From: lva (lva@pamho.net)
Date: 10/02/01-03:19:26 PM Z
Richard Sullivan wrote:
> Not that anyone here might ever encounter it but if anyone comes
> across red mercuric oxide in a vein, roasting it will release fuming
> mercury. Not good to breathe. Possible problems with arsenic compounds
> as well. The iron based ochres and oxides are no problem. Just thought
> I'd mention it since it is possible to find any number of heavy metal
> compounds in rock veins.
You're right. One has to be very careful with those fumes. I think from
now on I'll do the roasting outside.
> I'll check on your order. Foreign shipments got all tangled up a few
> weeks ago and I think the backlog is now clearing. Air shipments were
> a mess and I am sure you are well aware of the circumstances.
Why? What happened? Just kidding.
> In what way is your home made pigment better than store bought? Color,
> less staining? or ?
They aren't better than, say, Kremer's powder pigments (at least not
yet!!). But I'm surprised that I get such brilliance and luster from
Scandinavian ore rocks, stuff I've found more or less by accident a few
hundred yards from here. Of course, mining and grinding my own pigments
makes me more conscious and appreciative of pigments and color in
general.
There is one thing, though, that I am wondering about. To produce
ochres, siennas and umbers on a commercial basis, the companies involved
in this probably cannot take pigment straight from the veins. It would
become much too expensive. So I have the suspicion that if I get to a
site where a beautiful pigment is being produced commercially and I get
access to a vein where the pigment is in its pure state, I could get a
superior powder pigment. Or?
Next week I'll be in Sardinia to check out the Sardines and their
pigments. Maybe I'll find something interesting.
Also, I CAN'T STAND BIG-TIME INDUSTRY! What's the use of all these
gigantic machines producing day and night while millions of people are
jobless. I like cottage industry. Less greed. More fun. I don't want a
robot produce my shoes. I want a guy doing that, a guy who LIKES making
shoes, a guy who's proud of being a good shoemaker. Back to a society
that's based on agriculture I say! Hold it, hold it. We're getting
OT....
> Ever seen a Hegman gauge or know if you can buy one cheap? This is the
> tool used to measure pigment grain size. I've never seen one but I've
> seen the nice mahogany boxes they come in which leads me to think
> they're not cheap.
Must be that block of steel with a gauged groove that gets thinner and
thinner. You put the pigment in the groove, use a scraper, and where you
start seeing marks from the pigment, that spot indicates the size of the
largest particle. Yes, they seem quite expensive.
> http://www.bostick-sullivan.com/Technical_papers/gum_arabic.htm
Very interesting. Is your gum from Sudan? BTW, did you know that the gum
you sell is much faster than Winsor&Newton's and Schmincke's?
> Your story is fascinating and I'd like to share it on my web site. Can
> I put it up?
Of course.
> Would you care to expand on it?
I've got a hundred things to do before I head for Sardinia, so there's
not much time for expansion. But you know what would interest me? I'd
like to find a way to make Green Earth pigments darker. The print I've
made the other day with a blue-green Cyprian green earth powder pigment
(OD'd the pigment brutally) came out very nice, but I'd still like to
have it darker. Any idea? Maybe one can burn it???
Greetings
Brahma
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