WITHIN the past year White Pigments have made their appearance upon the market which bid fair to replace both Zinc and Lead Whites. All these new whites, which appear to be precipitated mixtures of Permanent White (Blanc Fixe) and Titanium,[17] have nearly double the hiding power of Flake White, but what is of greater importance is that they are not affected by any ordinary chemicals and gases and are light-proof and sulphur-proof.
From the experiments made by the author it would appear that a White of this nature is absolutely safe to use, can be mixed with any other pigment without interaction, and while it dries slowly it does not dry with the brittleness of Zinc although when Zinc White is mixed with a heavy bodied Linseed Oil it does not become brittle.
Another new White is Lithopone, which is a Zinc Barium compound that was discovered about twenty-five years ago. When this white was first exploited prophecies were made that it would soon replace Flake White, White Lead, and Zinc White, and that it was the most remarkable White that could possibly be made. As a matter of fact it has never replaced anything because it has a pernicious habit of turning dark in the bright sunlight and turning white again in the dark, but within the last few years light-proof Lithopone has been manufactured and its principal use is for foundation whites and for interior flat wall decoration. It is a pigment that should never be used for landscape or portrait painting but may very safely be used for ground work.
AMBER VARNISH
MANY painters believe that, owing to the fact that Amber is the hardest resin there is, the varnish made from it should retain its gloss the longest, and be just as free from cracking and bloom as the natural resin itself.
An examination of several of the amber varnishes on the market reveals the fact that there probably is no such varnish made. Although Amber can be fused and melted, it takes such a high heat that even the lightest gum Amber becomes exceedingly dark and then it must be diluted with so much oil that there is very little gum Amber in the varnish itself. Most of the Amber Varnishes on the market are Copal Varnishes that contain little or no Amber at all.
It is very wise for the painter to keep away from materials of this type; and, if a hard drying varnish is desired, any good Copal Varnish will answer the purpose, although for varnishing pictures, it must be continually borne in mind that a simple varnish like Damar, Mastic or Sandarac should be used; for only those simple varnishes can be easily removed without destroying the painting itself.
BLOOM
IT is not the intention of the author to go into any dissertation of the cause of bloom; for every varnish blooms more or less. In fact, all polished surfaces, whether they are varnished or not, show condensation, and surface deposits which are the equivalent of bloom.
Take for example, a mirror in your home; or a window glass; or a varnished piece of furniture. Unless these are continually wiped clean they will show a surface deposit, which is one type of bloom.