Anthony van Dyck, Charity

This pigment analysis is based on the work of the scientists at the National Gallery London (1). The scientists employed x-ray radiography (XRR), energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and x-ray diffraction (XRD)  to gain insights into the inner layers of the painting and to identify the pigments.

1 Red-brown drapery: carmine cochineal lake and yellow lake. A mixture of a yellow lake with charcoal black was found in the brown-coloured areas. There are also areas glazed with Vandyke brown. The lightest areas are underpainted with lead white tinted with a little vermilion and overpainted with thin red and yellow glazes.

2 Chastity’s blue swathe: indigo.

3 Chastity’s blue drapery: natural ultramarine underpainted with a layer of indigo. The shadows are painted in pure indigo.
4 The dark panel in the background: dark glazes consisting of Vandyke brown.

5 Blue areas in the sky: smalt mixed with lead white.
6 The greenish-brown curtain on the right side: dark glazes consisting of charcoal black, yellow lake, and a small quantity of yellow ochre.

References

(1) Ashok Roy, The National Gallery’s Van Dycks: Technique and Development, National Gallery Technical Bulletin, Volume 20, 1999, pp. 63-66. Available as pdf.

(1) Ashok Roy, The National Gallery’s Van Dycks: Technique and Development, National Gallery Technical Bulletin, Volume 20, 1999, pp. 63-66. Available as pdf.

(2) Liedtke, Walter A, “Anthony van Dyck“: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 42, no. 3 (Winter, 1984–1985). Available as pdf.