Painting Class Four

Getting Color Under Control

I have to review this topic regularly with a younger class. I remind the students to add new color to their color mixes slowly. I also suggest that they add colors to the edge of a color mix so as not to pollute the entire paint pile.

Understanding Opaque vs Transparent

Another important note: different colors have different tinting strengths and knowing that beforehand can save a ton of time. For example: zinc white has one tenth the tinting power of titanium white. I have two yellows, one semi-transparent and one opaque. My students struggle a great deal when using the less tinting yellow. Know your colors ahead of time and you’ll know how to manipulate them better.

What is Payne’s Grey?

Early on, painters found that they needed a color besides black (which could “deaden” colors) to tone down their mixes. So they began mixing their own greys. Manufacturers decided to cash in on the need by making a premixed color labeled Payne’s Grey though every brand was and is a slightly different color. You could buy it but it’s so easy to make my own with burnt sienna and ultramarine blue. This is a mix we’ve already been using since our second class!

Pop Quiz!

It’s time to review the vocabulary from lesson three: hue, chroma, and value. It’s more of a review than a quiz.

New Vocabulary:

• Tints
• Tones
• Shades

I popped over to Khan Academy for the simplest video explaining it all.