was created by accident when an alchemist tried to make red. And all the “coaltar” colors with which most of our clothes are dyed today were discovered by a teenager who made a mistake in his chemistry homework.

There is a common thread in the whole history of color in art, as I saw in those cathedral windows that first started me on this lifelong journey: the vital role played by imperfection, accident, and vulnerability in the striving for perfection. The windows of Chartres were made 800 years ago by itinerant craftsmen who traveled from cathedral to cathedral, living close to forests to have ample supplies of wood, and who no doubt told stories as they made their bumpy glass, full of dust motes and bits of leaves—imperfections that make it all the more glorious....

Read more: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/why-colors-you-see-art-museum-cant-be-replicated-today-180953332/#XxBA28p4cHlLkBpx.99

[woodsprite]

1. Thanks for posting!

I've bookmarked it for my daughter. She's an art conservation major and has been working with grinding and extracting pigments from lapis lazuli, malachite, etc., wax paintings, and working with lead white in her studio classes. Her one professor was trying to help her recreate the red of the giraffe's bridle in "Sala di Lorenzo il Magnifico" by Vasari. She came close, but not quite. Looked great when it went on, but as it dried, it turned more of a burgundy color.

[theHandpuppet]

2. It seems fewer and fewer people are going in to art conservation

Depending on the works being restored, the chemicals involved can be quite nasty. This seems especially true in print restoration. I really admire folks who have mastered the techniques.

[woodsprite]

3. She has found she's most interested in ceramics and mosaics, but just

signed up for courses in digital preservation, in-painting, and an internship in bookbinding. It'll be interesting to see what those classes hold.

I was really surprised that when they renovated their building that they didn't put fume hoods and a stronger ventilation system in. They have to take breaks when working with some of the more noxious thinners, solvents,
etc. For the really heavy duty stuff, they go to chem labs across campus.

[mopinko]

4. an old bbc show called connections

was one of my kids favorite history shows, back in the day. seriously interesting look at the history of inventions, mostly. but really looking at what led to innovations, which sometimes are presented as just popping up. but he really looked at all the crazy things that sometimes lead to innovation.
one i remember in particular was about ink. the basic story was that when they first started using gas for lighting, and manufacturing, they were just using gas vented from coal mines. this "town gas" was very contaminated. when they burning it they got lots of residue. in an effort to keep the enterprise profitable, they started looking at these residues.
and from there the whole german chemical industries of the early 19th century were born.
turns out there were tons of colorants in that gas.

learned about a lot of this color chemistry because potters have to know that stuff. same chemicals in ink and paint these days.

[LibArts]

5. Anyone still breathing on this thread?

I read the previous posts and found it interesting to fascinating.

Best wishes