Alison Furminger: Demonstration on making pigments
- Date: 11 December
- Time:
12:15 - 1pm
- Cost:
Free
- Location:
Te Wehenga and Malaga Pasifika Rooms, Ground floor, National Library Building, corner of Molesworth and Aitken Streets.
'To the ends of the earth: Bibles in the Alexander Turnbull Library'. Exhibition event.
As part of the exhibition ‘To the ends of the earth: Bibles in the Alexander Turnbull Library’, calligrapher Alison Furminger, spoke about the various pigments used in medieval manuscripts. These included the mineral-based pigments: ochres, malachite, azurite, lapis lazuli, white lead, red lead, vermilion, orpiment, verdigris and gold leaf; plant-based pigments: woad, indigo, weld, saffron, buckthorn berries, rose madder and brazilwood; and insect-based pigments: kermes and cochineal.
Alison explained where these pigments came from and how they were used. Also displayed were a number of reproduced images from medieval manuscripts which showed pigments being made.
The audience of around 20 people included both young and old and all enjoyed watching the grinding of verdigris to make a usable paste, and the transformation of the insect cochineal into the familiar red pigment.
Alison discusses the various pigments.
Making a carmine or cochineal lake pigment.