Red (Madder) Lake
[For a full account of lab activities on Oct 24, 27, and 28, see Isabella Lores-Chavez's field notes.]
Table of Contents
Date and Time:
2016.10.24, 01:40 pm
Location: Making and Knowing LabSubject: Grinding Madder Root and Soaking
We measured out 6 g of madder root and crushed it in a small ceramic mortar with a small ceramic pestle. We alternated between grinding and pounding motions. The root pieces were rather resistant - more difficult than grinding peppercorns or nuts. We eventually moved the madder into a larger stone mortar and continued with a larger stone pestle. The weight of the pestle made it much easier to crush the root pieces. We went beyond exposing the interior of root pieces, but not to the point of grinding them into powder.
We put the madder in the center of a square piece (4 x 4 in) of cheesecloth, made a packet using a piece of twine. The packet was put inside a 250 ml beaker, and we added 180 ml of water. We moved the packet around and squeezed it in water to release as much substance as possible. The solution soon turned burgundy.
We used a piece of lab film (parafilm) to cover the beaker and left it on a counter to soak.
Name: Charles Kang and Isabella Lores-Chavez
Date and Time:
2016.10.27, 01:00 pm
Location: Making and Knowing LabSubject: Laking
Upon arrival, we learned that our madder preparation had been used by one of our classmates on the previous day. Another preparation had been made for us.
After removing the lab film, we set the beaker on a hotplate and turned on the heat to maximum (5). It took about 6 minutes for the solution to reach 70 C. We had to turn down the heat to minimum and remove the beaker off the hot plate. The temperature of the solution continued to rise, reaching a peak at 80 C about 4 minutes after it passed the 70 C mark.
Once the temperature lowered to 70 C, we put the beaker back on the hot plate and continued adjusting the heat to maintain the temperature.
In the meantime, we measured out 3 g of potash alum, 1.2 g of potash, 120 ml of water. We added the potash to the water to create a solution.
30 minutes after the temperature reached 70 C for the first time, we took the beaker off the hotplate and removed the bag from the madder solution. Compressing the bag between a spoon and a fork, I wrung out as much liquid as possible.
Without filtering the madder solution, we added the potash alum to it and put the mixture back on the hotplate. Once the madder & potash alum solution reached 80 C, we removed the beaker from heat. Stirring constantly, we gradually added the madder & potash alum solution to the potash and water solution. The final mixture produced red foam on the surface, and we continued to stir until the foam began subsiding.
We tested the pH of the final mixture using testing strips. The final strip indicated a pH of about 7. We covered the beaker with a piece of parafilm and left it on the counter.
Name: Charles Kang and Isabella Lores-Chavez
Date and Time:
2016.10.28, 11:50 am
Location: Making and Knowing LabSubject: Filtering
We noticed that much of the pigment had precipitated overnight. Using a paper coffee filter in a funnel set over a mason jar, we started pouring the mixture, slowly so that the liquid could go through the filter first. And then we added the rest of the mixture to the filter.
Once the entire mixture was passed through the filter, we washed the accumulated pigment by passing distilled water through the filter. The entire process was very slow. We wrap the setup with a piece of cling film and left it on the counter.
Name: Charles Kang and Isabella Lores-Chavez
Date and Time:
2016.10.31, 12:40 am
Location: Making and Knowing LabSubject: Mixing and Painting
Because of the cling wrap, the accumulated pigment was still damp after nearly three days of rest. The class decided to mix the pigment only with egg whites and yolks, instead of experimenting also with oil.
After transferring the pigment onto a glass plate, we began grinding it with a glass muller. The crunch and the hand feel indicated that the collected pigment was coarse. We thus applied plenty of pressure and used a larger made of motions, but this caused the pigment to dry too quickly. After a few minutes, the pigment started clumping.
In the meantime, the class prepared our two main media: egg whites and egg yolks. Once separated, the egg whites were put in a bowl. Professor Smith put a piece of sponge in the whites, repeatedly let the sponge absorb the whites before squeezing them out. The goal was to loosen the whites - I believe the proper term is denaturation, or unfolding the protein molecules? - and to catch chalazae. It reminded me of the trick that pastry chefs have when preparing egg whites for whipping (especially for meringues and macarons): leaving the egg whites in the fridge for a few days and then passing it through a sieve.
For egg yolks, we were instructed to pass the intact yolk back and forth between two hands while intermittently wiping the hands with a paper towel. The goal was to remove as much white residue from the yolk membrane before puncturing the membrane to collect liquid yolk. This reminded me of my previous experiences of collecting liquid yolk for tempera painting, which included puncturing an egg yolk on a plate with a needle and using a brush to hold back the membrane, as well as passing an egg yolk through a very fine sieve. However, as I tried to transfer an egg yolk from a small plastic bowl to my hand, the protrusions on the bowl broke the membrane. I had to act quickly in order to ensure we collect enough liquid yolk while separating the membrane (and the embryo). I tilted my hand over a plastic bowl so that the liquid yolk would flow into it. The texture of my skin provided enough traction to hold the membrane.
Liquid egg yolk dries quickly, forming a skin on the exposed surface. We had to proceed immediately to our first trial: painting with ladder pigment and egg yolk. We added a few drops of yolk to a small amount of the pigment, and then mixed them together using a brush and a painting knife. By then the pigment was fairly dry, and the yolk was not enough to loosen it. As I worked, larger clumps formed - it looked like the yolk was acting as an adhesive, rather than a medium. Dragging it with a brush on a swatch left visible clumps.
We moved on to variations: 2. pigment, egg yolk, and water; 3. pigment and egg white; 4. pigment, egg white, and water; 5. pigment, egg yolk, and egg white; 6. pigment, egg yolk, egg white, and lemon juice; 7. pigment, egg white, and vinegar. For these variations, I added more of the liquid(s) and mixed more vigorously using two painting knives. Moving quickly but forcefully allowed me to break down pigment clumps, mix them with the liquid(s) more evenly before drying out. The most even paint came out of trial 5. A combination of white and yolk allowed a homogenous mixture with a subtle sheen. Regardless of the medium, our pigment was darker than those prepared by our classmates: ours was close to maroon, or deep brick.
ASPECTS TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN MAKING FIELD NOTES
- note time
- note (changing) conditions in the room
- note temperature of ingredients to be processed (e.g. cold from fridge, room temperature etc.)
- document materials, equipment, and processes in writing and with photographs
- notes on ingredients and equipment (where did you get them? issues of authenticity)
- note precisely the scales and temperatures you used (please indicate how you interpreted imprecise recipe instruction)
- see also our informal template for recipe reconstructions