1.25 oz. W&N Artists' Oil Colors Lamp Black #337

A coalminer's daughter sees her daddy go down into the mines every day.  She is so happy to see his soot-covered face come home safely each night.  That soot is the color of lamp black. The love of this color comes from the deep meaning of its name.

Lamp black is the color made from the incomplete burning of kerosene, oil, coal-tar, fat, and oils. It is the color of the soot made on a wall near an old-fashion oil lamp.  Until electricity was available this was the main source of light.

Think about how it was for an artist in the pioneer days of America, such as Grandma Moses working late into the night on a painting, which has captured her heart.  She would be sitting in front of a fireplace, painting by the light of a kerosene lantern.  Or maybe she would be sitting in her rocking chair reading by the same light.  She would know the color of lamp black very well.