Rublev Colours Lamp Black is a high-purity carbon black pigment (PBk6) made in modern oil furnaces to produce a soft, deep black with a distinctive undertone range. In full strength applications it can show a subtle warm brownish cast, while tints mixed with white shift toward a cooler bluish grey, making it a versatile black for both expressive and controlled colour mixing.

Lamp black is one of the oldest pigments used in art and remains valued today for its exceptional stability. It is highly resistant to light, acids, and alkalis, and performs reliably across oil, acrylic, watercolour, ink, and mixed media applications. Its very fine particle size supports deep masstone and smooth dispersal, while its high surface area contributes to strong tinting behaviour.

Key features

• Colour Index PBk6 (amorphous carbon)

• Soft black with brownish undertone in masstone and bluish undertone in tints

• Extremely stable and lightfast (ASTM I in acrylic, oil, and watercolour)

• Ideal for greys, shadows, monochrome work, and neutralising mixtures

• Suitable for paint making, inks, grounds, and mixed media

Important handling and use notes

• Dry pigment dust should not be inhaled. Use a mask and good ventilation when handling powder.

• Lamp black has very high oil absorption and can slow the drying of oil paint, so it is best used in upper layers or balanced with faster drying pigments when making oil paint.