Unique Colours: Quinacridone Gold
November 12, 2020
Discover Quinacridone Gold!
This colour is not what it seems at first glance – it looks like a warm, rich brown straight out of the tube, but it is very transparent and lends a glorious glow to paintings. It also mixes beautifully with many other colours and thins with mediums for “warming” glazes.
This pigment was almost forgotten when the last producer of Genuine Quinacridone Gold shut down their production in 2001 due to the waning interest of the auto industry. The remaining world supply of Genuine Quinacridone Gold was sold to a limited market and by 2018, the supply was officially spent. Since then, manufacturers have worked at developing a pigment which has been considered to be an effective replacement for the original. Quinacridone Gold has been a favourite of many artists due its versatility and ability to mix with others produce new colours, both muted and vibrant.
The transparent nature of Quinacridone Gold means that it can be mixed to an impressive range of colours. Many artists have been able to replace their Raw Sienna and Yellow ochre with this single colour.
Opus has included Quinacridone Gold in all four of our different paint lines including our new Opus Essential Oil Colours which is pretty unique as very few manufacturers make oil paint in this colour.
Often seen as a non-essential colour, we see it as an important and indispensable addition to an artist’s painting arsenal.
