Glenn Hirsch, Instructor www.glennhirsch.com

1. Color and “Light”
Glenn Hirsch

2. ‘light’ = ‘emotion’
the contrast of light and dark
the variety of warm and cool

3. Monet

4. Berthe
Morisot

5. Berthe Morisot “La Fable”

6. Rembrandt

7. John Singer Sargent

8. John Singer Sargent

9. John Singer Sargent

10. Maurice de Vlaminck

11. Alexei Jawlensky

12. Paul Gauguin

13. Emile Nolde

14. Peter Doig

15. R. B. Kitaj

16. Color theory to enhance the illusion
of “light”
The contrast of warm and cool
versions of each color

17. What’s the ‘true
color’ of the
house?
It depends on the
time of day and
the weather
The ‘real’ color
doesn’t exist
independently
of the light

18. Claude Monet painted ‘white marble’ on the Rouen Cathedral in different
times of day, showing that color doesn’t exist independently of the light

19. Colors
a "warm yellow" Cadmium Yellow Medium
a "cool yellow" Cadmium Yellow Light or Pale or Lemon
a "warm red" Cadmium Red Medium or Light
a "cool red" Quinacradone Crimson or Alizarin Crimson
a "warm blue" Ultramarine Blue
a "cool blue" Cobalt Blue or Cerulean Blue or Turquoise Blue
a "warm green" Sap Green or Chromium Oxide Green or Perm Green Light
a "cool green" Pthalocyanine Green or Viridian
a "warm brown" Burnt Sienna or burnt umber
a "cool brown" Raw Sienna or raw umber
a "black" Any black or mix your own: Alizarin Crimson + Pthalo Green
a white Titanium white or "Permalba" brand oil white

20. Chromatic scale to
enhance the
illusion of “light”
Lighter b/w value in the light
Brighter intensity in the light
Warmer (orangey) red in the
light (vs bluer purplish) in
the shadow

22. Chromatic scale
• Light to dark
• Bright to dull
• Warm to cool

23. Chromatic scale
• Light to dark
• Bright to dull
• Warm to cool

26. Georgia O’Keefe

27. Dramatic light comes from
the contrast of light and
dark.
This is called “value” – the
black-and-white version of
the color.

28. Chromatic scale – light to dark, bright to dull, warm to cool

31. David Park, Portrait of S.C. Pepper, 1953

32. Elmer
Bischoff

33. Paul
Wonner

34. Assignment:
a painting
emphasizing
‘light’

39. “Theatrical” light: spotlight, cast shadow, metallic glow

40. Paul
Wonner

41. Melissa Miller

43. Elmer
Bischoff

44. Paul Wonner

45. Elmer
Bischoff

46. Paul Wonner

48. Elmer
Bischoff

49. Max Oppenhiemer

50. Egon Schiele

51. Handiedan

52. What’s the
procedure?

53. thumbnail sketch
first – block-in light
& shadow
No detail
Then paint (but the
painting doesn’t
have to follow the
sketch)

54. Painting in Layers
• Bright underneath
• Dull on top
• (or vice versa)

58. paint on a dark background

59. Dark green on a red background

61. • Step-by-Step
• Block in the whole composition, including the lighht
• Then let dry and clarify detail

63. The brush changes direction, following the contour of the shapes

64. Work from thin to thick, allow each layer to dry, block in
the whole composition, including the light and shadow

65. Painting the
background also
redefines the edge
of the shape
(e.g., behind the
cheek)

66. • This isn’t a ‘rule,’
it’s a ‘recipe’ to
enhance the
illusion of ‘light’

67. Robert Haemmerling