Kuretake Gansai Tambi Watercolor No.38 IMPERIAL VIOLET

Imperial Violet is a deep, cool blue-violet from Kuretake's Gansai Tambi line – a traditional Japanese watercolor based on pigment PV23 (Pigment Violet 23). The Japanese color name aomurasaki (青紫) refers to the blue-tinted character of this violet: saturated, dark, with a coolly tender depth. Like all colors in the Gansai Tambi series, the pigment content is significantly higher than in Western watercolors – this becomes apparent at first touch with a slightly damp brush.

Special Features

• Large-format Pan 48 × 28 mm: The pan is noticeably larger than a Western half-pan, allowing even wide brushes to be loaded easily without bending the bristles.
• High Pigment Content (PV23): Pigment Violet 23 is one of the most intense organic violet pigments. In the Gansai Tambi formulation, it dissolves quickly and evenly, even without pre-soaking the color.
• Variable Opacity: Mixed directly from the pan with little water creates an opaque layer – similar to gouache. Thinned with more water, it yields a transparent layer suitable for glazing.
• Semi-Gloss Dry Surface: Kuretake Gansai Tambi dries with a slight gloss sheen – Imperial Violet displays a velvety-deep surface that makes the cool violet appear particularly luminous.
• Individually Removable Pan: The plastic palette can be removed from the set frame and used separately – practical for larger formats or when working directly on the painting surface.
• Light Fastness: Kuretake rates Gansai Tambi colors as light fast; no standardized rating is provided. Suitable without restriction for sketchbooks, illustration, and reproducible works; for permanently displayed originals, water content during application should be kept as low as possible.
• Not Document-Safe, Water-Soluble: The color remains re-soluble after drying – a typical feature of the Gansai tradition that enables corrections and lifting techniques.

Application & Tips

• Illustration and Lettering: Imperial Violet works as a fill and shadow color for illustrations, and also as an underpainting for ink or fine-liners – the cool violet tone provides a calm contrast to warm tones like ochre, sienna, or gold.
• Wet-on-Dry for Precise Edges: Gansai Tambi colors flow less freely than Western watercolors. Applied to dry paper, they deliver sharp, controlled edges – ideal for Sumi-E, botanical illustration, or decorative card motifs.
• Transparent Glazes with Plenty of Water: Those seeking flowing, translucent layers should mix the color on a separate palette with plenty of water. This creates delicate violet tones for skies, shadows, or floral backgrounds.
• On Dark Paper: Thanks to good opacity, Imperial Violet holds on dark gray or black paper – the cool blue-violet appears particularly intense there.
• Combination in Sets: The pan can be used anytime as a replacement color in Kuretake Gansai Tambi palettes and complements other cool tones there such as Prussian Blue, Indigo, or Cobalt Violet.
• Slightly Dampened Brush Instead of Standing Puddle: A slightly damp (not wet) brush is sufficient to pick up adequate pigment. The color dissolves quickly; excess water on the pan dilutes the intensity.

For Watercolor Enthusiasts

PV23 (Dioxazine Violet) is regarded among watercolorists as one of the few organic pigments that creates genuine depth without gray or black content. In the Gansai Tambi formulation, it is processed with a higher pigment-to-binder ratio than in many Western watercolors – this explains why the color shows full saturation with just a single damp brush stroke and loses little brilliance upon drying. The Gansai tradition binds pigments with a mixture of gum arabic, sugars, and other humectants; the slightly sticky, creamy paste consistency of the still-damp color is typical of this and explains the characteristic semi-gloss dry film. Those who mix Imperial Violet with white obtain cool lavender and lilac tones; applied undiluted and opaquely, it creates an almost ink-like, deep violet.

Technical Data