February Newsletter: Color Study, Part 1

For the next several months I will cover the subject of color. This was a difficult subject for me when I was in school as well as when I returned to fine arts. I had no problem with color management when designing ads, brochures and the like in my old advertising life. It was somewhat easier because of the Pantone® Color System, PMS for short. Everything is pre-mixed and all you have to do is select the colors you want. In fact, it was the best part of the job.

In fine arts, it's different, harder. In my college years, I never received any instruction in color. When I returned in 2000, I again didn't have any instructors who would (or may it was could) not share more than the simple color wheel. It's a tough subject. I was so confused back in the early days that one teacher wondered if I had a color deficiency. Not!

So as I do in many of my workshops, I am going to share with you what I have not been taught. In the end,  I hope you will know more than you ever wanted to about color--because knowledge is power.

Having said all that, I want to begin with the basic painting tube. Why not the color wheel? We'll get to the wheel, but for now I want to share with you some important information that will help you understand color a little bit better.


Some definitions. 

Pigment is the colored stuff that goes into your paints. It comes in powdered form and is suspended in a liquid vehicle: with watercolors it's usually gum arabic; with acrylics it's polymer emulsion and so on. Every pigment has its own Color Index name and number. For example Cobalt Blue is PB 28 or Pigment Blue #28. Why is this important? Because sometimes manufacturers are forced to combine two pigments to get the final one. Sap green (look at the M.Graham chart) is made of three different items: Chlorinated Copper,  Phthalocyanine (PG 7) and Isoindolinone Yellow (PY 110). If you are having trouble mixing your colors, you may want to look at your tube to make sure that there isn't a pigment that's in conflict with another. 

Diana Graham from  M. Graham  & Co., a local paint company, headquartered out of West Linn,  gives us one cautionary note though, "One of the biggest points of confusion is the color name and number.  This is by no way like the Pantone System.  There are no rules about what we name a color and the variance from one pigment manufacturer to another can be huge even with the same name.  The color index number refers to the chemical make up  of the pigment, not a visual color.  If you look at cad red light, medium and deep-it is all the same number."  

So in the end, although we have some guidelines, we still have to do some digging on our own. For a more detailed and scientific slant on paint content, please go to the most complete on-line treatise I've ever read: http://www.handprint.com/HP/WCL/pigmt3.html#strategy

Color is the product name given to the paints (quinacridone rose, hansa yellow, sap green).

Paint is the end product of mixing the pigment with the liquid vehicle.

What does the tube tell you.For this dicussion, I am going to use M. Graham watercolor paints. They sell acrylic, watercolor, oil and gouache paints. If you look at any painting tube you will find the following on the front:

• The company name: M. Graham & Co.
• Paint quality: Artists' Watercolor (also words like Extra Fine, Finest), meaning the good stuff.
• The common name for the color: Cadmium Red Light
• Series number: Series 5. This indicates the price and also how expensive the ingredients are. A series 5 (cad red light) is more expensive than a Series 1, (burnt sienna).
• How much is inside: Net. 5 fl.oz./15 ml.

The following appears on the back:

• Lightfastness (LF)means how long will it take for your paints to fade. There is a US organization called the American Society for Testing & Materials or ASTM for short. They have a class system that rates the quality and longevity of your paints. The higher the number the lower the quality. You'll usually see the numbers I, II, III.
• Pigment: PR 108--The CI name is the pigment(s) or sometimes you may also see CI number. (see above)
• Vehicle: Gum Arabic. This is what the pigment is suspended in. Unlike other watercolor companies, M. Grahams also adds a bit of blackberry honey that adds a touch of moistness. I have Graham paints that date back to 2004 and they are still moist!
• Company information: West Linn. Usually you will see where the paint was made and also the company website for further information
• Cautionary words: There are some art materials that have been found to be hazardous and label warnings are required by federal law. 

For further reading, here is a great pigment database site: http://www.artiscreation.com/Color_index_names.html


Next month I'll be talking more about paints--what type of pigments are there and a new set of definitions.

January 2012 Newsletter: Chromatic Black

Happy New Year!
For the next few months I’m going to explore the subject of color mixing. A couple of years ago I wrote about the color wheel, primary and secondary colors. Now I’d like to go a step further and delve into different color families.

In this  issue I’m covering chromatic black. Most teachers and art writers usually bad-mouth the use of black in a painting. You’ll hear that black is a dead color, creates holes in a painting and/or mixing it to darken another color only creates mud.


I don’t totally subscribe to these opinions, as I have used black in many of my paintings without a problematic  result. But then again, I use very little black to darken my other colors since black is so powerful. As you can see with the painting below, artist Paul Emsley used only two colors (Mars violet and blue black, plus white) to create this absolutely stunning portrait, entitled Michael Simpson.

Paul Emsley, Michael Simpson, Oil on board, 2007

As with so many things in art, the use of black is a heated topic. It started with Impressionists who refused to use pure black, but instead favored toning down colors with their complimentary colors  (the opposite colors on the color wheel). Renoir stated, “No shadow is black. It always has a color. Nature knows only colors … white and black are not colors.”  Thus the banishment of black. I agree with Renoir. Shadow is full of color, from cast shadow color to reflective. However, black still has its place--from creating a darker shade of a color to creating totally different colors because of its somewhat blue tint. For example, a spec of black to yellow will make a very nice olive green. However, what happens when you don’t have a black at the ready? Perhaps you’re out in the field painting or you’re painting with a friend who doesn't have black either. You may also want a soft gray, leaning toward blue or brown. Creating your own black will help you in both instances. So what is this black? Briefly, chromatic black is one which is created by mixing other colors, such as dark blues, green, red and/or earth colors to achieve a more "colorful" black. Generally, you can take an ultramarine blue and mix it with an earth color (umber, sienna) to create a chromatic black. I usually use ultramarine blue with burnt sienna, plus maybe a dash of yellow. When you add white to this mix you can create the most amazing grays. There are other formulas as well, like these:

Burnt Umber + Ultramarine Blue (warm)
Prussian Blue + Burnt Sienna
Pthalo Blue + Cadmium Red LIght
Pthalo Green + Alizarin Crimson
Phthalo Green and Quinacridone Red (Gamblin, local oil paint company offers this in tube form) All of these colors should be of equal amounts, then add one over the other depending on what temperature or color you like. Some will be of a bluish tint while others will be brownish. Experiment and enjoy. Next month, I’ll be covering what colors one can create using black straight from the tube.

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Glastonbury Studios News

Classes begin the week of January 8th and end week of February 12 To pre-register for these classes, please email me at jjgoodell@gmail.com

Every Tuesday evening: Studio Drawing              7 pm to 9 pm 

Exploring Color Pencil

Supply list given at pre-registration. Colored pencil supplied. Six week session:. $70.00

Every Wednesday morning: Sketch’n on the Go!™ 10 am to Noon

Trying new media–pen and ink, oil pastels, colored pencil, plus more!

Supplies provided.. Six week session: $70.00.

New Class!

Every Wednesday afternoon:  Beginning Acrylics 1 pm to 3 pm Learn the basics to acrylic painting from color mixing to brush/knife technique. No experience necessary. Supply list given at pre-registration.Six week session: $70.00.

Every Thursday evening: Intermediate Acrylics    7 pm to 9 pm

Here’s your chance to continue your acrylic painting adventure. Each week we will tackle a different subject, using a different technique. Six week session: $70