• Natural orange ochre pigment with warm, earthy tones and excellent lightfastness. A historically prized pigment, perfect for oil, watercolor, and tempera painting. Offers smooth application, rich opacity, and superb blending properties. Ideal for fine art, restoration, and historical painting techniques. Finely ground for professional-quality results. Available in various sizes.
  • The Stonemason's Yard (formally known as Campo S. Vidal and Santa Maria della Carit√†) is an early oil painting by Giovanni Antonio Canal, better known as Canaletto. It depicts an informal scene in Venice, looking over a temporary stonemason's yard in the Campo San Vidal set up for the construction of Andrea Tirali's facade of the church of San Vidal, and across the Grand Canal towards the church of Santa Maria della Carit√†.
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Orange Ochre Pigment

Orange Ochre Pigment

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Description

Orange Ochre is a natural, handmade single earth pigment made through a ancient historical process of grinding raw earth sourced from the Vaucluse region of France. As the only natural orange shade among the Vaucluse ochres, this natural pigment has a unique, warm orange hue.


With a soft yet vibrant orange tone, this pigment offers exceptional stability, opacity, and lightfastness, making it ideal for fresco, oil, watercolor, and tempera painting. Its iron-rich composition provides a deep, earthy warmth that blends beautifully with other natural pigments, creating harmonious, organic color transitions.


Compared to synthetic oranges, Orange Ochre delivers a soft, earthy vibrancy that is both striking and historically authentic. Its great texture and high coverage make it a valuable addition to any artist's palette, particularly for landscapes, portrait undertones, and historical restoration work.


History

Ochre has been one of the oldest pigments used in human history, dating back over 100,000 years. Prehistoric cave paintings, including those at Lascaux, prominently feature ochre pigments in shades of yellow, red, and brown. Orange ochre, though rarer, has been used in ancient Egyptian murals, Roman frescoes, and medieval manuscript illumination.


The Vaucluse region of France became a major center for ochre extraction in the 18th and 19th centuries, supplying artists and artisans with high-quality earth pigments. French ochres, prized for their purity and stability, became a staple in European painting traditions, from Renaissance masterpieces to 19th-century Impressionist works. In the pictured artwork 'Stonemason's Yard' by Canaletto, orange ochre is used for the rich terracotta color of the buildings for the warm orange glow.


Today, Orange Ochre remains a sought-after pigment for artists seeking natural, warm hues with historical authenticity. It continues to be used in fine art, conservation, and natural paint-making, preserving the rich legacy of ochre pigments.


Pigment Information

Pigment Type: Natural (Iron Oxide) from minerals (Goethite and Hematite) (France)

Suitable Mediums: Watercolor, Oil, Tempera, Acrylic, Encaustic, Cold Wax, Casein, Milk, Swedish Flour, Lime / Fresco

Lightfastness: Best

Opacity: Semi-opaque

Other Names: Burnt Yellow Ochre, French Orange Earth, Ochre Orange, Ochre

Color Index Code: PY43

Image: 'Stonemason's Yard' by Canaletto from the National Gallery