Origins of Color

Secrets of the Old Masters

Western art has had no greater influence than the Old Masters. We recognize the incredible skill of these European painters who worked before the 19th century.

The Old Masters We Admire Most

We admire the harmonious colors like those found in the works of Raphael. His pictures became the cornerstone of training in the academies of art.

Titian’s vivid tints move most, and his polychromatic modulations have no precedents in the history of Western art. His painting methods, particularly in the application and use of color, have profoundly influenced painters of the Italian Renaissance and future generations of Western art.

Rembrandt is generally considered one of the greatest painters in European art history, certainly the most important in Dutch history. Generations of artists have often imitated the glowing flesh tones and textural highlights of his pictures.

Forgotten for centuries, Vermeer is now acknowledged as one of the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age and is particularly renowned for his masterly treatment and use of light.

What is the Secret of the Old Masters’ Colors?

How did the Old Masters achieve the effects we so greatly admire in their works? Since the late 18th century, many have asked this question, and artists and historians alike have advanced and hotly debated many theories. What was the secret of the Old Masters? Was it the product of mysterious recipes devised by alchemy? The use of jewel-like varnishes such as amber? Maybe they mixed complex oleo-resinous mediums into their paint? Or perhaps it was something entirely different?

George O’Hanlon, technical director of Natural Pigments, shows you the origin of the mineral pigments used by the Old Masters and how these minerals helped to create masterpieces.