Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting, Vol. 3

for the End of the Manual of Painting, Volume Three

Various Methods for Applying Color

Mineral Blue original: 石青 (shiqing). Azurite; a deep blue mineral pigment used for the vibrant plumage of birds like kingfishers.

Mineral Green original: 石綠 (shilü). Malachite; a green mineral pigment often used for foliage or the iridescent feathers of exotic birds.

Cinnabar original: 硃砂 (zhusha). A natural mercuric sulfide used for deep, permanent reds.

Vermilion original: 銀硃 (yinzhu). A brighter, more orange-red pigment made from heated cinnabar or synthetic mercuric sulfide.

Liquid Gold original: 泥金 (nijin). Gold leaf ground into a fine powder and mixed with glue to be used as a paint for highlights and luxurious details.

Realgar original: 雄黃 (xionghuang). An arsenic sulfide mineral producing a warm orange-yellow hue.

Applying White original: 傅粉 (fufen). Refers to the use of lead white or clam-shell white (gofun) to add brightness, highlights, or texture.

• Base-coating with white
• Shading with white
• Fine-lining with white original: 絲粉 (sifen). A technique of using a fine brush to paint individual white feather barbs or hairs.
• Dotting with white
• Back-coating with white original: 衬粉 (chenfen). Applying white pigment to the reverse side of the silk or paper to make colors on the front appear more opaque and vibrant.