PIGMENT: Prussian Blue

In 1704, an accidental discovery during an experiment in Berlin produced the world’s first synthetic pigment. While attempting to create a red pigment, color maker Johann Jacob Diesbach instead produced a vivid, deep blue unlike anything the world had seen before. Marketed as “Berlin Blue” and later known as “Prussian Blue,” the color became one of the most sought-after pigments in Europe. Prussian Blue traces this first synthetic pigment through the intertwined worlds of music, science, and commerce, including the exchange between Berlin and London after Diesbach’s monopoly was broken in 1724 by a British chemist, allowing the pigment to spread rapidly throughout Europe. Music by Graun, Handel, Schaffrath, Pepusch, Quantz, J.C. Bach, and C.P.E Bach.

Musicians:

Natalie Rose Kress, violin
Sarah Stone, viola da gamba
Stephanie Corwin, bassoon
Gabe Shuford, harpsichord