Cobalt Blue - Cobalt Blue in Human Culture

Cobalt Blue in Human Culture

Art

• John Varley suggested cobalt blue as a good substitution for ultramarine blue for painting skies.
• Maxfield Parrish, famous partly for the intensity of his skyscapes, used cobalt blue, and cobalt blue is sometimes called Parrish blue as a result.
• Cobalt blue was the primary blue pigment used in Chinese blue and white porcelain for centuries, beginning in the late 8th or early 9th century.

Construction

• Because of its chemical stability in the presence of alkali, cobalt blue is used as a pigment in blue concrete.

Glassmaking

• The blue seen on many glassware pieces is cobalt blue, and it is used widely by artists in many other fields.
• Cobalt glass almost perfectly filters out the bright yellow emission of ionized sodium, common in most flames (as even the most trace amount of it is very overpowering).

Ophthalmology

• Cobalt blue is used as a filter used in ophthalmoscopes, and is used to illuminate the cornea of the eye following application of fluorescein dye which is used to detect corneal ulcers and scratches.

Sports

• Major League Soccer's Kansas City Wizards have had cobalt blue as the secondary color of its home uniforms since 2008.

Vexilology

• Several countries including the Netherlands and Romania have cobalt blue as one of three shades of their tricolour.

Automobiles

• Several car manufacturers including Jeep and Bugatti have cobalt blue as one paint options Jeep Wrangler Unlimited.