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Permanent Colors

This is a list of "permanent colors" and "non-permanent colors" (meaning that their characteristics tend to fade with time).

You should learn the permanence of your colors as soon as possible.

Today's manufacturers have overcome many defects in both the mixing and the lasting qualities of paints, and many colors that for years were listed as non-permanent or doubtful have either been eliminated or, through modern methods, made permanent.

Here is a list of colors that most color manufacturers consider permanent (these apply to all media):

All of the Cadmium colors
All of the Mars colors
All of the Ultramarines Alizarin Crimson
Burnt Sienna
Burnt Umber
Chromium of Oxide
Green Cobalt Blue
Light and Deep Cobalt Violet
Manganese Violet
Indian Red
Venetian Red
Manganese Blue
Prussian Blue
Cerulean Blue
Ivory
Black Lamp Black
Lemon Yellow
Light Red (English Red)
Permanent Green,
Light and
Deep Raw Sienna
Raw Umber
Terra Verte (Green Earth)
Thalo Blue
Thalo Green
Viridian Yellow
Ochre,
Light and Deep Titanium
White Zinc
White Zinc Yellow

This is a list of colors that are non-permanent or doubtful:

All of the Chrome colors
Madder Lake
Mauve
Turquoise
Geranium Lake
Magenta
Scarlet Lake
Carmine

Done with the list of permanent colors? Click here to go to the main color theory page.

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