CHAPTER 2 #4
Da Vinci’s expression shifted slightly, though he didn’t want to ask more questions. He simply turned back to his work, adding more color.
My paintings are definitely better than that sycophantic Botticelli’s work.
At least she knows good art when she sees it.
Their eldest son had turned in his work early, and Da Vinci’s father was both surprised and relieved.
He had watched the boy grow up and had often had to clean up after him. This time, not only had he finished the fresco, but he had even submitted it ahead of schedule—he almost wanted to go to the Santa Maria del Fiore and sing hymns of praise.
The Medici family’s overseer came to inspect the work and generously awarded them five gold coins, which was equivalent to six hundred soldi.
The coins were engraved with holy images, and their pure gold texture made one grin with pleasure just by holding them.
Da Vinci finally let out a sigh of relief and went back to his work, focusing on designing small flags for the outdoor theater and indulging in things he enjoyed.
Meanwhile, Hedy made a trip to the apothecary and finally got the copper ore she had been waiting for.
The shopkeeper’s cousin was a miner. Though he couldn’t bring her an entire piece of chalcanthite, he did manage to get a large chunk.
Between the ores, there was a noticeable thick layer of light white mineral, with faint greenish traces, though she had no idea what it was.
Despite the kind-hearted Alejo insisting there was no charge, Hedy still gave him a large bottle of wine as a token of thanks for his effort.
She wrapped the ore in rough cloth, as though carrying a large loaf of bread, and returned to the workshop, thinking of how to process the material.
The reason chalcanthite loses its blue color as soon as it’s taken out of the cave is because the water content has evaporated, turning it into anhydrous copper sulfate.
Hedy took a small knife and paper and began gently chipping away at the light-colored crystals.
The material was quite brittle, so it was easy to work with, almost like carving sugar.
It was likely because she was making a bit of noise that the door was knocked on.
Da Vinci, intending to ask her about Christmas preparations for next month, was instead puzzled by the sound coming from her bedroom.
The door opened quickly, and Hedy, standing in the doorway, blinked and asked, "Sir, is there something you need?"
"Move aside."
She stepped aside, and the stone on the table became visible.
The thing was quite large, and hiding it under the bed might have led to it being discovered—there was no need to hide it anyway.
"This—this stone?" Da Vinci asked in surprise. "What are you doing?"
Hedy glanced at the powder she had already crushed and laughed helplessly. "I wanted to help you make some paint."
It was better to leave the door open anyway. The sulfur dioxide needed ventilation.
Da Vinci quickly recognized what it was. There were copper mines near his hometown in Vinci, and he had even gone to see them as a child.
"Wait, can you… can you make it turn blue again?"
"This is what the alchemist next door taught me," Hedy replied without missing a beat, fabricating a lie. "Sir, could I borrow the small crucible from the kitchen?"
They started a fire and added the crushed white powder into water, then began heating the solution.
A miraculous sight unfolded before them.
The powder that had been immersed in the water started turning blue as the temperature rose, with translucent, ice-blue crystals precipitating out.
Ultramarine, as precious as gold, had a deep, elegant color when made into paint. But this crucible contained a lively, bright sky-blue, reminiscent of a clear sky after a heavy rain.
Da Vinci was so overwhelmed that he covered his face, staring silently for a moment.
"Impossible—how is this even possible? How did you manage to do this?"
He turned to Hedy, his joy as pure as a child’s. "If we use this solution to paint, will it change color again?"
"It won't," Hedy replied, carefully controlling the temperature and setting the crucible aside on a stone slab to cool.
If the heat was too high, the reaction would reverse, turning the color back to white.
"We have blue—and we have an endless supply of it!" Da Vinci nearly jumped with excitement, looking at Hedy as if he wanted to hug her. His brown eyes sparkled with the reflection of the fire. "How can I ever thank you?"
"Meat," Hedy answered succinctly, "I want to eat meat."
Meat was certainly something they’d have to buy, but it couldn’t be done right away.
This was the first time Da Vinci had seen something so crystalline blue, like sapphire. As he watched Hedy carefully scoop out the crystals, he reached out to take one and inspect its color.
"Don’t touch it—it's toxic!"
Hedy instinctively slapped his hand away, her tone serious. "Sir, it's fine to use this pigment for painting, but you should never touch it with your bare hands or get too close to smell it."
Copper sulfate, when inhaled in large quantities, could cause vomiting, and excessive contact could lead to more severe poisoning.
She had originally intended to make gloves or a mask, but hadn't found the right material at home, so she had to improvise and make a few small samples for now.
"We also need to find a stabilizer... Once it’s added, it’ll never change color again." She muttered to herself absentmindedly, "What to use... egg whites?"
"Should I go get some eggs?" Da Vinci was about to get up, but suddenly paused, as another idea struck him. "Maybe add some grease to it?"
"That’s up to you, sir."
These past days spent alongside Da Vinci in the side chapel of the Palazzo Vecchio, Hedy had witnessed many new and intriguing things.
The explanations she had once heard in art galleries came to life right before her eyes. Even though she had already had some impression of them, seeing it all again in reality still struck her as remarkable and almost unbelievable.
Western modern oil painting is a product of combining oils, resins, and various other materials.
When painting, layers are applied from dark to light, and after completing the artwork, you can add another layer of turpentine after two to three weeks.
The colors remain vibrant and have a deep emotional impact.
However, during the Renaissance, everything was just beginning. Chemistry was quietly taking root in the hands of alchemists, and painters didn’t know the wonders of resins or have access to many of the organic chemical pigments used in modern times.
What they used was egg tempera.
Egg tempera.
At the time, the only thing that could fix the colors was egg.
So, every time Hedy helped Da Vinci with his work, she not only had to bring black bread but also carry a good number of eggs.
Egg whites, with their weak binding ability, were mostly used to adjust the colors and highlight fair skin. Egg yolks, with their stronger binding power, were used to create rich and dignified backgrounds.
The whole egg would be cracked into a bowl, the egg yolk and white separated, mixed with pigments, and olive oil or turpentine added. The process was like a cook making a thick soup.
Hedy wasn’t very familiar with this mixture, so she leaned on the table, watching Da Vinci work.
The light blue crystals were carefully selected, mixed with the egg mixture and oils, and then the first round of stirring began.
She had clear light blue eyes, her long lashes slightly drooping like a magpie’s feathers. Her long, dark hair curled gently, and her overall appearance had an elegant, classical quality mixed with an Eastern flair.
Da Vinci, originally focused on preparing the pigment, glanced over at her. He paused for a moment, but for some reason, he didn’t offer any praise.
Hedy, unaware that he was assessing her, observed him for a while before getting up and collecting all the blue crystals from the crucible. She sealed them in a small clay jar.
Exposure to sunlight would help preserve them for a long time—it was a good find.
Egg tempera dries quickly, and even when only being used for testing colors, it should be used as soon as it’s prepared.
Because of the properties of the pigment, Da Vinci hastily took the paint and quickly made a few strokes on the canvas. The oils fully coated the fragments, forming an invisible layer that trapped moisture and reduced the volatility of the chemical compound.
He picked up his brush and sketched a rough draft on the plastered wooden board before diving into coloring.
The bright, Mediterranean-like hues, vast and distant, surged onto the canvas like waves stirred by the easterly wind.
Layer by layer, the color swept across the painting, deepening from light to dark.
With swift crosshatch strokes made with a hog-bristle brush, the pigment formed a smooth texture.
Hedy stood beside him, holding a glass of orange juice, watching as the faint blue ocean slowly spread across the canvas.
"Bring me some hot water."
Da Vinci cleaned the brush and then, improvising, mixed other colors to begin painting the distant crowds. He was recreating the scene of Moses parting the Red Sea.
The Egyptian army chased after the Israelites, and Jehovah was merciful and forgiving.
Hedy suddenly remembered a line from the Old Testament.
“I would remind you that our ancestors walked under the pillar of cloud, walked through the sea, and were baptized in the cloud and the sea, returning to Moses.”
She lowered her gaze, watching as the painting filled up. She observed how he painted the story of her ancestors, a tale from thousands of years ago. Her emotions became complicated as she reflected on the connection to this ancient narrative.