GAMBLIN ARTIST'Sandnbsp;OILS - Titanium dioxide, Zinc oxide (PW 6, PW 4)
Zinc White: Most good all-purpose oil painting white. An excellent mixing white, T-Z White combines the soft texture and opacity Titanium of Titanium with the creamy transparency of Zinc for less “chalky” mixtures. Consider using T-Z White for colour-mixing because it takes so much colour to tint Titanium.
PIGMENTandnbsp;COMPOSITION AND PERMANENCE:andnbsp;
Pigment Name: PW4-Zinc White (zinc(II)-oxide)
Pigment Type: inorganic
Properties
Zinc White is the coolest white and has a cold, clean masstone and a slightly bluish tint. It has less hiding power and is more transparent than other whites. It dries slowly and is suitable for painting wet into wet, glazing, and scumbling.
Zinc White is neither as opaque nor heavy as Lead White; its covering power is not as good, and it takes much longer to dry. However, it does not blacken when exposed to sulphur in the air as Lead White does.
It is precious for making tints with other colours. Unmixed Zinc White dries to a brittle and dry paint film that may crack over the years, so it is unsuitable for frescoing.
It is more transparent in acrylic than Titanium White and is the most commonly used white with gouache.
Chinese White is a version of Zinc White appropriate for opaque watercolour techniques.
Permanence
Zinc White has excellent permanence and lightfastness.
Toxicity
Zinc White is moderately toxic if ingested and slightly toxic if inhaled.
History
Though historians are divided on who first isolated the element zinc, they agree that it was first suggested as a white pigment in 1782. Zinc White was accepted as a watercolour in 1834 and was called Chinese White due to the popularity of oriental porcelain in Europe at the time.
Ten years later, a suitable oil form was produced. By the early 20th century, it had improved to the point where it was an acceptable alternative to Flake White.
2ndandnbsp;PIGMENTandnbsp;COMPOSITION AND PERMANENCE:andnbsp;
Pigment Name: PW6-Titanium White
Pigment Type: inorganic
PROPERTIES
Titanium White is the most brilliant of the white pigments. It is considered an all-purpose oil colour useful in all techniques and the best all-around white. Its masstone is neither warm nor cool, placing it somewhere between Lead White and Zinc White.
