New Colors II: Violet PV-19

Time for an update on the Caesar Purple/PV-19 confusion.

If you remember the color chart I made from all of my oil paints with the color index name of PV-19, Caesar Purple was much bluer than the others.

I did a bit more reading and discovered that there are two versions of PV-19:  a red and a violet.  So, I ordered some other brands of the violet PV-19.  Here is the color chart that includes Caesar Purple and the other new violets that arrived last week:

Color Chart for Violet PV-19 - Oil
Various Manufacturers

And here is the previous mostly red PV-19 Color Chart

Color Chart for (mostly) Red PV-19 - Oil
Various Manufacturers

You can see that color-wise, the violet PV-19 is pretty much the same for all of the manufacturers that I sampled.  The same goes for the red PV-19.

However, each manufacturer has its own formula for creating tube colors with different working characteristics, and, of course, each manufacturer has its own purchase price.  Here is a break down of the prices for the violet PV-19 tubes I recently purchased, most of them on sale:
                                             Purchase Price    Size of Tube (mL)      Price/mL
Schmincke-Mussini                   $ 15.57                     35                    $  0.44  
M. Graham Co.                             9.59                      37                        0.25
Rembrandt                                   13.35                    40                        0.33
Gamblin                                         9.57                    37                       0.29
Blick                                            22.25                    40                       0.56

The point of this exercise is to demonstrate that manufacturers who use the color index classification system are making paint that is consistent in color at vastly different prices.  So why buy the most expensive brand when the least expensive will do the trick?  You may prefer the working characteristics of the costlier paint, and that may make it worthwhile to you.

As for me, I now have plenty of violet PV-19 on hand, so I think I am set for the rest of my life a while.  I will eventually do this exercise for other paints in my collection, but it's time for me to get back to the easel!

New Color? It's all in a name!

When I recently shopped online for more tubes of paint, I discovered a color made by Schmincke Mussini called "Caesar Purple".   It sounded interesting and unlike anything I had, so I ordered a tube since it was on sale.

Caesar Purple

(FYI:  My background is in the technical and scientific community.  I have always loved research, number crunching, and discovering what the foundation of a product is.)

Apparently, Caesar Purple was nothing new to my palette. According to the ASTM label, the color index name is PV-19, or Quinacridone Violet.  I purchased this online, and this information was not provided on the website.  If it had been, it's unlikely I would have ordered it.

It turns out that I already had FOUR tubes of paint with the PV-19 designation:  Gamblin's Radiant Magenta (which is mixed with Titanium White), Gamblin's Quinacridone Red, Grumbacher's Thalo Red Rose; and Winsor Newton's Permanent Rose.  And there probably are duplicates of these lurking in the studio somewhere...

Silly me!  I was charmed by the name of the product, and it's obvious that I love this color.  Why else would I now have FIVE tubes of it?

To compare the different brands, I charted them out.

Color Chart
Various Brands of Tube Paint Pigment PV-19

It's obvious that four of the rows match up (the bottom row, Radiant Magenta, has that white premixed with it).  But, wait a minute!  Caesar Purple (the middle) looks very different from the other tubes of PV-19.  It has a lot more blue to it.  What is going on here?  Has it been mislabeled by the manufacturer?  What aren't they telling me? An investigation into this anomaly has begun, and I will revisit this in a future post.

Even though it is labeled with the same color index name, it looks like Caesar Purple really is something new to my collection.

PV-19 is a useful color for me, working its way into the background shadows, tempering the brightness from yellows and yellow-greens.

And, I guess I'd better use up my current supply before I order any more.

Which brings me to my next point:  Manufacturers' Labels

Most of the manufacturers do provide the ASTM color index names on their paint tubes, which allows you, the artist, to see what pigment you are really getting.  Try to ignore the fancy names (NOT what I did!), and stick to the numbering system.  More information about this can be found in Michael Wilcox's excellent reference books on color - information available on the website at schoolofcolor.com, where you can purchase all sorts of terrific reference materials, as well as his signature paints.

And, yes, there are some manufacturers out there who do not identify their colors with the color index names printed on the paint tubes.  Even though I occasionally buy a color on a whim (Caesar Purple, anyone?), I prefer to know what I really am buying.

Preliminary Gamblin Paint Review

I like the new Gamblin "radiant" colors so much that I ordered the rest of the radiant palette.  They arrived last week (along with a few other colors I needed to refill). So here is the complete Radiant color palette from Gamblin:

I've been going through the Gamblin paints website and have found that there is some very good information for oil painters.  I've marked it as one of my favorite sites, so that I can return to it quickly in the future.

Getting new materials for painting is always an exciting adventure for me.  These paints are great, with a smooth buttery texture that I love.  They are made of quality pigments (referencing the Wilcox ratings), so permanence is assured.  These have a luminosity of "7" and, so, are good for the higher key portions of a painting, or a way to introduce light into darker passages.  The Gamblin "Radiants" have found their way onto my palette.

Radiant Smiley Face C:

Cheers!

New Paints!

One of the first things I do whenever I get a batch of new paint colors is spread them onto a palette and play with them. I was so excited to get some new Gamblin oils yesterday.

Gamblin Colors

These are not a brand that I usually paint with, but there were some interesting colors I wanted to try.

Gamblin Whites & Torrit Grey (2012)

Sometimes when I order a new color, I am sadly disappointed when I open the tube and spread out the paint.

Palette with New Gamblin Paints!

Alas, it was too late last night to begin painting, so I'm up early today.  I can't wait to get started! For those of you who are interested, here is a link to the Gamblin website. I know I will be returning to it often.