5 Common Misconceptions About Painting Color

"Coastal Color" (c) Mary Hubley

An orange sky? Purple weeds? "Coastal Color" breaks some color rules, huh? I know the rules. Too boring. I choose to break them. What a feeling of release. I feel like a kid sledding down a steep hill with abandon, laughing all the way.

Guess what? My paintings immediately got more interesting.

Here are some of the rules I've broken - misconceptions, it seems, that were drilled into me by my earliest teachers. Things that are helpful to know, but absolutely revolutionary to remove from my painting life:

Misconception #1. The sky is always blue. It's not blue during sunsets or on overcast days. Purples hug the ocean horizon and orange skies can happen on hazy days.

Misconception #2. Color rules are inflexible. I have a big whoppin' book that explains color theory. Yikes. I barely made it through the first chapter. I've spent a lifetime working with the traditional theories - hue, value, intensity, secondary, complimentary, ad infinitum... But I ditch 'em when it comes to painting. Instead, I go with what nature suggests.

Misconception #3. Paint the colors you see. A good rule for realists. But I ain't no realist. I love orange skies and purple grass.

Misconception #4. More colors the better. Too complicated. I limit my palette. I work with about 6 colors and mix the rest. 

Misconception #5. Color is the most important thing. Composition is everything. Color is just an after-thought. A sepia painting that's well-composed is more interesting than a throw-up of a badly-composed colorific disaster.


This painting is available - please contact Mary Hubley for details.
 
Genre: Landscape
Painting Name: Coastal Color
Size: 24" x 24"
Media: Oil on Canvas


--Mary Hubley
www.maryhubley.com