To understand color is to begin to understand the phenomenological experience of reality.
magenta
color, metaphor and paradox
We take for granted that things are as they seem “out there” in the world. But a study of color — and specifically the color magenta — opens interesting possibilities. That’s because color (as we see it) is not part of the material world; color is part our phenomenological experience of the world. And when we get to the color magenta, which is not even on the visible light spectrum, we realize our brains are truly just making things up. magenta
color wheel
on the 12-color CMY/RGB scale
The traditional artist’s color wheel — with primaries of red, blue and yellow (RBY) — could use a reboot as we consider the extra-spectral color magenta. With the color magenta we can devise a conceptual color wheel that combines primaries from the subtractive (CMY) and additive (RGB) color gamuts, resulting in a CMY/RGB color wheel that represents a more accurate interpretation of visual color. color wheel
color mixing
with 5 (not 3) primary colors
By using a base palette of 5 primary colors from the subtractive (CMY) and additive (RGB) color gamuts, I painted a series of color swatches to determine the hues in between, to help me visualize the gradience between the selected primaries. To borrow from a musical analogy, this was an exercise in “doing my scales,” but with experimental color tones rather than sound. color mixing
lightfastness
of acrylic paint colors
In researching the properties of acrylic pigments, I learned that single-pigment paints provide more reliable mixing results and better lightfastness compared to the common “convenience mixtures” that are pre-mixed in the tube at the factory. (Perhaps the price for convenience is impermanence.) However, the various pigments used by acrylic paint manufacturers differ by quality and chemistry, with some pigments being better than others. So I created this chart which aggregates pigment traits with common acrylic paint brands to determine a paint’s relationship to pigment quality. acrylic colors