Color Mixing Part 2: Palette v. Color Wheel

The Paint

In our last lesson I talked about the theory of color mixing. Now let's begin to discuss the nuts and bolts of it and how it relates to theory.

I generally use, what is called a limited palette. All that this means is that I use a limited number of colors, seven (and white) to be exact. Although anyone who has had me as an instructor knows that I usually only talk about six (more on that later). The seven colors are representative of the spectrum or color wheel but none of them align precisely with its colors. Remember in the previous lesson that I mentioned that in theory, primary colors are ones which can not be mixed? Well, in practice it's another story. First let us list all seven colors:

1. Alizarin Crimson
2. Cadmium Red Light
3. Cadmium Yellow Light
4. Yellow Ochre
5. Viridian
6. Cerulean Blue
7. Ultramarine Blue

......and Titanium White.

The seventh color is Yellow Ochre which is an earth tone. I don't use many earth tones. I believe in using the brightest colors that I can find. The reason is that it is easier to make a bright color dull than it is to make a dull color bright. If you start with earth tones inertia dictates that you will probably end up with what I call a brown painting. Most students tend to mis-use earth tones -- Black for shadows, Umber's for ground, Sienna's for tree trunks or anything made of wood. The only earth tone that I use is Yellow Ochre and I use it sparingly. Only as students get further along do I even "allow" them bring it into class. There are many reasons for the aversion

to earth tones which I'll probably address in future lessons (in live class sessions my aversion to earth tones usually results in an inadvertent and more than likely inappropriate response. Please feel free to imagine your own expletive).

Aligning Your Paint Colors with The Color Wheel

Now let's talk about aligning your palette to the color wheel. Because none of these seven paint colors falls on any of the primary or secondary colors it would help to know just where they reside. Below is our color wheel with the paint colors situated between the primary and secondary colors.

Brand Differences

Please note that this diagram shows where my colors fall, not necessarily where your colors will fall. It depends on the brand of paint you use. I currently use Utrecht but at one time I used Winsor & Newton. I remember that WN Cadmium Yellow Light was a bit warmer than Utrecht. They also offer a Cadmium Yellow Pale which was a little cooler than Utrecht Cadmium Yellow Light. You may also have noticed that most of the paint colors are located on either side of a primary colors in pairs. If you mix the paired paint colors a certain way you should be able to come up with that primary. For instance, if you mix Ultramarine Blue with Cerulean and you get Primary Blue (shooting that "Primaries can't be mixed" theory all to hell). The only stand alone color is Viridian. This is on my palette for practical reasons which I will discuss in the next lesson.

Why We Do This

Even though this alignment is rather subjective it is a necessary process if, for no other reason, than that it will get you thinking about the properties of your paint. The most important reason is that it is helpful to know what the compliment of each of your paint colors is. This will give you an idea of which direction to move a color. Not just in theory but in practice.

One of the most common mistakes that a student will make is to assume that a paint color is what it is called. For instance, Cadmium Red Light is not so much a red as it is a reddish orange, Alizarin Crimson is more of a reddish violet than red. Another common mistake that I see regularly is when a student over simplifies the process and assumes that each color on their palette has a ready-mixed compliment, resulting the question: "Why is the dark side of my lemon turning orange?" The answer is: "Alizarin Crimson is not the compliment of Cadmium Yellow Light." Alizarin Crimson may be a violet of sorts but not necessarily the right one. See the diagram below.

Best Guess

Color mixing is, in the end, a lot of guess work. There are too many variables to reasonably come up with a concrete formula from which to work. That said, there are methods and procedures for color mixing that can make it much more of an educated guess so that you're not starting from square one each time you need to mix something.

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In our next lesson I will discuss one simple method for color mixing. It is, by no means the only way to do it, but, it may be a good place to start. In future posts I will also discuss some of the quirks of color mixing and answer the question "How does Titanium White fit in to all this?"

Ah, patience.

(c) 2010 Holm. All Rights Reserved.