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Scientists used laser analysis to identify the mysterious blue color in a Jackson Pollock painting: It is manganese blue pigment.

The pigment was commonly used by artists but phased out in the 1990s due to environmental concerns about its chemical composition.

NEW YORK — Scientists have identified the origins of the blue color in one of Jackson Pollock’s paintings with a little help from chemistry, confirming for the first time that the Abstract Expressionist used a vibrant, synthetic pigment known as manganese blue.

“Number 1A, 1948,” showcases Pollock’s classic style: paint has been dripped and splattered across the canvas, creating a vivid, multicolored work. Pollock even gav

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