• View of Houses in Delft, Known as ‘The Little Street’ Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675), oil on canvas, c. 1660 This is an unusual painting in Vermeer’s oeuvre, and remarkable for its time as a portrait of ordinary houses. The composition is as exciting as it is balanced. The old walls with their bricks, whitewash, and cracks are almost tangible. The location is Vlamingstraat 40–42 in Delft.
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Rosso Veneto Earth

Rosso Veneto Earth

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Description

Rosso Veneto, or “Venetian Wine Red Ochre,” is a traditional natural earth pigment sourced from mineral-rich soils of the Veneto region in Italy. It produces a deep, warm red with subtle violet undertones, evoking the rich hues of aged red wine. This pigment is known for its natural durability, excellent opacity, and harmonious blending qualities.


Compared to brighter synthetic reds, Rosso Veneto offers a subdued, organic warmth with gentle tonal variations, making it ideal for underpainting, flesh tones, and earthy palettes. It performs beautifully across mediums watercolor, oil, tempera, fresco, and acrylic where its natural iron-oxide body gives both strength and permanence.


History

Red ochres have been among humanity’s earliest pigments, used in prehistoric cave paintings, ritual objects, and decorative arts. In Italy, deposits of iron-rich clays and soils provided distinctive ochres ranging from golden yellows to deep wine reds. Rosso Veneto became particularly prized during the Renaissance and Baroque periods, when Venetian artists sought locally sourced pigments for fresco and oil painting.


The warm, wine-red tones were favored for underpainting and for creating naturalistic skin tones, as well as in architectural decoration. Regional ochres like Rosso Veneto were often prepared and sold by local color merchants, ensuring their place in the palettes of artists across Northern Italy. In the pictured artwork 'The Little Street' by Johannes Vermeer, Venetian Red is used throughout the buildings as well as the underpainting both to create rich reds and oranges in combination with Madder Lake glazes as well as to add subtle warmth from the underpainting and mixes.


Today, this pigment remains valued for both its historical authenticity and its timeless, earthy beauty.


Pigment Information

Pigment Type: Natural Earth (Iron Oxide)

Source: Veneto region, Italy

Chemical Composition: Fe₂O₃ with clay and silicate minerals

Suitable Mediums: Watercolor, Oil, Tempera, Fresco, Acrylic

Lightfastness: Excellent

Opacity: Opaque

Other Names: Venetian Red Ochre, Rosso di Verona, Italian Wine Red Ochre

Color Index Code: PR102 (natural iron oxide red)

Image: 'The Little Street' by Johannes Vermeer from the Rijksmuseum