No. You'd have to mix in some blue, and then you'd just end up with a muddy purple. You can prove it to yourself by looking at any painting from before about

No. You'd have to mix in some blue, and then you'd just end up with a muddy purple. You can prove it to yourself by looking at any painting from before about 1860. See any magenta? No. Magenta pigment was not available until 1859, and it could not be mixed from other colors without getting a muddy result. Edit: Here's an example: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bouguereau-Psyche.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bouguereau-Psyche.jpg The painting (Psyche by Bouguereau) was done in 1890 and could not have been made thirty years earlier.