Here are 10 things that I think you should know about this color . . .
1. Violet is one of the secondary colors, along with Orange and Green. A secondary color is created by mixing together two of the primary colors (in this case, Blue and Red).
2. In its darkest values (like Eggplant), Purple is rich, dramatic, and sophisticated. For a rich, dark Purple, start with Alizarin Crimson (a cool red) and add French Ultramarine. This looks beautiful next to a golden glow.
Lighter shades of Purple, like Lavender and Lilac, bring a more restful quality to a painting.
Purple embodies the balance of Red stimulation and Blue calm.
3. The complementary color of Violet is Yellow. The Violet/Yellow harmony can be summed up in a single word -- exotic! This Violet/Yellow chord has little connection with everyday experience -- except in irises and violets, rare butterflies, tropical birds, and amazing sunsets.
If you put these two complements next to each other, they make each other more vibrant. If you mix the two together, it grays them down.
4. The Secondary Triad -- Violet/Orange/Green -- is a wonderful and very powerful color scheme. This is one of my favorites!
5. I prefer to mix Purples from the Reds and Blues on my palette, rather than using tube Violets. The results are Violets that are glowing, alive, and contain enormous strength.
If you feel you must have a tube Violet on your palette, try Winsor Violet, Quinacridone Violet, Cobalt Violet, or Mineral Violet.
6. To mix vibrant, high-intensity Violets -- use cool Reds, like Quinacridone Rose, Alizarin Crimson, or Quinacridone Magenta; and mix with a warm Blue, like French Ultramarine.
7. Use the Red-Violet hues for a warm color scheme, and the Blue-Violets for a more somber, cool color scheme. Lavender suggests the feminine, and dark Purple (Eggplant) can suggest the masculine.
In stained glass, the color Purple, or Violet, is seen as the uniting of the "wisdom" of Blue and the "love" of Red, and symbolizes justice and royalty.
8. Purple is regal, wise, and spiritual. As a complement to Yellow-Green, it's a good color for spring landscapes and still lives. Try adding a few spots of Purple/Violet, here and there.
In fact, Purple is an ideal color to enhance or enliven almost any painting subject, including mountains and winter scenes. These both provide a great opportunity to use Violets. Long shadows on snow have shades of pinks and blues in them. And, a rainy day can have a Blue-Violet tinge to it -- even a sky can sometimes look Purple.
9. Try doing a "Paint Shadows First" painting -- like we did in Lesson Two (Values) -- where you do a value painting first, using Violet. Then, after getting the values right, you glaze color over it. Push the underpainting towards Red-Violet for the warms and towards Blue-Violet for cools.
10. In your watercolor sketchbook, or on a small scrap of watercolor paper, try out some color combos, for beautiful Purples/Violets/Lilacs/Lavenders. Know that just by adding some water to a Purple or Violet combination, you will get your lilacs and lavenders. For these color combinations, use cool reds. If you mix warm reds, like Cadmium Red, to a blue, you end up with a mauve color, not a brilliant Violet.
Here are some combos to try:
- French Ultramarine + Quinacridone Rose
- Cobalt Blue + Quinacridone Rose
- Alizarin Crimson + Cobalt Blue
- French Ultramarine + Alizarin Crimson
- Quinacridone Magenta + French Ultramarine
- Quinacridone Magenta + Cobalt Blue
- Phthalo Blue + Quinacridone Magenta
- Phthalo Blue + Alizarin Crimson
- Cobalt Blue + Quinacridone Rose + touch of Quinacridone Burnt Orange
- Quinacridone Rose + Phthalo Blue
(Note that whenever you use Phthalo Blue (aka Winsor Blue) or Alizarin Crimson in a mixture, they are each so strong that they will easily take over a mixture. So, be stingy with those in your combinations.)
"I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color Purple in a field somewhere, and don't notice it."
- Alice Walker
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