*Videos coming next* include: Schmincke Shire & Desert Super Granulating, 2021/22 New Roman Szmal Watercolors, PR108 and Top Lightfast Vermilion Orange-Reds Spotlight! After that I'll be catching up on some lightfast test results, doing some fun DIY mixture and binder experiments and showing off some of Prodigal Son's rare historical pigments. Prodigal Son's Artists Pigments is on Etsy at www.etsy.com/shop/ProdigalSonsPigments?coupon=KIM10 NOTE: I am not affiliated with this shop, I was not paid for this review. I do love his paints though and have given him permission to use my swatch card images and art in his Etsy listings. Happy painting everyone :)
Oh you have opened up Pandora's Box for me! Their shop has the most fascinating collection of pigments and watercolors. I'm geeking out over them! But now I need to figure out the difference between Smalt 200s and 400s. Any recommendations of a good website video that would explain it?
@@kristiw.1823 The smalt options are both PB32, the same pigment, but finer or coarser ground pigment powders. If you want a nice deep blue that is more well behaved, the 400 was easier to paint with and had a more standard sort of granulation. However, the coarse 200s was actually my favorite despite being a gritty sort of sandy feeling (cobalt glass is basically like painting with sand - a silicate). The beauty of Smalt 200s is that the color is even deeper (most pigments become more pale the tinier the particle size) and its chunky particles sparkle when light catches them - you might be able to see what I mean around 9:19 in the video. I will be doing a video spotlight all about smalt because I just LOVE it as a unique feeling pigment that just can't be replaced. Hope that helps :)
Thanks for this, a lot of details about Manganese Blue I never knew before. And YES, would absolutely love a series from you on the history of specific pigments with examples of the artwork made from them.
Ditto! This has been one of my favorite "side quests" about picking up watercolors 2 years ago. There is so much to learn and explore, when it comes to pigments!
Okay yes! Gregory, the owner of Prodigal Sons, is such a fantastic person. Ive purchased from him dozens of times and EVERYTHING ive ever purchased from him has been top of the line, shipped quickly and priced incredibly fairly!! Ive never had issues with any of my purchases but I began to reach out to him about a year ago asking questions about paint making and his historic and rare pigments and hes spent hours of his precious time sharing his knowledge of minerals, pigments and even some pigment chemistry; ensuring all my questions were thoroughly answered! He, Gregory, makes wonderful paint, some of the most pigmented and beautiful Cobalt colors Ive ever used!! His Cobalt Violets, Cerulean and Vivianite are just incredibly amazing-which tend to be lackluster in many other brands BUT NOT Prodigal Sons, his are highly pigmented and beautifully granulating. I cannot praise this shop enough, my experiences have been top of the line and Ill continue to shop Prodigal Sons until well...I have everything his shop sells...lol. Anyway Great review, I agree with everything you said about Prodigal Sons in this video, I like the jdea of adding a little gum arabic to increase transparency(if that is what one is after), I add a little Ox gall sometimes so the paint just spreads that beautiful granulation wild and loose--I love how versatile his paint is. Thanks for sharing, i cant wait to see your future video(s) on the rest of the Prodigal Sons colors!!💙💚
Thank you for alerting me to this source of ready made Manganese Blue. I have been making my own but only have a bit over 10kg of the pigment left and it needs to last me the rest of my life. It has been my favorite basic sky mixing blue since the 1970's. I need to correct what you said about the last production being in Germany. I remember it well and the shock of the factory closure. The last factory was Cooke Colourworks and I do believe it was located in the UK. As far as I know it was also the first factory making it with production starting in 1935. The pigment was first synthesised in 1869 and its bright blue color was noted but nothing further happened. In 1907 it was first listed as a pigment but with no large scale production. It was not patented until 1935 when Cooke started production. It's main use was as a colorant for cement used in swimming pools as it resisted direct sunlight as well as chlorine chemicals. It wasn't until the 1980's that potential health effects were identified in regard to swimming pool cement (not so much in the swimming pools but in worker exposure at the cement manufacturing plants) and it was withdrawn from sale leaving artists colors as the only remaining consumer of the pigment. It was a tiny factory making just two colors, both toxic. It was owned by a larger conglomerate which was purchased in the 1990's. The new company wanted the other pigment manufacturing factories that produced large quantities of industrial scale pigment, and couldn't see any sense in investing in needed upgrades to the small Cooke Colourworks factory making Manganese Blue because its only market was small quantities for artists colors. So they closed it. Following the closure Old Holland made about half a ton of it at their premises, in a deal with Kremer who sent a car with trailer to the Netherlands and shoveled the trailer full, and drove it back to Germany as their share. It is this stock of Manganese Blue that they made in-house that allowed Old Holland to continue production of the color long after most other manufacturers had migrated to hue mixtures. It is sad that they chose not to make any more. My own stock is a mixture of the last of Cookes production, plus a smaller portion from the Old Holland made pigment bought shortly after they made it in the 90's.
To clarify the statement "German factories continued to manufacture (IT) from old stock until the 1990s" this is in regards to the lingering large-scale availability of PB33 based (PAINT) which continued to be made using existing pigment powder stock. The primary focus of this video is about world-wide availability of ready-made paint, including noting Old Holland and DaVinci as being the most recent sources aside from handmade paint makers. I did not go into the location or names of historical factories producing the raw ingredients. Kremer definitely may have been one of the German companies to continue to make paint, possibly using stock obtained from more than just Cooke's factory closing. The Color Index and the historical "Pigment Compendium" book both note Farbwerke Franz Rasquin GmbH and G. Siegle & Co. GmbH as German manufacturers in the 1970s, later acquired by BASF - which may also have been contributing to paint production in later years. There may have been other locations in the world attempting to maintain production after Cooke's closed. According to Gamblin (a paint company offering limited amounts of PB33 as a conservation fine art restoration supply throughout the early 2000s), they said factories were producing Manganese Blue Genuine in Besigheim & Stuttgart Germany, but "by the early 1990s the production had reputedly ceased because the German government required the manufacturers to reduce the toxicity of the preparation process". Unfortunately in historical references for manganese blue, I was not able to find any mention of Cooke's Colorworks location, date of closure or which big company took them over - but it's nice to hear about their story. Thanks for sharing :)
@@KimberlyCrick During the period when Manganese Blue was being used for cement coloring it was made in many factories, particularly in Germany, and it was these factories which ceased production one by one in the late 80's through the early 90's until the only remaining factory was the small Cooke Colourworks which was supplying artists paint manufacturers and was able to survive and was not subject to German restrictions. However there was an understanding that the factory would have to be significantly upgraded to meet British and EU labour laws regarding worker safety which the new owners were not prepared to do, but the closure did not happen until the late 90's. Unfortunately Cookes little factory seems to have slipped through the cracks of history. Too small, and too unimportant to have been noticed by any of the bigger players. There are many unexplainable curiosities about this pigment. Made in small quantities since 1869, on a smallish factory scale since 1907, and yet not patented until 1935. It's history suggests that few people took it seriously until the cement industry became involved and that after the cement industry stopped using it, it went back to being unimportant. It points out just how small the artists paint industry is and how little it matters in the wider world of pigment manufacturing. Because Kremer was selling Manganese Blue pigment and suppling paint manufacturers long after the closure of the last factory may lead some people to conclude that the pigment was made in Germany. Since the pigment is not all that difficult to make I live in hope that someone might make some more. I was told in the 90's by the older person at Parkers Fine Art, that when he was a kid that the pigment became scarce (because of Second World War) and that he helped his parents make a batch of Manganese Blue pigment upstairs from the shop, so between that, and the Old Holland event I know it is doable on a small scale. It is wonderful to discover a fellow appreciator of this fabulous sky blue color. Most people think that it is just another hue that can be matched and don't realize that genuine PB33 has unique characteristics that cannot be replicated.
I know it's been 2 years, but a very weird and unique color came out of the half ton stock: manganese blue dark. I've basically been unable to find any references to the genuine thing online, and I've recently gotten a half pan from a local shop that happened to still have some left. The label only lists the chemical name for manganese blue and nothing else, and the color is weirdly green. Best comparison I can think of is mixing cerulean with viridian. No idea if it's mixed or if it's just a weird pigment batch.
@@muff9160 Many pigments can be tweaked to produce color variants, but unless someone decides to bring it to market, most artists are unaware of the variety possible. This can be down to temperatures during manufacture, and chemical variation. Ultramarine Blue is a perfect example. Most artists think there might be only two or three shades. However, Ultramarine has many industrial uses. As example, it is a common colorant in blue roof tiles because of its low cost but high resistance to fading. As a result of demand from various industries Ultramarine is made in more than 30 shades, from green, to pink and violet, to blues etc. The limited usage of Ultramarine by artists (usually a couple of shades of pink/violet and a couple of shades of blue does not reflect the great variety this pigment has in industry. I have seen a couple of variants of Manganese blue one more greenish, the other more reddish, but I don't know if what I have seen is the shade you are referring to. As it was a significant cement colorant across several decades and produced in large quantities in several different factories, I would be surprised if there hadn't been research into developing Manganese Blue variants prior to the 1980's and that there may have once been more variety than I am aware of.
Thank you for this! Back in the day I had a tube of Windsor and Newton’s Genuine Manganese Blue which was my favorite sky color (actually my only sky color!) I tried every “Hue” I could find but none matched the luminous and subtle quality of the original. So happy to read there is now a source!
Stunning is the only word that I can use to describe this PB33. It's texture & vibrancy is incredible! You can tell that the companies were aiming for the color with their hues, but missed the granulation. I'm loving the look of this genuine! Also... Super glad you didn't wait to show that Smalt. That sparkle looks fantastic! Thanks for sharing all of this!
Historical pigment series, both in raw form/finished form and an art, would be absolutely fascinating :-) thank you for teaching us about this hard to find pigment
I will be there with bells on if you a historical pigment series. I love a good deep dive. I've seen and read about manganese pigments but have not tried them. It's such a brilliant blue.
So, I watched this and then went directly to Etsy to buy the Manganese Blue paint. I then found out they are handmade in PA (my home state) so I ended up also buying Jarosite, Reed Green, Vivianite, Vivianite XD, and Purple Ochre. I’m in love. They are beautiful colors (and smell great due to the clove oil). I’m working on creating sketches with these colors so I can help a prodigal son with more pics for his store. Thanks for the review of a great [small] paint company!
Gorgeous color, and I do like how you included a mention of the closest (and furthest, lol) alternatives. I love the mention of why this particular pigment's production was stopped. And yes! I would love to see more about historical pigments! I think the story behind some pigments is pretty interesting, but I feel like some of them can also stand as lessons and reminders for artists to be more conscious and responsible with their choice of pigments beyond the whole, 'ooh look at the pretty color'. It's worth noting, as the history behind this pigment in particular makes me more interested in the alternatives, rather than the true pigment, so I appreciate that. :) As pretty as it is, I'd honestly hate to see it in production again while knowing that detail. I don't think the trade off of a planet's integrity is worth a pretty color, but hey, maybe that's just me. One of my favorite historical colors is that unbelievably pretty Paris green, but of course, probably not worth the insane toxicity and potential arsenic poisoning. Pigment history is wild, humans have partaken in so much insanity for the sake of fashion.
🥰 What a beautiful colour, a shame it's not widely available anymore (though understandably so, I don't like that some of those beautiful pigments are so harmful to the environment). The mixes look awesome. I like the one with the Titanium buff and the burnt sienna - like brown❣
I've got a 6ml tube of Old Holland Genuine Manganese Blue and no substitute can come even close to it. The granulation is incredible. Thanks very much for a great video.x
PB33 is Barium Manganate, the primary reason it become not available is the extreme toxicity, much more toxic that either lead, cadmium or mercury (as in the original color vermilion (mercury sulfide). Many of the tubes from decades ago of PB33 had a "skull and crossbones" on the back side. It is a pure mineral pigment and thus very lightfast for such a bright color when mixed with water will separate out and sink to the bottom (testing proves one has real PB33). PB33 is treasured for its granulation in an era where most of the hues pump up the intensity with a staining color. Handle PB33 with care and it is one of the most treasured and rare blues that one can get and thanks for this detail on comparison that verifies that there is no comparison to true PB33.
It would be interesting too learn more about Pigment History and old art, I would definitely watch it. I just managed a few months ago too get a Halfpan and two 24ml Tubes of Lukas Manganese Blue for pretty cheap, but I don't really use them. I guess it's because I prefer Cobalt Teal, but it was interesting too see all these mixtures in this Video
My absolute favorite pigment!!! I've been buying the dry stuff from Prodigal Son's since a year or two ago when I finally ran out of my tube of it from Holbein and was so thrilled to see that it was the real deal and is super easy to mull to keep in my palette. It's so exciting in deep maroons and browns, but I also love how it settles in colors that would otherwise go muddy, like PO73. It makes such an exciting, electric dispersion when mixed with that pigment. Loved this video from you, and would super love more on historical pigments!
Ooooh I will try PB33 mixed with PO73, that sounds like a lovely drastically color separating mixture!!! I'll definitely do more regarding historical pigments, thank you for the encouragement :)
I always look forward to your extremely informative videos.Thank you for sharing mixes, history, as well as your drawing and painting. I recently saw Manganese blue being made by Dirty Blue on Instagram. I contacted them and they kindly refered me to Prodigal Sons here in the US. Ive since ordered a pan and love the vibrance and granulation. Ive also compared swatches to DS and WN hues. Similar, but the genuine is so much better. I hope to purchase more from Prodigal Sons in the future as this was a qualiy product. Thanks again and Im excited to see your upcoming video on the rest of their line of paints.
Hi Kimberly: I found a few 5 ml tubes of manganese blue in my own stock. This is Grumbacher from 1976 or so. In 2015 I was going through my art studio and found these dried up tubes. I wasn't sure if I would ever do watercolor again and I came close to tossing them out. But I thought I would swatch them out first. I cut the tubes open smashed them up and added just enough water to soften them and pan them and set them out to dry. I did this with all of my old watercolors. This color and a large tube of cobalt became my all time favorite. I hadn't a clue as to how rare they were. I have been on the hunt for this color since then. I still have some of the Grumbacher in my studio palette. Thanks for doing what I wish I could do... Your the best.
I Love this pigment. I have half a 5ml tube and a half pan left, which I use on 'special occasions', very sad it was discontinued as it is irreplaceable. I guess we won't be able to source it in the UK without a mortgage. RIP manganese blue.
I love your videos and have learned so much. You have giving me the courage to make my own watercolors and I am learning to make better choices when it comes to buying watercolors. Your channel is like taking a class. Also order the manganese and can’t wait to make some watercolors and maybe oil paint. Please continue posting if you can. Thank you Monica
Thank you for featuring this shop and this pigment. I have DaVincis mixture, and it’s a lovely color, the color of early summer skies before the white haze sets in. Definitely interested in the historical stuff, Philip Ball’s Bright Earth is one of my favorite books.
Love this! Learning about watercolor paint and paper is one of my most favorite pastimes. Very excited for what comes next from you, and now I need to go buy everything you mentioned.
MANGANESE BLUE! 😍😍😍 I have one tiny tube of old Holland genuine manganese I’ve been scared to touch for years and it’s a horrid consistency. I need this colour in my life.
Ikr, it's beautiful!!! Yep, my Old Holland tube is a disaster nowadays. This fear of using it up has given us all a good idea of the long term shelf life of O.H. paints though rofl :)
@@KimberlyCrick 😂 it sure has. I won’t be buying another of their tubes again that’s for sure. Did you ever get any true quin gold? I have a tube of DS’s I got before they ran out. I treat that like a baby. I’d probably save it in a fire.
@@ohbli_oh No I'm so sad I missed that boat and I don't have any samples of the old quin gold to make a pigment database entry or comparison. But I know how you feel lol. I have a big tupperware container of all of my favorite, spendy or rare colors - with a label to rescue it in an emergency xD
@@KimberlyCrick I was going to say if you don’t I can make you a half pan and send it. I get so much enjoyment and info from your videos. I could send to your shop address? Would take a few weeks to pour in 2 layers and dry out then I could post it.
@@ohbli_oh That would be amazing, thank you so much! Let me know when it's ready, send me an email directly or through the contact form on my site (both option info at www.kimcrick.com/pages/store-policy ). That way I'll be on the lookout for it and confirm mailing info. I appreciate it! I keep hearing that PO48 is being phased out too, may join PO49 in history soon depending on how much stockpiles are out there.
I had not intended to buy any of these but by the end of your video, a few things just jumped into my cart. He's just down the PA turnpike from me so always good to support a local(ish) small business. I am a sucker for a pretty bright blue.
The color is absolutely beautiful!!! Turner was one of the best at nailing the hue as a color just not the texture. If only Daniel Smith could somehow get the color intensity, since they managed to get some granulation. There's hope one day a brand will nail it even better :)
I hung on every word and even re-winded a few times to make sure I heard everything. YES! I would love a Pigment Spotlight series including the history! I went to their Etsy shop and wanted every single color, but I limited myself to five. I hope I chose well. One of them had your notes that it may yellow, but I was in love with it and ordered a half-pan of it anyway. Looking forward to getting them! I didn't order a whole set of primaries, though, so I'll have to mix them in with my other paints to have a complete "set." That's fine for now.
I was thinking of you when I swatched out Prodigal Son's PV14 Cobalt Violet Pale - I thought, man, if Miranda had swatched this one maybe she wouldn't hate this pigment so much lol. Sometimes really troublesome pigments that are so icky weak and hard to re-wet in big brands are shockingly nice when a handmade maker puts extra pigment load and less fillers in. I hope you love whatever you got from him! I find that a lot of the rare pigments that are of historical interest are not 100% stable (particularly natural minerals based on copper ores can yellow if exposed to acids and sulfides), but they are beautiful and unique so I value the experience, and at the very least I'd use them for personal enjoyment. So many have amazing texture :D
@@KimberlyCrick I noticed how much nicer their Cobalt Violet Pale looked than anything I had used in my experiment, so I was actually tempted to purchase it, but chose not to in the end because of those others. Lol.
I'm really excited to do the Smalt spotlight especially, it's such a gorgeous color. Prodigal Son's got a bit swamped after this video though and asked me for a little more time before promoting his rare historical pigments any more. I love pigment spotlights though, probably the most enjoyable thing I do! It is fun comparing all the different brands and the challenge of making hue dupes. It's amazing how many brands have labeled something "smalt" that don't look anything like the real deal, though in attempting to mimic it I realized it's likely impossible! Stumbling onto pigments that can't be easily replicated makes me feel like I'm collecting super precious things, like gemstones :)
@@KimberlyCrick Oh, dear. Poor guy. Well, it's a good problem to have, I suppose. I understand that feeling. I think that's because it serves so many purposes--it's a collection, it's a link to the past, it's rare, and it can make beautiful art. That's a lot of appealing properties. :)
I managed to find a half pan of genuine manganese on Etsy and while yes the order for just that one pan was over $30 in total, I find it absolutely worthwhile to get my hands in such a unique and rare pigment
I'd love to hear you talk about the history of pigments - you're the person I absolutely trust with this subject! I only started painting 3 years ago, so I missed out on all those popular discontinued pigments. One I'm particularly curious about is Nickel Azo Dark, PG10. Not much info about it online, but I believe I'd enjoy this colour a lot as a base for natural greens!
Do you have a PY129 or PY150 to mix with a pthalo blue or green? White Nights has a good cheap pan version of either (Irgazin Yellow or Indian Yellow) both of which look nearly identical to PG10 when you add the smallest touch of a phthalo to it (PG7, PG36 or PB15 variants). I personally love starting with the mustardy yellow of PY150 as the sunlit part of a leaf, then doing a gradient with pthalo blue for vivid greens, or a gradient with chromium oxide pg17 for natural looking muted leaves.
@@KimberlyCrick Yes, both of these! What I like about PG10 is that it appears to be clearer and a bit greener than PY129, but I have to agree that the hue itself should be easy to recreate with the phthalos you mentioned. I definitely want to give your PY150 + PG17 recommendation a go! Chromium Oxide Green was one of the first colours I bought and... haven't used a single time, haha.
@@JestemGlonojadem Oooh definitely use it at least once to try this combo! Chromium Green has this subtle granulation in wet washes I really enjoy. It looks super natural as it blends into PY150, almost like leaf texture without any real effort :D
Hooray…I happened upon your video and ordered a half pan of manganese blue from Prodigal Son. I do have Daniel Smith and daVinci versions and am eager to compare. Thanks for all the information.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I have! After collecting all of those, I appreciate each one for different uses. I'm excited for you to experience the incredible granulation combined with a bit more color intensity in the PB33 genuine side by side against DSmith's hue. Happy painting :)
Thanks to you I ended up purchasing a lot of lovely pain. I am still waiting for my second order that has mag blue but I am really getting into Han Blue rn
Thank you very much for this video! I just made a little batch of my own and I wondered if I should have spent more time grinding it because it's extremely granulating (even compared to something like Cobalt Violet). Now I can see that's how it's supposed to look. Mine looks slightly greener on the monitor but seeing it compared to your Cobalt Blue I could see that's down to the difference between the monitor and real life. Blockx Cobalt Blue looks purple next to it and W&N Cerulean looks almost grey next to it :) I've also compared it to W&N Manganese Blue hue. The undertone is reasonable close but the mass tone is nowhere near it. Apparantly there's something in the W&N hue that should make it granulate but it's nowhere near the extreme granulation of the real thing. I find the mineral pigments to be livelier on a whole than the organics and Manganese Blue is the liveliest I've yet encountered. It's a very heavy pigment. I have many different pigments in glass jars and this one outweighs them all. It settles almost immediately. I've used PB33 to make oil paint replacing Cerulean Blue because Cerulean Blue has the nasty habit in oils to dry extremely flat (as if the oil has been sucked out of it). This is the first time I've made a water color paint and in hindsight it seems a bit of a crime that I've only used it as a replacement for cerulean oil paint (it's basically the same color applied at full strength in oils but it keeps its shine unlike PB35/36). Back in the 90s or so I knew this pigment was no longer made so I bought a nice stock of it from Old Holland and Blockx.
please make more videos about historical pigments or Prodigal Son's Artists Pigments 💐🌸🌺🌻🌼Also the pigment information you collected on your website is uniquely helpful, otherwise there would be no resource to double check information provided by the brands
I never had the original manganese blue as a frame of reference, but Da Vinci's manganese blue mixture is one of my favorites and I'll be sad when the supply runs out. Its still different from pretty much any other blue color I own and in my experience it granulates pretty well? I've used it in separating mixtures and the blue separates out very readily. I like Daniel Smith's manganese hue too but I've found the color slightly more difficult to rewet for mixing purposes.
I was keeping my eye on this shop since they first started on etsy. But the shipping costs and taxes are extremely high. Even for buying couple half pans shipping came to 50 dollars. But I'd love to see you review more colors from them so I can live vicariously through your videos.
I understand, we've had a terrible time here in the USA trying to find affordable ways to ship things worldwide. I hope that the info and demonstrations on the rare and historical pigments will be entertaining anyway - I'll be sure to point out when there's an easier modern way to mimic things too!
I just noticed that there is pb33 in a da Vinci standard manganese blue mix, with phthalo. They’re also now using it in ‘Joyce’s mother violet’ paint. Seems a waste to dilute it and not sell as a single pigment if they have a stock of it 😮 Wish I’d known that before. Though hard to get them all in the uk.
The color is exquisite! Better for me to pass on this one so people with way more ability than me have access to it. BUT the naples yellow light will soon be mine!
You're so sweet :) It is beautiful, but I think you'll find the naples yellow light lovely to work with as well. I couldn't believe how buttery smooth it felt flowing off my brush. Prodigal Son's makes some very interesting and unique finds. Happy painting!
Absolutely love the video, as usual. Disabled person question: would it be possible for you to have somewhere (maybe on your site?) where you mention if you KNOW a tube/brand uses thiazolinones (they're an antibacterial, and were contact allergen of the year in 2013)? American companies aren't required to declare them, and I am ENORMOUSLY allergic. It's frustrating buying from a new brand (Holbein, Schmincke, hugely probably others) and then finding out their regular formula uses thiazolinones, and you're out the cost of the tube of paint :( It's a huge pain trying to find dupes for stuff that I Just Can't Use. I'm trying to find a dupe for Holbein's Bright Rose (it has BV 11 & AB 83) I cannot, cannot use them. I get oral manifestations and whole-body stuff if my arm even brushes against a dried paint sample. I am not asking you to go out of your way to interrogate companies, but if a tube has "warning: contains thiazolinones" would you consider making a note of it? I appreciate you, whether you're willing to think about this or not. Thanks for your time, and all of your amazing content
I will definitely keep that in mind and make a note if I find that any of my paints declare it. I had no idea it was such an allergen! I guess that's a good perk of handmade paints, no crazy chemicals involved. Thanks for bringing this to my attention :)
@@KimberlyCrick things like methylchloroisothiazolinone (sometimes abbreviated MCI), methylisothiazolinone (sometimes abbreviated MI), Benzisothiazoline There are a couple more common trade names it goes by too, like Kathon CG Schmincke says "contains thiazolinones" on all of the tubes I've tried purchasing, so I have to assume all of their paints have it. Holbein's safety data sheet says they use Benzisothiazoline, which I of course only found AFTER I had bought some of their stuff too! *doh* The North American Contact Dermatitis Group found that methylisothiazolinone caused 10.9% positive reactions, being the third most common contact allergen in patch test results which surveyed close to 5000 contact dermatitis patients. The EU effectively banned its use in leave-on products (but a lot of painters rest their hands on the page) I just lucked out by being "spectacular"ly allergic 😭 ANYWAY, thanks again!
Sounds like it might be beneficial for you to look into producing your own paint. It's really not that difficult for basic usable pans. I would drop a line to the smaller companies like Maimeri and Isaro and ask.. if any don't I would think those would be more likely not to.
I have PB 33 from Dan Barrett and it's just amazing. I'm going to have to try some Prodigal Sons. I bought DS Mang Blue Hue and poured it in a palette, and I guess didn't use it a long time. When I did a new swatch recently it was very, very strange -- still weirdly gummy, didn't want to dry, color wasn't bright? I swatched it again the next week and it seems back to normal. I wonder if something reacts with air on the surface. I used to think maybe they made it so gummy and weak on purpose to match the original, but once I tried the real thing I was confused -- real PB 33 is not like that at all.
thanks! so interesting!!! I find the Cerulean Chrom… from qor looks quite similar - at least on the screen - and is also rather granulating. But i’m not an expert in pigments and it might be only my subjective perception.
Cerulean variants are all very beautiful and granulating, but are all more dull in comparison to PB33. I think it's one of those things you have to see side by side, but it doesn't help that I usually record at night under lamp light so I can't show off how truly vibrant it would appear in sunlight. Maybe I'll take some swatch cards outside with my phone when I do the Prodigal Son's brand overview video. In the meantime, I'll just say it's similar to the way Cerulean Chrome looks next to Phthalo Blue Green Shade as far as comparing hue intensity and vibrancy.
Luckily there are no major problems in the most commonly available blue paints aside from dark ones like Prussian and Indigo - all of the Cobalt colors are really stable. I'd say that Cobalt Teal or other Cobalt Turquoise/Blues, Manganese Blue PB33 and Phthalo Blue Green Shade PB15:3 are among my favorites with amazing durability. As much as I love Ultramarine Blue PB29, it is slightly less durable due to acid sensitivity. I have seen very very minor fading in cerulean blues pb35, but unless your work is in direct light all the time (murals) it wouldn't be a problem for about 100 years.
I like that Jerosite! But I'm sitting on my shopping carts because I had the W&N Smalt ready to buy for my February haul... until I saw Prodigal Son's Smalt in this video. I know the W&N is a hue, but I can't wait for your next video: for a maybe-intermediate painter like me (still feel like a beginner, though), which Smalt would you recommend? The cheaper W&N hue, or the real (but pricier) one from PS? 😬 (I know me: I'll end up getting both one day. But for February 2022?! I use a LOT of blues and earth tones, but not tons of granulatings.) Thanks for this series btw!
I was looking at the W&N Smalt hue side by side with genuine smalt and I think the similarities end at "blues using the name smalt". They just look and feel significantly different, since the PV15 based WN hue paints much smoother and just like a normal ultramarine blue mixed with a touch of violet. If you're not a fan of super granulating textural colors, then smalt genuine pb32 will not be a good match for you. The super sparkly sandy version I show in the video (Prodigal's Smalt 200s version) is much more coarse, gritty and unusual. It will not look or feel just like an ultramarine blue PB29 you may already have in your palette. So if you're wanting something unique and quirky with a little bit of sparkle and a whole lot of texture - genuine smalt is wonderful. If you don't already own a lot of ultramarine blues or have a more purple leaning ultramarine violet pv15, you might find the smalt hue is a more broadly useful smooth color. Hope that helps you decide, happy painting :)
@@KimberlyCrick I was just at Jackson's! I have a lot of PB29s (and a PV15 from Schminke which is pretty nice). Thanks: I've removed the W&N Smalt DuMont tube, and head on over to Etsy! I don't hate granulatings - I'm just trying to nail the wc transparents better. I've picked up a few of the super-granulatings, too. I'm not a fan of the Schminke Potter's Pink at all (the hue is not for me; I've tried several paintings with it)... but I love the Galaxy Pink tube I got. I do appreciate the help. I almost bought the W&N Smalt but it looks like a bluer version of the Schm. UM Violet. I think I'll very much enjoy the Prodigal Son smalt!
Hello Kimberly can you do more lightfast tests on other watercolour brands. Winsor and Newton, mijello mission gold and Holbein, shinhan pwc and white nights
I usually only have time to post image results in picture form instead of video form, you can find out which results were most recently posted by going through the announcements at www.patreon.com/KimberlyCrickArt?filters[tag]=Lightfast%20Test%20Results Or checking a brand review page on my site. Winsor and Newton was posted last year at www.kimcrick.com/pages/winsor-and-newton-professional-watercolor-review-109-color-chart-swatch-cards-lightfast-test and you can find Schmincke at www.kimcrick.com/pages/schmincke-horadam-watercolor-review-color-chart-lightfast-testing and in general the same pigments always have trouble in any brand, so you may find the fugitive list helpful at www.kimcrick.com/pages/fugitive-pigments-list-lightfast-test-problems-art-supplies - It is likely that most future updates will be done this way as my video topic list is extensive.
Wow, it's stunning! And so expensive (shipping alone, to Europe, is 20€)!! 😵 I think its one of those pigments I will just have to accept never having tried. But wow, just absolutely wow.
You have no idea how much I wish shipping was affordable, as a small business owner I have repeatedly struggled with the decision to sell only within the USA due to the insane cost of getting something delivered to other countries. Then there's the fiasco of pandemic and supply chain issues causing all sorts of loss and delays, it's really hurt the ability of people who sell small scale goods like these watercolors or my swatch stamps to reach everyone we'd like to. Hopefully one day a good option will pop up for you :)
@@KimberlyCrick I wish the same! And I can only imagine - it must truly be a struggle! It's been painful to see this unfold during the pandemic, and also how other things, like Brexit, must have had a huge impact on small business owners. It just seems to strike so hopelessly unfairly. I hope that once the effects of this pandemic calm down that we might move towards some better, and hopefully cheaper, options. And thank you! I hope the same! Oh, and did you ever try to the combination of DS Manganese Blue Hue and Kremer's Zirconium Cerulean? And if so, how did you like it? ☺️
@@hannahthufvesson Yes actually, and it worked really well for what I was going for. Funny thing is that Kremers Zirconium PB71, being something I normally find a little too chalk-like in its appearance, was a PERFECT solution to helping me with that pesky Old Holland shiny binder gloss problem!!!
@@KimberlyCrick That makes me so happy!!! 😄 I'm so glad it worked for you and that you liked it! And I feel the same about Kremer's Zirconium Cerulean.
God, I remember seeing those on sale and adding it to basket, only for a single pan to need £15 in shipping...they're so beautiful and I'm glad I can live vicariously through people with better shipping costs :) though...with a birthday coming up, I may have to treat myself. I'm not sure how much of a video it would be, but is there a specific way watercolour artists should dispose of their used materials? I know with oil and acrylic there's information on how to safely get rid of old water etc, but I couldn't find anything for watercolour waste. I'm not sure if it's just because the amount of toxic material is so negligble that it doesn't matter or if people just haven't thought about it. I did get to try a PB33 from a paintmaker named KhannahsHoneyHues, who is based in the UK. It's a gorgeous colour, but I could only get a small pan of it, and I don't think she stocks it anymore.
In general watercolor is the cleanest type of paint for generally being a negligible amount of waste. When using particularly problematic pigments like Cadmium, Lead, Manganese etc. I usually make sure to limit how much is getting into my brush rinse cup by wiping my brush onto scrap paper or paper towel as much as possible. In certain areas waste management works differently, so this may not be the case everywhere - but dry waste ends up in a reinforced landfill here where the ground water is protected from decomposing. Water management is much more fragile, so rinse water going down the drain is more worrisome. I know some artists keep a bucket full of sand to store out on a sunny porch, so they can just dump waste water in it and have it air dry so that any pigment waste is then dry. Hope that helps :)
Try to be sure but usually the shipping cost is the same for multiple pans as it is for just one. So it spreads the cost out if you buy a few at a time. I just bought some paints off Etsy and it worked that way for me.
@@waymire01 I actually ended up giving in and buying paint from them anyway! They're really beautiful paints. It does feel better to buy several and then eat up the cost of shipping in one go. Thank you for the advice :)
Yaay! I just received my paints from Prodigal Son a day ago, so it was so cool to see you got some too! I got the Manganese Blue and the Cobal Green Pale AND the Cobalt Green Bluish! The granulation is intense. I was wondering about the Cobalt Green Pale. The one I got seems darker than what I see in your video and also darker than the Etsy photo. I know screens and photos don't always present the true color. But question, how would you characterize your Cobalt Green Pale? Mine is a soft green but still darker than I expected. Thanks, Henrietta
Under direct lamp light it definitely seems lighter in value than most cobalt greens ( cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0148/7342/8032/files/Cobalt_green_pale_pg19_watercolor_gouache_granulating_rare_pigment_aqua_teal.jpg?v=1642510507 ) and I would say it's nearly identical to Kremer's Green Bluish. It's a soft blue-green, darker than Dioptase and deeper valued than I was expecting based on Daniel Smith's Cobalt Green Pale. Do you own the DS one? I'd have to look at it closer, but it appears that you can get such a heavy pigment load with Prodigal Son's that it went on more richly than expected. I had so many binder problems in my DS version though it's hard to tell anymore (DSmith's PG19 binder stained it a brownish yellow so my tube is ruined). They could just dilute other versions of this down so you're forced to apply it more pale dilutedly. You can check yours against the other PG19 variants to check if yours looks like the one it's meant to be? www.kimcrick.com/pages/green-art-supply-pigment-database-watercolor-acrylic-ink-pencil-color-chart-swatch#PG19
@@KimberlyCrick Hi, thanks so much for your comments. I see from your photo link that the Prodigal Son Cobalt Green Pale does not seem to have an aqua/teal vibe like the Etsy photo. Mine seems greener but I might have too much masstone in my swatch, I will experiment with more water. I don't have the Daniel Smith Cobalt Green Pale. I do have the dot card, definitely hard to rewet and the result is not pleasing. I do have the Schmincke Cobalt Green Pure in a tube and since that one can also be hard to rewet, do you think adding glycerin might help when I add it to a full pan? Thanks again. I do enjoy your videos. So lovely and informative. Not a few of my recent purchases have resulted from viewing your channel. LOL!
@@henriettajackson6404 I think you may be seeing subtle differences between under warmer lamp light vs scanner bed lighting in addition to monitor differences (bane of my existence trying to provide online swatches I tell ya). I definitely had to stop myself from picking up too much color from the P.Son's pans - easy to go wayyy dark. I have such a love hate relationship with PG19. All the commercial brands I've tried were cranky in one way or another - but I love the granulation intensity in some of the variations. I definitely think glycerin would help Schmincke's in the pan, but I honestly gave up on that one because Schmincke's Cobalt Green Pure was nearly identical to some forms of PG50 that played nicer for me. I'm sorry but not sorry at the same time about the purchasing influence lol - I do my best only to recommend the really fun stuff :D
@@KimberlyCrick I agree, the lighting could affect the way I am seeing the color. Plus, I think I will try adding a bit of glycerin to the Schmincke one and see what I get. I am also trying different papers. Not sure if it will make a difference but what paper are you using to swatch? I have Arches 140# cold press, Indigo 140# cold press, and various mixed media/cellulose papers. I am going to experiment with mixing my P.Son's paints too. I think you mentioned some of your future videos might include more on the P.Sons paints you got? Thanks again!
@@henriettajackson6404 I use Arches 140# cold press for all of my swatching. I have had some issues with other paper brands absorbing color weirdly, depending on the sizing it's either that the color sits streakily on the surface and lifts too much, or it absorbs into the paper and lightens. So many variables! I am definitely going to do a large brand overview for Prodigal Son's where I'll show over 30 colors at once. There's a few really special colors I also want to make individual videos about, especially when there's other brands to compare them too as well.
i would be interested in history of pigments, why are some no longer used; which pigments were found to be highly toxic, which cause ecological problems during their mining process. what substitutes have been found for these dangerous pigments
If it is genuine smalt yes, it's a unique and rare pigment made from cobalt infused glass - a very unusual texture and sparkle can occur in it. If it is just a smalt hue, like the one Winsor and Newton makes then it's a less unique shade of ultramarine blue meant to be similar to smalt genuine in color appearance.
