During the Western Renaissance, new exciting artists' pigments appear in brilliant colors, vibrant scarlet red, deep rich blue, scintillating yellow. Pigments must be ground to powder to mix with egg, oil or other medium. This leads to centuries of new and creative ways to die.
The Renaissance is an age in which doctors learn astrology and astrologers practice alchemy and alchemists make medicine. The sun and all the planets revolve around the earth, and garlic stops magnets from working.
A revolution of arts and architecture, it's also a dangerous time. Copernicus, sitting on his secret for forty years, releases his concept of a heliocentric planetary system on his deathbed in 1548. It's said the final two printed pages are presented to him just before he dies.
During the Renaissance oil paints are made of pigment powder added to oil, usually linseed oil. Walnut oil might be used for superior luminosity in white pigments. Artists might heat the oil to make the paint more resilient when dry, less likely to shrink and crack when dried.
Tempera is also widely used by Medieval and Renaissance artists especially for large pieces like altars and wooden walls. Tempera uses egg yolk instead of oil as the binder. Egg tempera is the main painting method up to c. 1500 AD when oils are more popular. It's still used today.
Artists using egg tempera sometimes add honey to keep the paint from drying too quickly. Unlike oil painting, in which oil and water don't mix, water can be added to egg tempera to thin the paint.
Crazy artists and mad scientists become stereotypes based on manufacturing and working with toxic constituents such as lead, arsenic or cyanide. I8th century doctor Bernardinus Ramazzini is first to suggest the illness of artists and workers may be pigment poisoning.
He writes:
“Of the many painters I have known, almost all I found unhealthy … If we search for the cause of the cachectic and colorless appearance of the painters, as well as the melancholy feelings that they are so often victims of, we should look no further than the harmful nature of the pigments…”
Vibrant yellow orpiment is an arsenic mineral. Valued as pigments, the vivid yellow powders of orpiment enthrall Renaissance painters. Besides their toxic nature, these yellows darken over time to an unimpressive green. Orpiment is also an ingredient in alchemical gold-making.
Orpiment, or ″yellow arsenic blende″ occurs in fumaroles, low-temperature hydrothermal veins and hot springs. It can form through sublimation. Latin auripigmentum (aurum, "gold" + pigmentum "pigment") refers to its intense yellow color and a historical belief it contains gold.
The Greek for orpiment is arsenikon, deriving from the Greek word arsenikos, meaning "male", from the belief metals are of different sexes, a theory promoted by Alexandrian alchemist Mary the Jewess. The Greek term is first used in the fourth century BCE.
Vermillion (Vermilion), a brilliant shade of red obtained from the mineral cinnabar, is prized for its intense and luminous quality. Vermillion is a color family and pigment most often used between antiquity and the 19th century.
It's made from mineral cinnabar, or mercury sulfide HgS). It is synonymous with red orange, which often takes a modern form, but is 11% brighter (at full brightness). Vermilion (cinnabar). Vermilion is not one specific hue.
Mercuric sulfides make a range of warm hues, from bright orange-red to a duller reddish-purple that resembles fresh liver. Differences in hue are caused by the size of the ground particles of pigment. Larger crystals produce duller and less orange hues.
Cinnabar, the source of vermillion, is a major exploit of the ancient Romans in the Spanish mines of Almadén. Due to the toxic nature of mining and processing cinnabar, the workers are slaves and convicts. Romans and later Christian owners consider this divine justice.
Creating these colors involves alchemical techniques, experiments and accidents. Alchemists expand the color palettes of artists, contributing to the cultural and aesthetic richness of the Renaissance period.
Artists may buy their colors pre-ground but it's best for quality standards to purchase the raw minerals and grind them at the studio. Artists and apprentices ingest toxins in the air, by breathing, handling or consuming them.
Lead white is widely used since the early centuries AD. The stack process is the conventional technique used to produce this pigment. Workers bury earthenware pots filled with vinegar and lead in a layer of tan bark or cow dung for slow heating.
Much as in production of verdigris, the lead is held above the vinegar so the metal is exposed to the acidic vapor, accelerated by gentle heat. This reaction causes white residue to form on the lead. It's then scraped off. Lead white is used to make minium, or red lead.
Minium red is another color championed by artists and alchemists for its rich and deep tone. This fiery red pigment was often used in illuminated manuscripts and religious art due to its glowing tones, hence original meaning of the term "miniatures".
To make lead red, lead white is put into a ceramic crucible in a pre-heated furnace at 300º C. The temperature is slowly increased to 475º C. After 24 hours of heating, the crucible is cooled to room temperature, showing formation of red lead. The color is ground to pigment.
According to scientists there are no save levels of lead. Like arsenic it builds up in the body. The slow process can take months or years and causes nerve damage and chronic sickness in children and adults, leading to seizures and death.
The story of Prussian blue is well known. Johann Diesbach, a pigment maker in Berlin, is making red when he runs out of potash, a necessary ingredient. He sends a message to alchemist Johann Dippel, who comes by with the substance.
When they add it to the mixture, it turns purple, then deep rich blue instead of the bright red they are expecting. The potash is contaminated with Dippel's bone oil, a substance made from animal bones.
Cyanide is a highly toxic chemical compound produced during the manufacture of Prussian blue. The name "cyanide" originates from the Greek for dark blue. Cyanide causes death by interfering with the body's ability to use oxygen.
Verdigris is a captivating blue-green pigment that is derived from the natural patina formed on the surface of copper over time. This unique pigment has been utilized for centuries in various artistic and decorative applications due to its striking color and intriguing origin.
The formation of verdigris occurs with chemical reactions of copper, oxygen, and moisture, resulting in beautiful hues ranging from aqua, deep turquoise and vibrant emerald. The patina takes years to develop naturally. It is mildly toxic but has been known to cause death.
To hasten creation of pigment, makers use vessels containing acid such as vinegar or urine, place the copper above it and cover the pot. Verdigris grows into a major export centered in Montpelier, France. Much like brewing, the verdigris making can be done in the home.
It becomes a creation of women. Not only do Montpelier women make verdigris, they form trade networks for the product. When their efforts prove profitable, authorities start inspections of verdigris making facilities, ostensibly to stop fraud, and production moves to other cities.
Cobalt is once used as a stabilizer in beer foam. It caused a condition called "beer-drinker's heart," which resulted in heart muscle weakness. Cobalt blue, a strikingly vibrant pigment, gains popularity among artists during the Renaissance period.
Cobalt blue is known for toxic properties, posing health risks to those who handle it. Like Prussian blue cobalt is used in some medicines. It's one of the less toxic elements but can cause skin problems and respiratory damage. It can affect heart, liver, kidneys and thyroid.
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