Colour Mixing Article

Colour Mixing Article
Unlock the essence of colour mixing in our art classes and gain the skill to command them!

Colour mixing is the back bone of painting and essential for every artist. Back when I kicked off my journey into the art world and started learning how to draw and paint, I attended several colour mixing classes taught by a number of teachers. It was there that I was introduced to the colour wheel; and it was there also that I learned the basics, such as how to mix complementary colours. But despite all the time and effort I invested in those colour mixing lessons, no one really explained:

Why, and for what reason, I needed to know certain specifics such as mixing complementary colours; or
How, with a minimal colour palette or any colours for that matter, I am able to mix any colour I want to, without guessing or by sheer intuition

One colour mixing workshop after another failed me to understand proper colour mixing; and only 10 years later did I finally meet a teacher that plugged the gaps in my knowledge – in just two days!

My Journey Continues

I couldn’t believe how simple understanding colour theory really was, and how important. It is sad that those techniques weren’t available way back when I started out! And I found other peers who also struggled with genuine colour knowledge. The computer age is helping tremendously, but I honestly believe that an art class is still one of the best methods, and not because I am teaching it, rather because I see how quickly students learn to master colour.

Later when I was teaching art, I had a promising young student join me at one of my colour mixing workshop. He was studying interior design at one of the colleges, and had an elaborate and impressive portfolio. I assumed therefore that he had a good understanding of colour, and therefore didn’t need to sit through basic colour mixing lessons. So, I sent him home on the initial day when I was teaching how to mix colours.

What a mistake that was!

It turned out that his colour mixing classes at college only parodied what the teacher was doing; without actually understanding the why, what and how behind colour theory or colour properties. That’s one mistake I shall never repeat again!

So, before you attend any colour mixing workshop, find out first:

if the teacher is able to mix any colour you point out, with just the double primary colours and white and can demonstrate it; also
find out if they know why the complementary is so important when mixing colours

If your “teacher” isn’t able to demonstrate these two characteristics to your satisfaction, then you are at the wrong address!

Colour Mixing 101

Initially, colour mixing classes may sound rather theoretical; but once you grasp the essence of it all, it can be really easy and interesting. In fact, it is so simple to comprehend that even children of tender ages handily grasp colour properties.

Reputable teachers offering colour mixing lessons should start with the basics. In order to be able to mix colour correctly, you should have a strong grasp of the fundamentals of colour theory and that includes a thorough understanding of the four main properties of colour:

Hue: Which is a property by which colours are distinguished over a spectrum of colours that range from red, blue, green and yellow
Intensity: In colour theory, this is also commonly known as chroma or colour saturation, and specifies the purity of a given hue. The highest intensity is the hue itself; while hues whose intensity is reduced form different tones.
Value: Which dictates a relativity of darkness or lightness of a colour
Temperature / Leaning: These colour properties helps give “warm” or “cool”, but more so an understanding what kind of blue, red or yellow you should use to create a rather brighter or duller version of a colour.

Hue simply means colour, value speaks about of darkness and lighteness and chroma about intensity and saturation. Chroma is the purity or intensity of a color. To reduce the chroma of a colour you would have to add neutral gray which has the exact identical value as the colour you are using.

When you participate in any colour mixing workshop worth its value, you should also learn about two other elements of colour:

Tint: Which is what’s produced when mixing a colour with white, causing an increase in lightness of the colour; and
Shade: Which is the mixture of black with a colour, that results in reduction of lightness of the colour

With a strong grounding in colour mixing lessons, future artists understand that tones can be produced by mixing colours with gray, or by a combination of shading and/or tinting.

Learning More About Colour Mixing

For obvious reasons, this discussion on colour theory, and my rather abridged explanation of colour properties might not be enough to satisfy the artist in you. If you are anything like me, you’ll want to explore all of this in greater detail and have it explained step by step with practical exercises.

For those of you who have tried attending a colour mixing classes before, and are still struggling to understand the underlying principles and concepts, you are welcome to join our colour mixing workshop. Developed for anyone with even only a most basic understanding of art, this workshop is guaranteed to teach everyone to mix colours as it should be: that you are able to mix any colour you wish to create from the most bizarre greens to all sorts of greys or browns.

This is crucial knowledge that no one can take from you ever again, once it is yours.