Zirconium Vanadium Blue Pigment

Description

Zirconium Vanadium Blue is a handmade single-pigment blue based on Zirconium Vanadium Blue Zircon (PB71), a modern ceramic colorant where vanadium is locked into a zircon (ZrSiO₄) crystal structure. This pigment produces a light, sky-blue hue with a gentle greenish undertone. Because the colorant is embedded in an extremely stable crystal lattice, it offers outstanding lightfastness and durability.

In use, Zirconium Vanadium Blue gives a soft, cool blue ideal for atmospheric skies, distant landscapes, ceramic surfaces, and subtle water effects. It is semi-opaque, has moderate tinting strength, and lifts more easily than strong staining blues, making it well suited for layering. It mixes cleanly with cool yellows to form fresh spring greens, and with violets and neutrals to create complex shadow blues without becoming muddy. The color sits visually between traditional Cerulean and a turquoise, but without the heavy feel of many cobalt-based blues.

This zircon-based pigment is chemically inert, heat-resistant, and highly resistant to acids and alkalis, which makes it suitable across a wide range of binders and mediums. In artist's colors it offers a uniquely ethereal character that many painters find more subtle and refined than stronger chromatic blues.

History

Zirconium Vanadium Blue belongs to a family of modern ceramic pigments developed in the mid-20th century, when industrial chemists began incorporating color-producing ions such as vanadium, chromium, and iron into highly stable zircon crystals. These pigments were designed primarily for tiles, porcelain, and glass, where they must withstand high firing temperatures, harsh chemicals, and decades of exposure without fading. Zirconium Vanadium Blue is produced by calcining zirconium oxide, silicon oxide, and vanadium oxide together at high temperature until they interdiffuse into a blue zircon crystal matrix.

In the ceramic industry, PB71 is prized for its clean sky-blue to turquoise tone, its stability in both glossy and matte glazes, and its ability to maintain color under demanding kiln conditions. Only relatively recently has this pigment begun to appear in artist paints, especially in small-batch handmade watercolors and specialty lines seeking cobalt-free alternatives to traditional Cerulean Blue. Because it is rare in mainstream paint ranges and has a distinctive granulating texture, Zirconium Vanadium Blue has gained a reputation as a unique connoisseur's blue among watercolorists and pigment collectors.

Pigment Information

Pigment Type: Synthetic (Inorganic) zircon-based ceramic pigment doped with vanadium

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

Lightfastness: Best

Opacity: Semi-opaque

Other Names: Zirconium Vanadium Blue, Zirconium Cerulean Blue, Blue Zircon, Zirconium Blue

Color Index Code: PB71