06/15/2026
WE MIX OUR OWN PAINTS!
Vincent van Gogh purchased ready-made oil paints in tubes. Porcelain artists still to this day mix their own paints using powdered pigments and oils such as mineral, balsam of copaiba, lavender, clove and even engine oil!
The choice is a personal preference based on the feel of the brush or pen and how quickly the artist wants the paint to dry. Add a bit of clove oil to keep paints "open" longer and lavender oil to make the paint dry faster or "close" it.
In addition, the firing process changes some colors depending on the mineral content, what other colors are fired in the kiln at the same time and the temperature and firing time used. The fact that different paint brands and colors fire differently adds another level of complexity to porcelain art.
(Credit to Susan Schmidt (OK) for writing this display signage text found throughout the museum.)
