Notebook

Notebook, 1993-

MATERIALS & METHODS - Pigments

Dyestuffs
A pigment imparts its color to paints by distributing its particles through a medium such as oil, the particles remaining suspended and undissolved in the medium. A dye, on the other hand , is a coloring agent that dissolves in a medium completely, leaving no trace of a particle structure. Most dyes are complex organic compounds. Some, such as carmine, which is made from an insect, come from natural sources. Others, such as alizarin, are synthetically made in the factory, frequently with coal tar as the source.

The principal objection to the use of a dyestuff in painting is that it will often "bleed" or "migrate." That is, if a layer of white paint is put over a dry layer of orange paint containing a dye, the white may become discolored by the orange dye. This may happen even when the white is put next to the orange dye.

[Kay, Reed. The Painter's Guide to Studio Methods and Materials. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1983.]














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