STUDYING COLOR

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These studies were a problem that was given to me while working with George T. Thurmond, a Mississippi painter. Thurmond is devotee of, and was a friend to, the American Impressionist Henry Hensche.

The problem was to paint a white, gray and black block on same color gray table with a gray background. The subject is made up of what would conventionally and classically be called “values”. I was then challenged to explore the range of color I could perceive and mix to best represent each separate surface and form plane in the particular light keys being observed throughout the day. The composition and subject never changed - only the time of day and direction of the light.

This color problem was designed for the specific purpose of exposing the painter to the obvious differences in light keys. With no “local color” to represent, all that remained were the distinct color changes of each surface plane created by the light effect alone.

Thurmond says that this single color problem should convince anyone who tackles it with an open mind and perception that what are classically called “values” by the academic painter are secondary to color relationships seen in the light key, this idea being a core principle of Hensche’s teachings.

These studies are not finished representations of the light keys. They were taken as far as they could be in one week. Hopefully they give a suggestion of the infinite potential for color representation of any subject seen in its light key.