Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Color Theory for Complementary Palette




I have an update for the three complementary palettes that I've been using. They are in my book on pages 27-29 of Big Art, Small Canvas. As some of you may know Daler Rowwney doesn't make Chrome Green anymore. Or rather they have renamed it Yellow-Green. I also substituted a couple of colors since another palette color was close enough. Some colors are not sustitutable but to make purchasing easier I looked for ways to reduce the number of colors needed. Also, using Winsor Violet Dioxazine is much less expensive than Bright Violet by Old Holland.



There is a reason for each color used for each of the three palettes.
There is a true color, a warm version of the true color, a cool version of the true color, a light neutral version of the true color and a dark neutral version of the true color.
I also included a favorite color for a certain reasons (which I will explain in the palette.

In the ORANGE/BLUE palette:
For the oranges: Cadmium Orange is the true color
Chrome Yellow hue is the cool color
Cadmium Red deep hue is the warm color
Naples Yellow is the light neutral
Mars Violet Deep is the dark neutral color
For the blues: Cobalt Blue is the true color
Winsor Blue hue is the cool color
Mauve (blue shade) is the warm color
Violet Grey is the light neutral
Indigo is the dark neutral color
Blue Black is the darkest cool

In the RED/GREEN palette:
For the reds: Cadmium Red Deep Hue is the true color
Permanent Rose is the cool color
Cadmium Orange is the warm color
Indian Red is the light neutral
Purple Madder is the dark neutral color
For the greens: Permanent Green Light is the true color
Winsor Green is the cool color
Sap Green is the warm color
Yellow-Green is the light neutral
Raw Umber is the dark neutral color
Permanent Green Deep is used for making black

In the YELLOW/PURPLE palette:
For the yellows: Chrome Yellow Hue is the true color
Yellow-Green is the cool color
Cadmium Yellow Deep is the warm color
Naples Yellow is the light neutral
Raw Umber is the dark neutral color
For the purples: Bright Violet (or Winsor Violet Dioxazine) is the true color
Ultramarine Violet(or Mauve Blue Shade) is the cool color
Permanent Rose is the warm color
Violet Grey is the light neutral
Mars Violet Deep is the dark neutral color
Purple Madder is a favorite and used as a dark warm
Blue Black is the coolest dark

3 comments:

Gary said...

What a great teacher you are Joyce, always trying to make it possible for others to more easily obtain good results. This latest post puts your mazing palettes within reach of so many more people now. Thanks again.

Mary Sheehan Winn said...

Color harmony is SO such an important element and is often overlooked. Recently, I am starting my paintings by working up the colors before hand. I mix a dark and then add some white and keep mixing different colors into it creating a color harmony.
I've been experimenting with different palettes and when I see what colors come up, then I can decide what the painting will be.
FUN!

James said...

Very handy thanks. I'm very fussy about using "weird" colours ... When I've used watercolours I've tried to mix some of those warm, cool, neutral tones using a palette limited to (a)the main blues - ultramarine, cobalt, prussian, cerulean (b)a few cadmium reds and burnt sienna which I sometimes treat like a red, avoiding alizarin crimson for some reason (it fades I think) and then (c) lemon and cadmium yellow. I avoid black and white and could never get around to using raw umber. What does anyone use white for?

I came to the conclusion that limiting your watercolour palette mightn't be the best idea when I started to use Sap Green which was very vibrant and can't be mixed - trying to mix that colour can result in mud.

That post of yours is very educational. I'm gonna have to look into my box of colours now again and then my wallet and then the Art Shop.