Colour is a power that directly influences the soul
Wassily Kandinsky
With colour one obtains an energy that seems to stem from witchcraft
Henri Matisse
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Colour is one of the most powerful communication tools available to an artist.
Not only does it affect mood, colour can also trigger memories, incite action, and even create measurable changes in the physiology of the viewer.
Often our responses to colour are immediate and visceral. We may not know why we like a certain shade of blue, only that we do (and may notice that we often incorporate it in our wardrobe or our home decor).
When I’m starting a new collection of paintings, I spend a lot of time thinking about colour.
The palette I choose will set the overall tone for the work.
Do I want the viewer to feel happy? Playful? Energized? Bright, saturated colours will likely take centre stage.
If I’m trying to create a peaceful, calm, contemplative feeling, I’m more likely to gravitate towards muted and desaturated neutrals.
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But creating the right colour palette for a painting is more than just choosing a few tubes of paint. To create a feeling of harmony within the piece, those colours also need to work well together.
This is where colour swatching and palette play begin.
I usually begin with three primary colours plus black and white.
Although five colours doesn’t sound like a lot to work with, it’s surprising how many shades and hues they create when combined. I keep a dedicated colour swatching journal, which I add to each time I explore a new palette. It’s a great way to keep track of colours you’ve mixed previously and to see how simply switching a warm blue for a cooler blue affects the variety of greens available to you.
While I may let other colours ‘sneak in’ as a painting progresses, having the bulk of the palette decided in advance gives me the freedom to experiment with other elements of the composition, including shape, line work and texture.
I also like to create small compositions as I’m swatching. It gives me a better idea of how my colours might look in an actual painting, surrounded by other colours in the palette, rather than the border of white around them in my swatching jounal.
I’ve included a video of some recent colour palette explorations below. These palettes are part of the initial step in creating a painting on commission, whereby a client and I work together to determine the most pleasing palette for the bespoke work.