Watercolor Dirtbag
Naples yellow was historically made from lead-tin yellow (PY41), a toxic pigment that has fallen out of favor since the late 19th century when synthetic replacements began to overtake it. Presently, watercolors sold as Naples Yellow are either mixes (usually involving cadmium orange and white), or they’re made from PBr24. That’s what I’ll be looking at today. It’s an opaque, butter-yellow pigment that looks to me like a brighter version of Yellow Ochre.
Raw Sienna is one of the traditional earth tones made from PBr7. It’s an earth yellow-orange, more yellow than Burnt Sienna but typically more orange than Yellow Ochre (PY42). Comparison to Other Colors Da Vinci – Raw Sienna Deep (PY42) This isn’t actually Raw Sienna – it’s a yellow ochre pigment (PY42 or synthetic yellow … Read more
Yellow ochre is the most yellow of the earth tones, usually made from PY42 (synthetic yellow iron oxide) or PY43 (natural yellow iron oxide). Experiment Results Yellow ochres can have a wide variety of characteristics; some are granulating and some non-, some are more opaque than others. The color can also vary with some being … Read more
This question has been asked to me multiple times, so I decided it’s time for a post!
We’ve reached the final stretch! I’ll finish up the DV dot cards today by exploring the earth tones (DV has some of my favorites!) and neutrals like black, white, and gray. I’ll also answer the question: which Da Vinci colors are not in this dot card set?
I like granulation now, so this is part of my effort to revisit colors I previously wrote off because of the granulation. Last week, I did Potter’s Pink for the same reason.
Goethite Brown Ochre is a highly granulating, low-tinting-strength yellow ochre, made with the traditional yellow ochre pigment PY 43. Jane Blundell includes it as one of the fourteen colors in her Ultimate Mixing Palette.
It’s no secret that my favorite earth yellow is Daniel Smith’s Monte Amiata Natural Sienna (PBr7). But I also like a yellow ochre; for example, Holbein’s Yellow Ochre (PY42). They’re so similar that I wouldn’t want to have both in my palette at the same time, so which should I choose? Which is better in which situation?
Jane Blundell’s Ultimate Mixing Palette includes the highly granulating ochre Goethite Brown Oxide (PY43), with Monte Amiata Natural Sienna (PBr7) listed as an alternative. But what’s the difference between these two colors?
