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Saturday 19th November 2022 - Aureolin
£220.00
W 420mm x H 297mm watercolour on 300gsm paper, unframed.
This small watercolour landscape is built from the interaction of two pigments: Prussian blue and Aureolin yellow. While Prussian blue has been a staple of the artist’s palette since the early 18th century, Aureolin represents a later development in the evolution of yellow pigments. Introduced in 1831, Aureolin (cobalt yellow) gradually replaced Gamboge - a natural, resin-based pigment long favoured for its warm, transparent glow but known to darken and become unstable over time.
Historically, yellow in painting shifted dramatically from the use of earth-based pigments such as yellow ochre and yellow iron oxides—reliable but muted - to more luminous and exotic options. Gamboge, sourced from the resin of Southeast Asian trees, offered a cleaner and more transparent hue and became a dominant choice for watercolourists through the 18th and early 19th centuries, despite its tendency to fade.
The introduction of Aureolin marked a turning point. As a synthetic, more stable yellow, it allowed painters to work with a cool, daylight-leaning luminosity that held its chroma over time.
Historically, yellow in painting shifted dramatically from the use of earth-based pigments such as yellow ochre and yellow iron oxides—reliable but muted - to more luminous and exotic options. Gamboge, sourced from the resin of Southeast Asian trees, offered a cleaner and more transparent hue and became a dominant choice for watercolourists through the 18th and early 19th centuries, despite its tendency to fade.
The introduction of Aureolin marked a turning point. As a synthetic, more stable yellow, it allowed painters to work with a cool, daylight-leaning luminosity that held its chroma over time.
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