ultramarine | citramarine 2024
The series ultramarine | citramarine combines Charlotte’s love for nature with her expertise in historical materials and painting techniques. Here, she spotlights the blue pigments ultramarine and citramarine (azurite), revered for their vivid hues and historical significance since medieval times. As their names suggest, ultramarine hails ‘from the other side of the sea’, while citramarine originates ‘from this side of the sea’ (Europe). In these works, the two pigments form a celebration of the sea’s splendor and symbolise the yearning it inspires to explore beyond the horizon.
(Na,Ca)8(AlSiO4)6(SO4,S,CL)2
Ultramarine
ultramarine
The pigment ultramarine is obtained from lapis lazuli. Lapis is Latin for stone and lazulus is Latin for the Persian word for blue. It is a relatively rare rock imported mostly from Afghanistan before the ‘discovery’ of America. The term ultramarine was originally used as an adjective to indicate where the blue had come from: az(z)ur(r)um ultramarinum. Blue from the other side of the sea. Since it came from far away and the production process was time-consuming, ultramarine was a very valuable pigment.
2CuCO3·Cu(OH)2
Azurite
citramarine
Azurite is a deep-blue mineral (a basic copper carbonate) that can be found in nature in the top layers of copper deposits. In the Middle Ages, the most important European mining and export location was in Hungary. During the 17th century, trade with Hungary was disrupted due to the wars with the Ottoman Empire, and azurite became scarcer. It has been found in other places, too, for example, France and Cyprus. To distinguish it from ultramarine, azurite is also referred to as az(z)ur(r)um citramarinum: blue from this side of the sea. This is not entirely consistent with reality, because it was certainly also found ‘on the other side of the sea’. Since it did not have to be bought overseas, it was less exotic and therefore cheaper.
photo Niels Coppes
photo Niels Coppes
“By focussing her attention on the origin of pigments, Charlotte anchors her work in enduring geological processes. By choosing to exclusively use natural pigments, she emphasises an alliance between culture and nature.”
Colin Huizing
Click here to read the complete essay accompanying the exhibition during Amsterdam Art week at BorzoGallery
photo Niels Coppes