333 
PAINTING. 
work; or you may (agreeably to the practice 
of some painters) previously give the veil uni 
a light wash of white lead well purified, to 
serve as a ground. 
But ivory being the material most fre- 
quently used at present for painting in mini- 
ature, we shall here give the most approved 
rules for painting on ivory. ^ . 
It is scarcely necessary to remark, that 
the first essential point towards excellence 
in this, as in all other branches of painting, 
is a thorough and well-grounded knowledge in 
drawing, both from plaister, and from the life; 
without correctness of drawing the greatest 
brilliancy of tints will at last be unsatisfac- 
tory. We should therefore recommend to 
the student in miniature, to continue, at his 
leisure hours, to copy from large drawings or 
busts, in chalks or water-colours, as correctly 
as possible, which is the best means of giving 
facility to the hand in the drawing of smaller 
figures. 
Painting in miniature is of all others the 
most delicate and tedious in its process, being 
performed wholly with the point of the pen- 
cil. It is only fitted for works of a small 
size, and must be viewed near. 
Colours used, in miniature painting. 
In painting the face, the yellows that are 
used are five, viz. gall-stone, terra sienna, 
Nottingham ochre, Roman ochre, and 
Naples yellow; the latter three of which are 
opaque colours, the other transparent I lie 
greens are confined to one, which is sap- 
green. The blues are verditer, Prussian, 
indigo, smalt, ultramarine, and Antwerp. 
The reds are, carmine, drop lake, Chinese 
vermilion, and Indian red. Under the class 
of reds, may also be put burnt terra Sienna, 
its colour inclining much that way, though 
more to the orange. The only browns, it 
anv are used in the face, are burnt umber 
and terra de Cassel, and they are only to 
be used in the mixture of dark shades. 
For painting draperies, we shall only add 
to the above colours, lamp-black, king’s yel- 
low, and Hake white. 
Qualities of the above colours when used 
in miniature. 
Smalt is so hard that nothing but an agate 
flag and m tiller will pulverize it sufficiently. 
It is not to be depended on for permanency. 
Indigo is a useful blue, though it must be 
sparingly used, on account ot its extreme 
depth ot colour, nearly approaching to black; 
the best is called the rock indigo. The way 
to judge of its qualities is to break it, and, it 
good, it will have a copperish hue ; but it 
bad, it will be of a dead blackish cast. 
Verditer is a tine blue, and much used by 
miniature painters, not only in their sky- 
grounds, but likewise in the delicate parts of 
the face. It requires to be very finely 
ground on a hard flag. As to durability, it 
changes in time to a dirty greenish colour ; 
on account of its being made from copper, 
care should be taken not to put the pencil it 
is used with much in the mouth, as its quali- 
ties are pernicious. 
Antwerp blue, is one of the greatest de- 
ceptions in the world, being, when dry, a 
mo't beautiful bright blue ; but when wet 
and prepared, a very dingy colour, and to- 
tally unfit for the face of a miniature. It 
may be used in blue draperies or back- 
grounds, but in nothing else. 
Sap-green is a highly useful colour, when 
judiciously mixed with other colours; pra- 
ncing warm fleshy tints, which cannot be 
produced without it. Its extreme trans- 
parency and its permanency, are strong re- 
commendations in its favour. 
Reds. Carmine, is a fine bright crimson, 
inclining to the scarlet, and is rather an 
opaque colour : from it a variety of fine tints 
may be made. There are various kinds of 
it prepared by chemists, but the deep kind 
is the best, the lighter sort being frequently 
made so by adulteration. 
Drop-lake, made from the shearings of 
scarlet cloth, is a pleasing crimson colour: 
its inclining to the purple makes it peculiarly 
useful for the carnation tints in painting deli- 
Yellom. Gall-stone is one of the finest 
and brightest colours, and a lasting one ; but 
it should be sparingly used in the flesh tints, 
its brilliancy being apt to overpower all the 
other colours. 
Terra di Sienna unburnt, is of a greasy 
nature, but is used as a warm yellow: burn- 
ed, it is more beautiful, partaking of three 
tints, yellow, red, and brown. 
Nottingham ochre works well ; but on ac- 
count of Its heavy qualities must be used with 
caution. 
Roman ochre is used with success in mini- 
ature painting, as it works, when properly 
portioned with gum-water, extremely sharp 
and neat ; and being in itself a warm colour, 
communicates that quality to the tints it is 
worked in. 
Naples yellow, although adopted by some 
artists, is of a sickly hue, and has this very 
bad quality, that it absorbs all colours tha; 
are either "worked on it, or mixed with it. 
Blues. Ultramarine excels all others it 
permanency. 
Prussian blue has no substitute, on account 
of its strength of effect and transparency. 
cate subjects. 
Chinese vermilion, when good, is a bright 
red, and useful in miniature pictures, though 
not to be freely used, its opacity rendering 
it dangerous to mix much with other colours; 
but by itself, in touching the parts that re- 
quire extreme brightness, it is of wonderful 
service. It is very difficult to find the real 
kind, the common vermilion, mixed with lake 
or carmine, being a general substitute ; but 
the spurious and the genuine kind very ma- 
terially differ in working, the former being 
thick and heavy, the other the contrary. 
The native or mineral cinnabar, or ver- 
milion, is likewise very fine in Spain; and 
tire French have mines of it in Normandy. 
There is a method of preparing factitious 
cinnabar, viz. l ake six ounces of sulphur, 
and eight of quicksilver, mix them well ; then 
set them on the fire, till part ot the sulphur 
is consumed, and the pow der remains black ; 
after this, it is sublimed twice in open pots, 
at the bottom of which the cinnabar remains 
very heavy, and streaked with the lines or 
needles, some red, and others brilliant like 
silver : then take it and purify it in the fol- 
lowing manner : grind it well in fair water, 
on a marble, put it into a glass or earthen 
vessel to dry, then put urine to it, and mix 
it so that it be thoroughly wet and swim; 
hen let it settle, and the cinnabar being 
precipitated or fallen, pour off the urine by 
inclination, and put fresh in the room of it, 
leaving it so all night, and repeating the 
same charge four or nve days, till the cinna- 
bar is thoroughly purified. Continne the 
process with beating up tire white of an egg, 
which mixing with fair water, pour it upon 
the cinnabar, and stir the whole about with 
a walnut-tree stick; change this liquor two or 
three times as above, and keep the vessel 
close covered from dust; when used for 
water-colours, temper it with gum-water, and 
a small quantity of saffron dissolved will add 
to its brilliancy. 
Indian red is an excellent colour, not only 
for touching the deep red parts, but likewise 
in strong flesh tints, in bright back-grounds, 
and draperies. 
Browns. Umber is very greasy, and 
mixes unkindly ; but, when burnt, is very 
useful in many parts of miniature. 
Terra de Cassel, or Vandyck brown, so 
called from the very great estimation the 
inimitable painter of that name held it in, is 
the finest rich brown in the world; in itself 
producing a more beautiful colour than can 
be formed by the junction of any colours 
whatever. It is, in its natural state, rather 
coarse and sandy ; but when prepared, it 
amply repays the labour. 
Lamp-black is useful for mixing in hair 
colour and in painting draperies. The smoke 
of a candle received on a plate, is found the 
best, being blacker than the common lamp- 
black. 
King’s yellow r is a bright opaque colour, 
admirably calculated for painting lace, gilt 
buttons, &c. &c. but is a rank poison, there- 
fore should be cautiously used. 
Flake white, or refined white lead, is not 
to be used by itself as a white, for to a cer- 
tainty it will turn black, which circumstances 
should be nicely attended to by all artists. 
If used in miniature painting, for linen, &c. it 
should be immediately covered with a glass, 
which method is the only one which stands a ( 
chance of preserving its purity. For a farther 
account of the qualities of these colours, see 
Colour. 
Among the above necessary colours, there | 
are three which require to be burnt; viz. 
terra di Sienna, umber, and lamp-black. 
For this purpose, the two former are to be 
put in a crucible, which is to be covered and 
placed on allot fire: and when you think] 
that the lump of colour is hot through, take 
the crucible from the fire, and let the colour 
cool. 
The lamp-black is to be prepared thus: 
Take some of the common kind ; put it on a 
clean fire-shovel or plate of iron, over the 
fire ; immediately on receiving the heat, it 
will begin to smoke, on the ceasing of which ; 
you will find your lamp-black freed' from the i 
oily substance it originally contained, and 
fit for immediate use. 
Gum water. Choose the large white 
pieces of gum arabic, which are brittle and 
clear. Put them into a clean phial; and pour 
water on them, well-strained and divested of 
all sandy particles. Let the gum-water be 
about the thickness of water-gruel, that is, 
so thick that you can feel it in your fingers,] 
The fresher made, the better. 
Grinding the colours , arid preparing them j 
for the pallet. 
Provide yourself, if possible, with an agate- 
lag and muller ; but if that cannot convtiuJ 
