USING TRANSPARENT VS. OPAQUE COLORS IN A PAINTING

   

Testing Chart
     I never knew when to use transparent or opaque colors in a painting. From reading it seems they are another method to be utilized just as warm vs colors, contrast, focal paint or soft vs hard edges. My goal with this writing is to teach myself how to use yet another tool to enhance my art work. 

     First I need to determine the transparent or opaque qualities of the colors that I have chosen for my limited palette: (see previous blog)
     *warm; Cad. Red Light      & cool; Alizarin Crimson
     *warm; Cobalt Blue           & cool; Ultra Marine Blue
     *warm; Cad. Yellow Med. & cool; Cad. Lemon
(I am adding Thalo Blue & Thalo Green for the beautiful blending colors they create plus Dioxazine Purple and Raw Sienna to reproduce the color palette of Laurie Snow-Hein)

TRANSPARENT                                                OPAQUE

Cobalt Blue ( semi)                                            Cad. Red Light

Alizarin Crimson                                                Cad. Yellow Med.
Thalo Green                                                        Raw Sienna
Thalo Blue                                                           Cad. Lemon
Dioxazine Purple (semi)                                     White      
Ultramarine Blue (semi)

HOW TO USE TRANSPARENT VS OPAQUE IN A PAINTING:
    "There are many ways to apply paint to create visual excitement. One way is a transparent-opaque approach. This type of application is not new. Rembrandt worked with thin transparent and translucent areas against opaque applications to create form".   Color Choices by Steven Quiller.

I  put down a Dioxazine Purple (transparent) as an underpainting, let it dry then added opaque Cad. Red and Cad. Yellow in a horizontal line.  After watching several You Tube videos I went back and added a diluted purple line, an out of the tube purple line and lastly purple mixed with white(opaque).

RESULTS: I learned:
* All paints can be transparent if enough water is added enough.
* Adding white makes any color opaque.
* Glazing with transparent colors gives a sparkle to the painting.
* Use transparent paints as the foundation of the painting.
**Transparent colors recede and opaque advance an object which adds depth to a painting.
                             **This little bit of information is the secret!!

Transparent  Dioxazine Purple base              

Opaque Cad. Red & Cad. Yellow

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Addition of 3 transparent purple lines.