I’ve taken plenty of painting classes and in every one the most common question for the instructor the first day is, “What colors should I buy?” If the instructor has given out a list the students have questions about how the list differs from what they have been using. What usually follows is some sort of justification for the color choice that can range from the only slightly helpful, “This is the palette that I find does the best job for me.” to the slightly slavish, “I studied with so-and-so and this is the palette he used. In the first one the teacher seems to be saying,“after years and years of painstaking study you will come up with one that suits you, but I’m not going to help you by telling you much about the process.” In the second one she appears to be saying, “Our forefathers know best, so why question?” I think instructors are doing students a disservice by not explaining a little more deeply where one’s color choices come from. I have lots to say about palettes (and plenty of pet peeves — just ask my friend Sandra) and I’m sure to get back to this topic in the future. For now, here are 3 truths that I have gleaned in my (part-time) years and years of painstaking study:#1 THE WORLD IS MOSTLY GRAY.
This one will come as a painful surprise to art students who have spent so much time staring at the world in an attempt to tease out the colors that are there, or staring at all the candy-like colors in the racks at the art supply store. One of the hallmarks of inexperienced painters is that they see the world in terms of the colors in tubes — the skies in their paintings are mostly straight-out-of-the-tube ultramarine, their trees are eye-watering green. The faster you can get yourself to asking what kind of gray you are seeing, the sooner you will mix colors that are true-to-life. It’s not easy to mix a gray quickly (and as you will soon realize, I’m all about saving time) with tubes full of bright concentrated colors. Scott Christensen, arguably one of the most accomplished landscape painters alive, uses a group of 8 GRAYS that is custom mixed to his specs by Vasari.
#2 YOU ONLY *NEED* 4 OR 5 COLORS TO DO THE JOB, BUT...
Theoretically, you only need yellow, red, blue, and white to mix a full spectrum of colors for painting. Some artist only have a handful of colors in their palette and others have dozens, yet if put to the test they (at least the accomplished ones) can get to a mixture quickly that matches what they see. I have tried it both ways. With a very limited palette I find it takes too long for me to mix a gray right. With a large number of colors I find that I end up not using some at all, so, why did I spend my money on them? My solution is to save my left-over paint and mix it all together (except white)and stuff it into empty tubes (available at some art stores). This left-over gray is already much closer to the gray world out there than any one of your bright colors alone. Start with this when you perceive a grayish color in your reference and you are miles ahead! Or, add a little to the color you are mixing if you fear that you are straying too close to straight-out-of-the-tube land.
#3 DON’T FEAR THE DARK SIDE
Some landscape painters will make the pronouncement, “Never use black.” What they are reacting to is a combination of a beginning painter’s tendency to use paint straight out of the tube and an adherence to an impressionist color palette. I believe this to be an error, and ever worse, one that makes it extra difficult for beginners to improve their paintings. Don’t get me wrong, I love the impressionists! But, if your goal is to paint a realistic image of a landscape, you’re going to be beating you head against the wall without some way to mix a dark, saturated color. I have both a black and a gray on my palette. I just use them with care, and embrace the more accurate tenet: ALWAYS USE YOU BLACKS (AND GRAYS) COLORFULLY! When you look at the darkest areas of your paintings you should be reading a COLORFUL darkness. If you don’t see an extremely dark version of yellow, red, blue, orange, purple, green, puise, whatever, then you need to analyze what you are trying to match again: OK, it looks black in one area, but, if someone put a gun to your head and forced you to describe it as a COLOR, what would you call it? Mixing paint for your darkest areas this way will keep you from making these areas dull and flat. I know I said before that the world is mostly gray, but what I really meant was: the world is mostly gray with a *little bit* of color in it. Color palettes are like religions: there are many options and they can’t *all* be right. Start with one that makes the most sense to you and adjust it as you develop as an artist.
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