Want to sit in on a bit of the class? https://youtu.be/12BBmlG1CZw
Here is a good discussion with some great students as we examine ways to create a color harmony which can serve to replace a single flat color in your painting. Skip the first two minutes, we're just figuring out how to record a zoom class during that time, pretty lame of me to not edit this first... ah. I'll get better at that. Still, the lessons are very good, I think. Let me know if you like it. Be prepared, this is about an hour and a half. Have your paints ready if you want to work along with me.
Here is a good discussion with some great students as we examine ways to create a color harmony which can serve to replace a single flat color in your painting. Skip the first two minutes, we're just figuring out how to record a zoom class during that time, pretty lame of me to not edit this first... ah. I'll get better at that. Still, the lessons are very good, I think. Let me know if you like it. Be prepared, this is about an hour and a half. Have your paints ready if you want to work along with me.
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Mixing through the analogous colors of the starting color until you reach the complementary color makes transitions. You are graying down the individual components as you work down the ladder. You are changing the SATURATION and CHROMA but NOT the VALUE.
The easiest way to change VALUE is to add white, however, there is a diminishing return of losing saturation.
GRAY is having a third primary in it. A color with two primaries in it is still 100% saturation. When you add the third, it becomes gray.
Example - red + yellow - full saturation. But if the red is alizarin crimson, which has blue in it, then you are graying it.
You want to add lighter colors to lighten a color whenever possible instead of white. High Key Color has the very lightest values; for example, Twachtman's snow painting where nothing in it is darker than 50%. It is more normal to have more saturation where there is more light in the subject.
BLACK is a very dark neutral gray made by adding all the dark complements.
TRANSITIONS - The hardest and most important challenge is keeping the values consistent.
Things tend to go more "yellow" when there is "light" in them. Lighten with yellow first until the chroma has changes too much, then use white.
VALUE describes form. Representational painting or observational painting is about form, therefore, VALUE is the most important element to get right.
Vanishing edges are two (or more) similar colors mixed to exactly the same value.
How to keep colors separate:
Make thick piles of paint
Have enough paint on the brush
Don't over-mix
Use multiple brushes for different values
Target Mixing - how to make the spot of color you want - "what color is it....what color is 'wet', 'ocean', etc"
Exercise: walk around and "mind-mix" colors of what you see.
The absorptive quality of pigments differs in colors which effects your mixing to the exact color.
Everything takes on the appearance of the complement surrounding it.
Brown Square Exercise:
One pile of brilliant green One pile of cadmium orange
Put white at side & add, mixing for value Put white at side & add, mixing for value
Bring both piles together
Make pile of cadmium red light with white at side Make pile of cadmium yellow deep + brilliant green +
mixing to value cadmium orange
Bring both of these piles together and add to first mixture
Mixing through the analogous colors of the starting color until you reach the complementary color makes transitions. You are graying down the individual components as you work down the ladder. You are changing the SATURATION and CHROMA but NOT the VALUE.
The easiest way to change VALUE is to add white, however, there is a diminishing return of losing saturation.
GRAY is having a third primary in it. A color with two primaries in it is still 100% saturation. When you add the third, it becomes gray.
Example - red + yellow - full saturation. But if the red is alizarin crimson, which has blue in it, then you are graying it.
You want to add lighter colors to lighten a color whenever possible instead of white. High Key Color has the very lightest values; for example, Twachtman's snow painting where nothing in it is darker than 50%. It is more normal to have more saturation where there is more light in the subject.
BLACK is a very dark neutral gray made by adding all the dark complements.
TRANSITIONS - The hardest and most important challenge is keeping the values consistent.
Things tend to go more "yellow" when there is "light" in them. Lighten with yellow first until the chroma has changes too much, then use white.
VALUE describes form. Representational painting or observational painting is about form, therefore, VALUE is the most important element to get right.
Vanishing edges are two (or more) similar colors mixed to exactly the same value.
How to keep colors separate:
Make thick piles of paint
Have enough paint on the brush
Don't over-mix
Use multiple brushes for different values
Target Mixing - how to make the spot of color you want - "what color is it....what color is 'wet', 'ocean', etc"
Exercise: walk around and "mind-mix" colors of what you see.
The absorptive quality of pigments differs in colors which effects your mixing to the exact color.
Everything takes on the appearance of the complement surrounding it.
Brown Square Exercise:
One pile of brilliant green One pile of cadmium orange
Put white at side & add, mixing for value Put white at side & add, mixing for value
Bring both piles together
Make pile of cadmium red light with white at side Make pile of cadmium yellow deep + brilliant green +
mixing to value cadmium orange
Bring both of these piles together and add to first mixture
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Make pile of brilliant green adding some white. Mix three piles to get target color, keeping the value |
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Value Shift Transitions - going from one color to another with a value shift and without losing luminosity.
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Red - Violet to light gray violet cad red light + cad orange add alizarin crimson + white (begin value shift) add diox purple + cad red light + white (tangle strokes) add ultramarine blue + white Mix new pile of cad red light + violet + alizarin crimson + dioxazine purple + white and apply as "dots" "dots" are half step brush strokes for luminosity- they pull different colors into area |
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add white to above and apply as interspersed dots
throughout. add white to first pile and apply as interspersed dots throughout. |
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Orange into purple give a gray red
Use Cadmium red to gray down purples
Remember: you can't get white or gray out of a color once you've put it in. Add carefully.
Use Cadmium red to gray down purples
Remember: you can't get white or gray out of a color once you've put it in. Add carefully.
VALUE AND CHROMA SHIFT TRANSITIONS - GREEN TO YELLOW-GREEN
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Simple way - I have no control over the transition
Dark blue green ( phthalo green ) Put cadmium yellow lemon to other side and mix the two in the middle |
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Complex way - I control transition, all properties: saturation,
value, chroma. Dark blue green ( phthalo green) add violet add permanent green + violet (temperature change) add brilliant green add white (chroma shift) add cad yellow lemon + white- makes a bluer color, but still have a high saturation (chroma and value shifts) add cad yellow med (changes temp & chroma but not value) add more cad yellow med (temperature change) add more cad yellow med (temperature change) add cad yellow lemon + white (value, chroma and saturation shifts) add cad yellow lemon (value, chroma, and saturation shifts) |
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The closer the value of the ingredients the more there is only a color shift.
The property of the added ingredient that is most different from the host will make the most change.
The property of the added ingredient that is most different from the host will make the most change.
VALUE AND CHROMA SHIFT TRANSITIONS - YELLOW TO PURPLE
1. Cadmium yellow lemon
2. at other end of transition, put dioxazine purple + white (you will be working on both sides at same time
3. add alizarin crimson + white on one side of #2
4. add ultramarine blue + white on other side of #2
5. add ultramarine blue + white on brush loaded with #3
6. add alizarin crimson + white into #3
7. add cad red light + white into #6
8. add brilliant green + white into #7
9. add more brilliant green + white into #7
10. add cad red light + cad orange + white into #7
11. Take a pile of a blue gray violet to same value and apply throughout (how to take non-pure colors thru a neutral area)
(getting artful)
12. create a pile of cad orange + alizarin crimson and put some #7 in it (getting artful)
13. add cad yellow lemon into #12 plus some #7
14. add cad yellow medium into #9
15. add brilliant green + white into #12
16. add cad yellow medium into #15
17. add cad yellow medium into #16
18. add cad yellow lemon + cad yellow deep + white into #7
19. add cad yellow deep into #15
20. Fixing- create pile of cad red light + white and with dirty brush pick up other dabs and apply throughout
21. add white into #20
22. add cad yellow lemon + cad yellow deep + green into #21
23. add cad yellow lemon + cad yellow deep + white on one side of #1
24. add brilliant breen + white + cad yellow lemon on other side of #1
25. add ultramarine blue into #24
26. add cad yellow deep into #25
2. at other end of transition, put dioxazine purple + white (you will be working on both sides at same time
3. add alizarin crimson + white on one side of #2
4. add ultramarine blue + white on other side of #2
5. add ultramarine blue + white on brush loaded with #3
6. add alizarin crimson + white into #3
7. add cad red light + white into #6
8. add brilliant green + white into #7
9. add more brilliant green + white into #7
10. add cad red light + cad orange + white into #7
11. Take a pile of a blue gray violet to same value and apply throughout (how to take non-pure colors thru a neutral area)
(getting artful)
12. create a pile of cad orange + alizarin crimson and put some #7 in it (getting artful)
13. add cad yellow lemon into #12 plus some #7
14. add cad yellow medium into #9
15. add brilliant green + white into #12
16. add cad yellow medium into #15
17. add cad yellow medium into #16
18. add cad yellow lemon + cad yellow deep + white into #7
19. add cad yellow deep into #15
20. Fixing- create pile of cad red light + white and with dirty brush pick up other dabs and apply throughout
21. add white into #20
22. add cad yellow lemon + cad yellow deep + green into #21
23. add cad yellow lemon + cad yellow deep + white on one side of #1
24. add brilliant breen + white + cad yellow lemon on other side of #1
25. add ultramarine blue into #24
26. add cad yellow deep into #25
This demo is one way; established the primary and its complement first, then worked from the complement to the primary (bottom up the ladder); towards end (step 22 to 23) worked down from top to meet; object to have luminous gray in middle and handle value shifts artfully and harmoniously; you may have to do "fixes" along the way - adjustment mixing and dabbing throughout to better interblend chroma, saturation, and value changes.
Transparent Colors - don't effect the value as much as they effect the chroma; aka less of a value shift for the same chroma shift
Indian Yellow - transparent yellow
Transparent Orange - transparent orange (the thicker the paint, the more it looks like red)
They work great into greens to change saturation and chroma without changing the value
Indian Yellow - transparent yellow
Transparent Orange - transparent orange (the thicker the paint, the more it looks like red)
They work great into greens to change saturation and chroma without changing the value
This demo was done on another day of the workshop. Again, it is yellow to purple but a different journey! This time David started with yellow and mixed down the red side to purple then back up the blue side to yellow.
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Cadmium yellow lemon
add cad yellow lemon + cad yellow medium + white (value shift begins) add cad yellow medium add more cad yellow medium add cad orange + white add cad orange + alizarin crimson + white add aliz crimson + white add more aliz crimson + white add more aliz crimson + white add more alizarin crimson + white (avoiding yellow orange) add brilliant blue + white (mixed to value) + aliz crimson add brilliant blue + white Dioxazine purple + white (target color) Separate pile of quinacridone red + white and dabbed throughout bottom half of transition Now start on the dioxazine purple side and work back to the yellow side by: add brilliant blue add phthalo blue + white and laid on top moving up strip (less red) add white and laid on top moving up strip add brilliant green + cad yellow medium and laid on top moving up strip (making it greeny, grayer, and lighter) add more brilliant green + cad yellow medium and laid on top moving up strip add cad orange + cad yellow medium + violet and laid on top moving up strip add cad yellow medium +brilliant green +white and laid on top moving up strip add cad yellow medium + cad yellow lemon and laid on top moving up strip AND connect to the first cadmium yellow lemon |
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Transition strips are vivid with the colors on the edges (of the color wheel) and grayer as you pass through the center.
