Daniel Smith PrimaTek Watercolors

​So what is PrimaTek?
Glad you asked!  Daniel Smith started his company in 1976  to make professional artist grade  printmaking inks.  In 1993, he started producing watercolor paints.  All of his paints are manufactured in Seattle, Washington.  The PrimaTek colors have been slowly added to the watercolor selection.

Image courtesy of Daniel Smith Co.

There are 38 PrimaTek watercolors available.  The exciting aspect of these paints is that they are all created from natural minerals and semi-precious stones.  The company sends their geologist around the world seeking out the finest natural materials. Rhodonite from Germany, Serpentine from Australia and Lapis Lazuli from Greenland and Mt. Vesuvius in Italy to name a few.

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Each mineral is tested in house by their color chemist to see if it will meet the high company standards. The minerals are all milled to the optimum size for that specific material.  If the size is too large the paint will be grainy and if the size is too small the color will be dull.  Just like in the Goldilocks story everything must be just right!
Many of these colors granulate as you paint with them.  That means that some of the pigment will settle into the valleys of your paper giving great texture effects.

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Watch the video below to see how PrimaTek mix to make wonderfully complex colors.