AlZnTi Violet

Description

AlZnTi Violet is a handmade single-pigment mixed-metal oxide violet inspired by the new generation of pigments like YInMn Blue. Built on a complex aluminum–zinc–titanium–manganese oxide structure, it produces a deep, high-chroma violet with a cool, blue-leaning undertone and a saturated, enamel-like masstone. In lighter applications it opens into luminous violet-lavender and smoky periwinkle; in concentration it becomes a rich, modern royal violet with a distinctly mineral, ceramic character rather than a candy-like synthetic look.

In use, AlZnTi Violet gives a powerful yet controlled violet ideal for florals, night skies, shadows in landscape and figurative work, architectural details, and contemporary abstract painting. It has strong tinting strength with a semi-opaque to opaque character, allowing it to function as a confident dark in masstone while still building nuanced layers in thinner washes or glazes. It mixes beautifully with cool and warm reds for a range of royal and wine violets, with blues for deep indigo and twilight mixes, and with earths and neutrals for sophisticated plum-grays, shadow violets, and muted near-blacks that stay rich instead of muddy. As a ceramic-style mixed oxide, it behaves more like a refined mineral pigment than an organic violet.

This pigment is designed to be chemically inert, heat-resistant, and highly lightfast, with a dense, crystalline structure similar in spirit to other modern mixed-metal oxide pigments. In artist’s colors it offers a robust, low-toxicity alternative to many traditional violets, combining the permanence and reliability of ceramic pigments with an unusually intense, contemporary violet hue.

History

Mixed-metal oxide pigments such as YInMn Blue marked an important development in 21st-century color chemistry: bright, highly stable colors built on complex crystal lattices rather than traditional cobalt, chromium, or organic systems alone. AlZnTi Violet follows in this lineage, using aluminum, zinc, titanium, manganese, and related oxides to create a stable violet phase with strong chroma and excellent durability.

These pigments grow out of research in ceramics, coatings, and functional materials, where infrared reflectivity, heat stability, and weather resistance are critical. As their optical properties became better understood, artists and small-batch paintmakers recognized their potential as artist pigments, offering high chroma, low reactivity, and improved safety profiles compared to many historical alternatives. AlZnTi Violet represents this bridge between cutting-edge materials science and the studio, bringing a distinctly modern, engineered violet to the artist’s palette while retaining the handling qualities painters love in mineral pigments.

Pigment Information

Pigment Type: Synthetic (Inorganic) mixed-metal oxide violet (aluminum–zinc–titanium–manganese oxide)

Source: Laboratory-made ceramic-style mixed oxide inspired by YInMn-type pigments

Suitable Mediums: Watercolor, Gouache, Tempera, Acrylic, Oil, Lime / Fresco

Lightfastness: Best

Opacity: Semi-opaque to opaque

Other Names: AlZnTi Violet, Aluminum Zinc Titanium Violet, Mixed-Oxide Violet

Color Index Code: NA