From: Katharine Thayer (kthayer@pacifier.com)
Date: 04/16/03-02:57:06 PM Z
Dave Rose wrote:
>
> Yes, there certainly are differences between the "same pigment" from
> different manufacturers, but I'm sure we can all agree that there's a huge
> difference between raw umber, carbon/lamp black, and cobalt blue no matter
> what the source. .
Goodness, I hope so! Not only can we easily distinguish raw umber from
carbon black and cobalt blue, we can also easily distinguish raw umber
from burnt umber, pthalo blue from cobalt from ultramarine, quinacridone
crimson from cadium red, etc, regardless of the source. My analogy
wasn't intended so much to suggest that examples of the same pigment
from different sources are as exactly alike as table salt from different
sources, as to make the general point that the same pigment from
different sources, like table salt from different sources, is much more
alike than it is different. In other words, no matter where it comes
from, sodium chloride is sodium chloride, and burnt umber is burnt
umber. Each pigment has its own particular characteristics and
appearance that is immediately recognizable to any artist who has spent
time with colors, and while there may be differences in color and
handling between the burnt umber from different purveyors and packaged
by different paint manufacturers, those differences hardly outweigh the
similarities, nor can they change the fundamental identity and
functionality of the pigment, which are determined by its chemical
composition. Not all bald eagles look exactly alike, not all great blue
herons look alike, not all peregrine falcons look alike, but when I see
a bird a mile off, I can tell just by how it flies whether it's an
eagle, a heron or a peregrine.
Nice gum prints, by the way Dave. When were you in the Hoh Rainforest?
It's just up the road a bit from me.
Katharine
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