When we hear the word Ocher, many of us imagine a color akin to a rusty mustard shade. However, it’s not just a single hue: it’s also a popular Pigment option for artists. Before it encounters any form of manipulation by human hands, Ocher is merely earth. It gets its color from hydrated iron oxide, and the concentration of this chemical compound determines the shade that the Ocher takes on.
Various shades of Ocher can be found in several places around the world. Prehistoric cave art indicates that it has been used in Europe and Australia for several thousand years. Finding Ocher isn’t difficult; one merely needs to seek out areas containing high levels of iron. You might discover Ocher in a cave—or you may simply find it in a handful of pebbles you took from the side of the road. This doesn’t mean you can pick up any rock you see and hope to find Ocher in it—you’ll still want to look in areas where it has been proven to be present.
Once extracted from nature, Ocher is finely ground and dehydrated. The dehydration process ultimately determines the color of the resulting Pigment. The Pigment actually contains a decent amount of water—if you allow the Pigment to oxidize, thereby removing that moisture, it begins to take on a different hue. This is where we get colors such as Burnt Red or Burnt Umber, which receive that moniker because they are, in fact, burnt: the heat, alongside the lack of hydration, is what allows the Pigment to take on these deep, rich hues.
The process of creating natural Pigments can be summarized in just a few words: the Pigment is ground into fine powder and oxidized according to color preference. There aren’t a ton of steps, and we don’t want there to be—there’s a reason we choose to use natural colors as opposed to synthetic equivalents. According to Color Matters, “The human eye can see 7,000,000 colors.” How many thousands of those are visible in Ocher alone? You may be struck by inspiration when scrolling through the Ochers and all the stunning nontoxic artists’ Pigments offered by Earth Pigments. The colors appear bold and full of dimension, even through the filter of a computer screen. You can use them to create your own oil paints, pastels, and more. The beauty of our true Ocher is that it isn’t molded or fashioned to be something it isn’t. Instead, it’s used to create art in the most truthful and natural way possible.
Where Ocher is Found
Various shades of Ocher can be found in several places around the world. Prehistoric cave art indicates that it has been used in Europe and Australia for several thousand years. Finding Ocher isn’t difficult; one merely needs to seek out areas containing high levels of iron. You might discover Ocher in a cave—or you may simply find it in a handful of pebbles you took from the side of the road. This doesn’t mean you can pick up any rock you see and hope to find Ocher in it—you’ll still want to look in areas where it has been proven to be present.
The Oxidation Process
Once extracted from nature, Ocher is finely ground and dehydrated. The dehydration process ultimately determines the color of the resulting Pigment. The Pigment actually contains a decent amount of water—if you allow the Pigment to oxidize, thereby removing that moisture, it begins to take on a different hue. This is where we get colors such as Burnt Red or Burnt Umber, which receive that moniker because they are, in fact, burnt: the heat, alongside the lack of hydration, is what allows the Pigment to take on these deep, rich hues.
Color Created by Nature
The process of creating natural Pigments can be summarized in just a few words: the Pigment is ground into fine powder and oxidized according to color preference. There aren’t a ton of steps, and we don’t want there to be—there’s a reason we choose to use natural colors as opposed to synthetic equivalents. According to Color Matters, “The human eye can see 7,000,000 colors.” How many thousands of those are visible in Ocher alone? You may be struck by inspiration when scrolling through the Ochers and all the stunning nontoxic artists’ Pigments offered by Earth Pigments. The colors appear bold and full of dimension, even through the filter of a computer screen. You can use them to create your own oil paints, pastels, and more. The beauty of our true Ocher is that it isn’t molded or fashioned to be something it isn’t. Instead, it’s used to create art in the most truthful and natural way possible.