Colour Mixing for a Harmonious Palette
Mixing teal, magenta and yellow in my sketchbook, discovering a multitude of colours.
The Color Cure
Diving right in, getting some colour on a canvas and seeing where that might lead is how I paint.
I’ve not been the kind of artist that mixes colours and explores the potential of a palette before beginning a painting. Sure I’ve made colour swatches before but not with any real enthusiasm but because I thought it was the right thing to do. Of course I didn’t stay with it.
Recently though, I learned of a different way to approach colour mixing that makes the process fun and dare I say exciting. It’s called the test drive.
The test drive is not my idea. I learned this technique from the artists behind ARTfuel: Susan Melrath and Terri Froelich on their “Color Cure” course.
What is a test drive
A test drive is a way of approaching a palette before beginning a painting. It’s a way to test out colours to gain an appreciation of the possibilities that a palette can offer. It involves filling in the squares of a grid with as many variations of colours as possible using a very narrow set of hues.
How to take a test drive
First off I use good quality, heavy paper. Mine happens to be bound in a sketchbook, but loose sheets would work just as well.
Then I draw a grid of squares in light pencil marks on the paper, filling the entire page. Using the width of my ruler as a guide each box in the grid is about an inch square.
Next I choose colours to take for a spin limiting my choices to only two or three hues. With the addition of black and white my limited palette is set.
Now it’s simply a matter of mixing new colours from these few hues sometimes adding black for a shade and sometimes adding white for a tint. Or both black and white as the mood strikes. As each new colour is mixed, it’s placed into one of the boxes in the grid. I fill in the squares at random happy to be surprised by unexpected colours bordering one another.
It’s important to fill in the whole square and not leave any white space between them. This way I can really appreciate how the colours look nudging against one another.
Trying to get as much variety as possible without repeating myself, I make light colours and dark colours, saturated ones as well as desaturated ones. I fill in the whole grid because I’m an overachiever(!) but that’s not necessary. What’s important is to explore the variations of colour that are possible with a limited palette.
Pro tip for making your own test drive
Filling the top few squares of the grid with the pure paint colours of choice gives me a visual reminder of the hues that have been used in the test drive. And of course I write in the names of the colours for easy reference.
The power of limitations
Making colour charts in the past has felt tedious and not altogether helpful for my painting practice. This way of making colour swatches feels purposeful and the completed sketchbook page is captivatingly beautiful. The sheer variety of colours is surprising.
It's through making test drives that I've learned to appreciate first hand the beauty of working in a limited palette. Mixing just two or three colours with black and white in various combinations results in a multitude of harmonious colours. By limiting my choices I'm required to explore more deeply the possibilities those colours have to offer. It's a reminder of the power of limitations to inspire creativity.
The first pass on two new paintings using colours I discovered in my test drive pictured in the top photo.
These colours are unusual and unexpected for me. I can’t imagine mixing these colours before learning how to take my colours for a spin.
This new approach to understanding colour is gently stretching me and how I think about my painting practice. I'm curious to see how making a test drive before starting a painting will affect my process and the work that I make.
Are you interested in seeing these paintings evolve? Join The Studio Journal where I’ll share my progress on these works in the coming months.
You can find all of the courses offered by Terri and Susan, including the “Color Cure” at the ARTfuel website.
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