What's in a Name? What's in a Number?

When it comes to buying paint, how do you choose? There are several brands to consider, hundreds of color names, and new colors being introduced every year. With so many things to think about when selecting colors to fill your palette with, how do you decide which paints to use?, and what’s in a name?

Beginners will mainly rely on the experience and knowledge of their teachers and also books and dvds. The selection of basic colors becomes a matter of opinion. The opinion of another artist. Chances are those same teachers have relied on their mentors as well. This is actually a very personal choice and it is ultimately up to the artists themselves to know what they are painting with. Some artist will choose paints according to the name or shade. This can be very misleading as some names have nothing to do with the pigments they are made from.

Manufacturers can name the paint color anything they wish. It is basically a marketing tool to enhance sales. Paint companies know they can seduce you with their individualized color names, like mars violet, terra rosa, and venetian red. You may have a simular color made with the same pigment in your collection already. It all comes down to pigment numbers. Companies who make paints must include certain information on the label. ASTM standards require that the manufacturers list accurately all the paint pigments on the packaging. They must provide the common name of the pigment as well as the color index generic name. The chemical common name is more scientific like quinacridone or thioindigoid but not nearly as much fun to say as Red Hot Momma or Passionate Purple, however, these names do not give away much information as to what is in the tube, either. It is far easier to rely on the pigment number such as PR101 to know what you are getting. This refers to P for Pigment, R for Red, and 101 for the one hundreth and one entry in the list of red pigments, which only denotes the order as to when the pigment was recorded. This is the pigment index name for Iron Oxide also known as synthetic iron oxide and also calcinated synthetic red iron oxide.

Iron Oxide, alias PR101, is known by many names. It is called Terra Rosa, Transparent Red Iron Oxide by M. Graham, and also Venetian Red, Burnt Sienna, Caput Mortum Violet, and Indian Red by Winsor & Newton. American Journey has two versions, Indian Red which is semi opaque and also Transparent Oxide Red, which is of course transparent. So, how can one pigment number represent so many different names as well as colors? The variety in color range and transparency is derived by several aspects of manufacturing such as pigment size, metal additives as well as hydration. The pigment partical size can change the color and can also be refined by milling the pigment. Extremely small pigment particals will dry close together giving more opacity to the paint. Pigments may also be burnt or roasted to alter the color for more variety in shades. Pigments are not exclusively used for art materials, in fact, artist’s paint manufacturers have access to these pigments because they are mined and made available for other industrial uses like cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, automotive and industrial paints and construction. Pigment PR101 is, in fact, used to color red bricks for construction.

It is important to know how many pigments are in a particular color. With all the variety of shades desired by artists, single pigments can only produce so many colors. Paint companies will mix two or three pigments to make a wonderful new color. A common rule of thumb is to limit the number of pigments used in a color to three, whether it is mixed in your palette or mixed at the manufacturer’s facility. Using more than three pigments can produce a muddy color which loses its individual brightness. Most watercolorists will activate two to three colors on their palette, charge their brush with the desired colors and allow them to mix on the paper. This blends the colors without mixing them completely as you would on the palette. It allows each individual color to be represented on the painting alone as well as blended.

It happens, on occasion, that a color name is used by two different pigments, such as Burnt Sienna from Winsor Newton (PR101) and from American Journey (PBr7). They are, as you can tell, very different colors. It is not wise to choose by name only, and swatches from catalogs can only be as accurate as the inks that print them. Digital swatches of color can also be deceptive when shopping online due to the differences in monitors and color settings on individual computers. The samples provided here are watercolor, however, this system applies to all colored mediums including oils, acrylics, watercolor and pastels. No matter what medium you are using, referring to pigment numbers may be the best way to know what you are buying other than trying every single color out there.

It would be, of course, very difficult to afford to try every color from every paint company available, however, one of the best advantages to belonging to an art painting group would be the opportunity to see or try some new paints from your fellow painting buddies. Try organizing a color swap event and bring in all the colors you have in your collection painted on a sample board. Then if you want to trade with another artist, swap small wet samples to try at home. This gives you the opportunity to see and sample several colors without spending a fortune. You can collect these samples in a small spectrum palette such as the Extra Color Palette For Cheap Joe’s Piggyback Palette. It is small, portable and very inexpensive. Be sure to label the samples and make good notes about the characteristics of the pigments. Now, when you purchase a new color, you can buy the largest size you can afford as this will save you money in the end. Color swaps are wonderful social events where you can enjoy fellowship and share ideas with other artists in your area. Have a Happy Color Swap Day!