“Pink” - The Yellow Pigment
Painted Swatch by Colour Lex.
The color Dutch pink (also known as Sap Green and Stil de Grain Yellow) has an unusual history shrouded in uncertainty. In past centuries, this yellowish pigment went by various names, including English pink, Italian pink, and madder yellow. Yet its defining ingredient came from neither England nor Italy, but rather Persian berries. So why was this yellow pigment called pink?
Whilst diving into the endless research of pigments for my dissertation paper, I came across this yellow pigment named ‘Pink’, this is not the first time my art based research has left me confused…
Manufacture:
Traditionally, Dutch pink was made by boiling ripe or unripe buckthorn berries to extract their coloring matter. The type of berry, harvest time, and preparation method impacted the resulting hue. Adding different mordants like alum or soda also altered the final color.
Image from Naturalpigments.com
Unripe buckthorn berries produced a dark brown bulk pigment that appeared bright yellow in a thin glaze. This version had poor lightfastness. Ripe berries created a pigment called yellow madder or stil de grain with better permanence.
Dutch pink was typically sold in a viscous, syrupy liquid form in dried sheep bladders when used for medieval manuscripts. By the 18th century, it was widely produced as a dry powdered pigment in France and England.
History:
The first known use of the color name "pink" referring to this yellow pigment dates back to 1598. In the 17th century, artists mixed the "pink" with blues to create greenish hues. The names stil de grain yellow and yellow madder emerged in the 18th century.
Dutch pink was popular for adding luminosity to skin tones in Renaissance portraits and still lifes. However, it tended to fade rapidly, sometimes dramatically altering a painting's colors. As more permanent yellow pigments like cadmium yellow became available in the 1800s, Dutch pink fell out of favor.
“Pink”:
The name Dutch Pink, more specifically “pink”, is speculated to derive from the German word '“Pinkeln”, translated in a dictionary from 1798 as “to piss”. This unflattering origin is commonly disputed by art historians. They note Dutch pink's association with high-value dyes like madder, calling the urine connection implausible.
Whatever its origins, Dutch pink emerged as a popular pigment in Renaissance oil paintings. Artists prized it for its luminous yellow hues, ideal for imitating gold or enhancing the radiance of skin tones as mentioned previous. It often appeared in Dutch and Flemish portraits as well as Italian altarpieces.
Rembrandt van Rijn, ‘Self-Portrait at the Age of 63’, 1669. Example of use of Stil de Grain (Dutch Pink).
Today, the true origins of the name Dutch pink remain ambiguous. But its use in iconic works like Rembrandt's portraits reminds us how mysterious and evocative color names can be. The story of Dutch pink illustrates why art historians still "read between the lines" of history to deduce how colors came to get their cryptic names.
Modern Use:
Today, true Dutch pink pigment is rare in artist's paints, though some companies offer versions of buckthorn berries and lakes. The fugitive nature makes it unsuitable for oils. However, it has survived better in illuminated manuscripts.
Most modern paints described as "sap green" contain synthetic substitutes like hansa yellows or nickel azo pigments. While a traditional Dutch pink recreation exists, its lightfastness remains poor. The pigment endures as an intriguing relic of the past, with an origin and history as murky as its muted yellow color.
Hope you enjoyed this little dive into an ambiguous pigment - as I do more research into pigments the greater my interest grows so expect a lot more explorative blogs into various pigments! Are there any pigments, paintings or other aspects of art that have ever left you confused? I’d love to hear them!
See you next week
Rhiannon x
