True Blue

There's been an exciting new discovery that is the basis for a new compound that can be used as a blue pigment. The Physorg website, in an article entitled Accidental Discovery Produces Durable New Blue Pigment for Multiple Applications reports:

"Basically, this was an accidental discovery," said Mas Subramanian, the Milton Harris Professor of Materials Science in the OSU Department of Chemistry. "We were exploring manganese oxides for some interesting electronic properties they have, something that can be both ferroelectric and ferromagnetic at the same time. Our work had nothing to do with looking for a pigment.

"Then one day a graduate student who is working in the project was taking samples out of a very hot furnace while I was walking by, and it was blue, a very beautiful blue," he said. "I realized immediately that something amazing had happened."

What had happened, the researchers said, was that at about 1,200 degrees centigrade - almost 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit - this otherwise innocuous manganese oxide turned into a vivid blue compound that could be used to make a pigment able to resist heat and acid, be environmentally benign and cheap to produce from a readily available mineral.

The newest - and possibly the best - blue pigment in world history was born, due to manganese ions being structured in an unusual "trigonal bipyramidal coordination" in the presence of extreme heat.

"Ever since the early Egyptians developed some of the first blue pigments, the pigment industry has been struggling to address problems with safety, toxicity and durability," Subramanian said.

The pigment may eventually find uses in everything from inkjet printers to automobiles, fine art or house paint, researchers say.

The scientists said in their journal article that the new compound yields "a surprisingly intense and bright blue color," and they have outlined its structure and characteristics in detail. Collaborating on the work were researchers in the Materials Department at the University of California/Santa Barbara.

Stamford Holiday Show 2009

I entered Sunshine and Sea, a conte drawing called Determined Woman, a tempera painting called Menorah #1, and a signed digital print of my sculpture, American Eagle into the Stamford Holiday Show at the Stamford Art Association.

Veterans Day [The Act of Transcendence #1]

This is a painting I completed during the spring called, Veterans Day [The Act of Transcendence #1]. This image is a view of the unstretched, unframed, and unsigned canvas.

Drawings: First Week of November

Here are a number of biomorph drawings done from one model, multiple poses.









This sketch is from last week, an orphan in this week's batch.

MTA Passengers

I signed and framed the very first MTA series sketch I had done while commuting to New York City for my United Nations contract. The sketch was the only one done in pen and ink. On later sketching excursions I packed some pencils.

I donated the sketch to a silent auction held by the EO Smith Foundation's Pantherpalooza Party.

I'm assuming it found a good home.

Late October Drawings

A series of late October drawings featuring a male and female model together.

October Drawings

Some new pastel drawings from recent days: