Week 4

 

Paint & Pigment (Janet Miller Lecture)

Gina Christopher

Language of Color

Primary Colors: Red, yellow, blue

Secondary Colors: Green, orange, and violet 

Tertiary Colors: Made up of secondary colors 

Warm Colors: Yellow, Orange, Violet 

Cool Colors: Green, blue, violet 

Every color has a mass tone and an undertone. The mass tone is the color that you see and the undertone is the color that makes it warmer or cooler. The closer the undertone is to the mass tone, the truer the color will appear. 

Metamerism is the phenomenon that occurs when color changes under a different light source. 

Light reflective value measures the amount of light a paint color reflects. The scale goes from 0 (absorbs all light) to 100 (reflects all light). Refraction is the angle at which light bounces off an object causing different color impressions. 

Pigment & Color History 

Red (A lot of red dyes come from the earth)

Carmine -  bright red that comes from the scales of cochineal insects 

Madder - Traditional vegetal source of red pigment 

Blue (Write notes on blue paper to remember important things!)

Blue pigments were only affordable to the wealthy. 

Azurite was used by Egyptians 

Indigo was Greeks and Romans 

Yellow (plant based pigments)

Yellow Orchre is the oldest yellow pigment, originally used for cave paintings and body decoration

Green

Buckthorn is a plant based pigment that is more transparent

Viridian, Terre verte, and Malachite come from an oxidation, the more they are exposed to weathering the more green they become.

Orange 

Realgar was used for trade in the ancient Roman Empire

Cadmium orange is the most bright 

Carnelian is an earthy orange

Purple 

Tyrian purple (One gram of dye is made from the secretion of 10,000 sea snails)

Hermatite manganese is the oldest purple pigment

Also a luxury color!

Black 

Vine black was traditionally produced by charring withered grape vines and stems 

Bone black is an impure black carbon pigment prepared from charred bone 

Vantablack is the world’s darkest black and it the darkest man made substance ever made. 

Brown (if you wear brown people will talk to you!)

Umber has earth tones from cream to brown 

Sepia is a reddish-brown from the ink shape of the cuttlefish 

White 

Lead white is one of the oldest and is not safe to use anymore 

Zinc is a cold white 

Titanium white is the strongest white 

Pigments and Performance 

Pigments give paint hide, durability, fade resistance and gloss. 

Hide is the ability to obscure the surface upon which it is applied. “Dirtier” colors tend to offer better hide in fewer coats. High-quality paints and optimal primer can help you achieve deep, clear, bright and translucent colors.Durability is measured by how well the paint film resists physical degration.  Fade resistance is typically referred to for exterior paints and coating. Gloss and sheen are two aspects of the same thing but they measured at different angles. Gloss is measured at a 60 free and sheen is measure at an 85 degree angle. 

Paint Basics 

Solvents, Binder, Additives, and Pigments are an included in a can of paint. 

Colorants contain primary color pigments compounded and dispersed into liquid. Colorants are added when purchases, in accordance with a manufacturer’s color formula.

Washable flat finish gives exceptional hide and a great finish. Great in high traffic areas, schools, etc.

Odor- ElimaintngTechnologies to help improve indoor air quality such as pets, smoking, etc. Great for kitchens, kids rooms, and gyms.

Moisture resistant technology will resist mold and mildew growth. This is very effective in bathrooms, lower levels, etc.

Interior water based acrylic- alkyd enamel is a water and oil based. This is helpful for trim, cabinets and other areas. 

Water based Urethane Alkyd Trim Enamel has a smooth finish but has a hard finish. This is helpful for intense saturated colors and gives a great gloss. This is a good option for exterior and interior. 

Primers

Primer is used on top of existing finish before you put a new color. Formulated to assure adhesion, block stains, resist corrosion, and acts as a surface filler. Primer will hide the existing color so that your new color can shine! Grey primer is a great choice for covering vibrant colors.

Sketch book #5

I really liked this sketch book assignment, it was fun rough sketching an interior just based on shading and shadows and light.

Wallpaper Assignment 

I had a lot of fun doing this assignment, I also highly recommend the ciao Copic markers, they are so smooth!