From: Judy Seigel (jseigel@panix.com)
Date: 07/19/01-12:44:43 PM Z
On Wed, 18 Jul 2001, Mac Legrandi wrote:
> I am trying to a chieve some of those muted tones from the turn of the
> century (1900 not 200:-).
They weren't really muted in the sense of *pale,* because Pictorialists
did some strongly toned works, tho definitely muted in hue: they would
have thought any photograph in the poison purples and greens for instance
of McDermott & Mcgough -- in fact the whole gamut of today's colors -- was
HOPELESSLY UNSPEAKABLY vulgar.
The most usual classic color for gum was black (which beats me, why
bother?), but those who did multi-coat (a controversy, like the big enders
& the little enders) often tinted the blacks for different layers, eg,
warmed with brown for highlights, cooled for shadows...
> For example a subtle olive green tone.
Try burnt sienna in indigo -- but it depends which make of each: indigos
vary. Or try orange... but easy on the indigo: it's like Altoids,
strangely strong.
> Just so I don't waste a lot of time is the technique to achieve a
> subtly tone to mix a small amount of a color with black? Making a
> tinted black?
Mac, you know perfectly well that gum printing is ITSELF a "waste of time"
-- but so is life, & both are sublime on a good day.
I, sadly, have had little luck with black -- except when I do. Just
finished a print that I ruined with a 3rd coat in black, then did a yellow
over it -- &, as "President" Bush would say: "amazing" ! Which means of
course I'll have to do it again & wreck more prints. However, if you
want a *particular* black... watch out. Even with the same name,
different manufacturers put in different ingredients. The one I just did
was in fact Neutral Tint, which actually has no black in it but (according
to Wilcox) combines 2 other colors, I think a red & a blue, tho I seem to
repeat myself (think I said that last month).
> Or should I just use a tiny amount of pigment with more clear gum?
Check tone by brushing out a bit of the color in gum before adding
dichromate -- will be maybe half that strength diluted 1 to 1 with
dichromate. But each pigment has a different "covering power." Indigo for
instance is so strong you can never use more than "tiny." Other colors
are almost not there, for instance Rowney Rose. (Tho that also depends on
how much pigment the mfr has put into the tube & how much filler.)
Still, using more or less paint affects only the intensity, the *chroma*
is essentually the same. For muted *color*, try adding a complement, eg, a
small amount of reddish color in a greenish or bluish one (like the
Impressionists, who banished black).
> I don't have it but how useful is Neutral Tone watercolor?
Neutral tint is popular today in lieu of black. I suspect, incidentally,
that whether or not early blacks were the same as today's chemicals, they
took differently on those papers. For instance we generally use a gelatin
size & Pictorialists used starch, or no added size -- which could account
for all sorts of differences. BUT -- if you find a good black for
gelatin, will you send word?
cheers,
Judy
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