Viridian is a blue-green pigment, a hydrated chromium(III) oxide, of medium saturation and relatively dark in value. It is composed of a majority of green, followed by blue. The first recorded use of viridian as a color name in English was in the 1860s.[2] Viridian takes its name from the Latinviridis, meaning "green".[3] The pigment was first prepared in mid-19th-century Paris and remains available from several US manufacturers as prepared artists' colors in all media.[4]: 276–77
Viridian pigment was first prepared in 1838 in Paris by Parisian color chemist and painter Pannetier alongside his assistant Binet as a hydrated form of chromium oxide.[5][6] The preparation process was demanding, expensive, and shrouded in secrecy.[4]: 275 The French chemist C. E. Guignet developed and patented a cheaper manufacturing method in 1859 that enabled larger distribution and use of the pigment.[4]: 274 This method involved calcining a combination of boric acid and potassium bichromate, then washing the material.[4]: 280–281
Winsor and Newton's catalogue listed the pigment as early as 1849. It was used as early as 1840 in a work by J. M. W. Turner.[4]: 275 Viridian was in prominent use by the mid-nineteenth century, but was less popular than three to four times more affordable alternatives including emerald and chrome greens.[4]: 276–77
Viridian is a bright shade of spring green, which places the color between green and teal on the color wheel, or, in paint, a tertiary blue–green color. Viridian is dark in value, has medium saturation, and is transparent .[4]: 275
Paolo Veronese green is the color that is called Verde Verones in the Guía de coloraciones (Guide to colorations) by Rosa Gallego and Juan Carlos Sanz, a color dictionary published in 2005 that is widely popular in the Hispanophone realm.
Paolo Veronese green was a color formulated and used by the noted 16th-century Venetian artist Paolo Veronese.
Paolo Veronese green began to be used as a color name in English sometime in the 1800s (exact year uncertain).[8]
Another name for this color is transparent oxide of chromium.[9]
Generic viridian is the color that is called Viridian inspecifico in the Guía de coloraciones (Guide to colorations) by Rosa Gallego and
Juan Carlos Sanz, a color dictionary published in 2005 that is widely popular in the Hispanophone realm.
Spanish viridian is the color that is called Viridian specifico in the Guía de coloraciones (Guide to colorations) by Rosa Gallego and
Juan Carlos Sanz, a color dictionary published in 2005 that is widely popular in the Hispanophone realm.
Viridian is considered durable and permanent as an artist's pigment.[4]: 278 Viridian is unaffected by temperatures up to 260 °C (500 °F), but it is unsuitable for use in ceramic glazes.[4]: 278 Viridian is compatible with all pigments in all media, and has high oil absorption.[4]: 278 Pure pigment formulations of viridian are hard and may separate in tubes, but adding barium sulfate in small quantities enables easy grinding and dispersion.[4]: 278
Although viridian is not a frequent color name in English, it is used in a number of cultural references, probably because it is derived from viridis, the Latin word for green, so using the word viridian sounds more elegant than simply referring to the Old English word green.[citation needed]
Fine art painting
Fritz Bamberger, Afterglow in the Sierra Nevada, 1863.[4]: 288
Claude Monet, Arrival of the Normandy Train, Gare Saint-Lazare, 1877, oil on canvas[4]: 287 includes traces of viridian in the grassy area.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Flowers, 1919.[4]: 288 Fritz Bamberger - Ansicht der Sierra Nevada, 1863. Bavarian State Painting Collections.Claude Monet - Arrival of the Normandy Train, Gare Saint-Lazare, 1877, oil on canvas. Art Institute of Chicago.Renoir - Flowers, 1919.
Automobiles
"Viridian Joule" was the winning color name in Chevrolet's Volt Paint-Color Naming Contest.[12]
In the Pokémon franchise, in the Kanto region, Viridian City is the first town one encounters after leaving Pallet Town via Route 1 and also home to the final gym.
InVVVVVV, the player character is Captain Viridian, who is a light blue-green color. All characters have names referencing their color and starting with the letter V.
^The color displayed in the color box above matches the color called viridian in the 1930 book by Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill; the color viridian is displayed on page 79, Plate 28, Color Sample K11.
^Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 206; Color Sample of Viridian: Page 93 Plate 79 Color Sample K11
^Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 18 See: "Table--Polyglot Table of Principle Color Names" Pages 18-19
^ abcdefghijklmnNewman, Richard (1997). "Chromium Oxide Greens". In Fitzhugh, Elisabeth West (ed.). Artists' pigments : a handbook of their history and characteristics. Vol. 3. National Gallery of Art. pp. 275–293. ISBN0-89468-086-2. OCLC1224906722.
^ abcGallego, Rosa; Sanz, Juan Carlos (2005). Guía de coloraciones (Gallego, Rosa; Sanz, Juan Carlos (2005). Guide to Colorations) Madrid: H. Blume. ISBN84-89840-31-8
^Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 201 (It is listed under Paul Veronese green)
^Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 142
^Type the words "Viridian Green" into the indicated window on the Pantone Color Finder and the color will appear.
Newman, R., Chromium Oxide Greens, in Artists’ Pigments, A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, Vol 3: E.W. Fitzhugh (Ed.) Oxford University Press 1997, p. 273 – 286
Color coordinates
