Titanium White Pigment

Description

Titanium Dioxide (Rutile) is a created single pigment created through a chemical refinement process to produce an ultra-bright, highly stable and covering white. This pigment is prized for its superior opacity, light-scattering properties, and long-term durability. Compared to other white pigments, it offers exceptional coverage, greater resistance to UV degradation, and minimal yellowing over time.

Titanium White has exceptional lightfastness, making it highly durable for both classical and contemporary artwork. It blends seamlessly with other pigments, offering clean, bright highlights and strong mixing properties. Its high opacity allows for superior coverage in oil, watercolor, and tempera applications. Unlike older white pigments such as Lead White or Zinc White, it is less toxic and does not darken over time, making it an ideal choice for artists.

History

White pigments have played a crucial role in art and industry for centuries, with early civilizations using naturally occurring chalks and lead-based whites for painting and decoration.

During antiquity and the Renaissance, artists primarily used Lead White, a highly opaque but toxic pigment. It was essential for oil painting, manuscript illumination, and architectural applications but posed serious health risks.

By the 19th and early 20th centuries, concerns over lead toxicity led to the search for safer alternatives. Zinc White was introduced as a non-toxic replacement but lacked the opacity and durability of Lead White.

In 1916, Titanium Dioxide was first synthesized as a pigment, quickly surpassing all previous white pigments in performance. The rutile form, developed in the 1930s, proved to be the most durable and stable, resisting chalking and yellowing far better than earlier alternatives.

Today, Titanium White is the industry standard for white pigments, used in fine art, industrial coatings, plastics, cosmetics, and more. Its exceptional opacity, lightfastness, and safety have made it an irreplaceable pigment for artists and manufacturers worldwide. In the pictured artwork 'Poppy Tree' by Norval Morrisseau, Titanium White is used in the blue background to create the beautiful blue tint.

Pigment Information

Pigment Type: Synthetic (Titanium Dioxide) from minerals (Rutile - TiO₂)

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

Lightfastness: Best

Opacity: Opaque

Other Names: Titanium Dioxide, Rutile White, Permanent White

Color Index Code: PW6

Image: 'Poppy Tree' by Norval Morrisseau from the Glenbow Museum