Velazquez’ Long Whites. The Palette of Diego Velazquez
The article analyzes Vela’zquez´s painting technique in relation to specific qualities of pigments that he used in his work. The painter´s signature method was a wide use of calcite whites (CaCO3). The author of the article presents the results of practical mastering of painting with Vela’zquez Medium - calcite finely ground in bodied linseed oil. The usage of Vela’zquez Medium as a dyeing agent in the oil paints alters their consistency (rheology) and makes them significantly more “ropy”, “stringy” and transparent. It also enables the artist to build impasted applications of paint without the worry of cracking or peeling. Unlike modern white pigments, calcite does not cool the colors, and when the calcite is added to paints the intensity of pigments does not practically decrease. The article contains analysis of Vela’zquez limited palette, which included: lead white and calcite; yellow iron oxide (natural yellow ocher and goethite), lead-tin yellow, Naples yellow; orange iron oxide (natural orange ocher); red iron oxide (natural red ocher or hematite), vermilion, organic red lake (carmine or madder lake); azurite, lapis lazuli, smalt; brown iron oxide (natural brown ocher), manganese oxide (umber); organic black of animal or vegetable origin. Vela’zquez made greens by mixing azurite, yellow iron oxide and lead-tin yellow, and created purples on the basis of mixture of organic red lake and azurite.