Color: From Boring to Brilliant! | Instructor, Patti Mollica ©Patti Mollica

Homework assigment  Week 1: 

Colorful Greys and Color Scheme Introduction

The goal of this exercise is to encourage students to mix colors that are harmonized, unified and work together - no matter what colors are mixed. The #1 problem with color in paintings is that the colors don’t relate because they don’t share the same “color genes”. By mixing a multitude of colors from just 3 colors (plus white) students will mix beautiful rich colors that all work together because there is a bit of each color in every mixture.

Exercise 1:
Colorful Greys Color Chart, non-formula approach
You will be making a chart of “colorful greys” in random colors and values

Pencil in a grid of squares approx. 1”x1” on a canvasboard or panel -  8x10 or larger such as 11x14 will yield more squares. 

Create swatches of colorful greys. Use the following 3 primary colors in each mixture plus white: Thalo Blue, Quinacridone Magenta, Cadmium or Hansa Yellow light and Titanium White.  

ALL 3 Primary colors must be in each mixture, plus as much titanium white as you choose. Use all three colors in any proportion you wish. The only MUST is that all 3 primaries must be in each color mixture. Fill up all the grids with various colors. It can be random, no formulaic approach. 

Try to get a range of light, middle and a few dark values. Also aim for some duller (neutral) greys and also a variety of more colorful greys. Leave a little white around each color so that the colors don’t butt up right next to each other. 

See example below. If your colors are too neutral for your taste, try making more vivid colors by adjusting the proportions of the colors. The level of saturation depends on the proportion of the colors you are mixing together.

To see a short video on mixing the colors, click here:  https://youtu.be/qqff09f5pY4

Exercise 2:
Using the reference image below, create 4 or more paintings in the neutral “colorful greys”. Remember to use all 3 primaries plus white in your mixtures, in any proportion. It’s important to match the values of the photo. Values are the lightness or darkness of the image. I.e. if an area of the photo is light, paint that area with a light color.

The reference photos are in b/w. This is to encourage students to work in any colors they want. Explore! 

Reference photos (Click to download or print)

Exercise 3: Create a chart that harmonizes palette colors using greys as “mother colors”

Using only 3 colors will assure color harmony and unity. But what if you like to use many colors on your palette? In order to make sure they all “play nicely” together, they need a common-color denominator to give them unity. By adding one common color to ALL your colors, this assures they will have some relation to each other. This common color is called a “Mother Color”.

Here is an interesting article on mother colors.
There is not a lot of information on the web about them. I don’t know why - because this is a very important concept!

Mother Color Chart
A “mother color” is a unifying color that is added to all colors and creates harmony. In this exercise we are using colorful greys as mother colors.

Directions:
Pencil in a grid of squares. Mix up 4 “batches” of mid-value grey Mother Colors:

Neutral grey:  Burnt Sienna, Ultramarine blue and White
Violet grey:  Ultramarine + Burnt Sienna + Quin. Magenta + White 
Blue grey: Ultramarine (more) + Burnt Sienna (less) and White
Red grey: Ultramarine (less) + Burnt Sienna (more)  White

Paint a swatch of your mother colors in a column on the left, and a swatch of whatever palette colors you like across the top. Create a chart of colors by mixing each of your mother colors in with each of your palette colors in about a 30/70 ratio: 30% grey mother color to 70% palette color. Use whatever colors you normally have on your palette.  The image below shows my palette colors, and I used a 50/50% ratio. You may have more or less colors on your palette.

Bonus Exercise: If you have a painting that resulted in colors that you weren’t happy with, repaint it - but using mother colors in your mixtures. See what the results are, and post the before/after in the FB group so we can all see!