TrulyGrace

The color of minerals and inorganic pigments

This Monday I went to an art show opening from class projects on "The color of minerals and inorganic pigments" by art and chemistry students at Carnegie Mellon University. Catalina Achim and Clayton Merrell taught the course and students learned about the science behind various palettes through art history and prepared their own paint to make paintings using the various palettes (prehistoric, medieval, impressionist, 20th and 21st Century). The spectra of various pH indicators was explored by one group, one student used cabbage juice indicator to make a pixellated portrait from thin tubes of the liquid indicator at various pHs. One team used thermal-sensitive and fluorescent pigments in their painting. A group prepared verdigris using various pH solutions on copper surfaces.

I thoroughly enjoyed the exhibit, discussing the work with the students, and meeting the course instructors. Both my undergraduate and graduate theses dealt with inorganic pigments in heterogeneous systems. I still continue to be interested in inorganic pigments and spectral reflectance changes as indicators of change in a system.

posted by Grace @ 12/10/2005 04:31:00 PM