For example, there are reds that lean toward orange, and reds that lean toward purple. If you have ever tried mixing colors, you know that paints often have color mixing biases. Pre-made neutrals may be purchased, or the artist can create endless varieties by mixing colors together. To create chromatic neutrals, color can be added to a black paint or combinations made by mixing complements from opposing positions on the color wheel. Classic examples are the colors black, gray and white in their idealized forms. In comparison, a chromatic neutral leans toward one or more of the hues. Vocabularyįirst, it might be helpful to understand what is meant by ‘neutral.’Ĭhromatic paints have a hue, for example the primary and secondary colors on an artist’s color wheel. These paints can be highly saturated with intense color – high in chroma – or more muted and desaturated. When compared with one another, QoR Transparent Pyrrole Orange can be considered a saturated orange with high chroma and Burnt Sienna, a desaturated orange with lower chroma.Īn a chromatic neutral has neither chromatic hue nor a bias toward a hue.
This article will introduce the idea of mixing chromatic neutrals with QoR Watercolor. However, if we create our own neutrals from the colors in a painting’s palette, the mixes have a built in harmony with the composition. We can then expand our idea of ‘neutral’ to encompass the ‘almost neutrals’ and explore a quietly lively, subtle, and varied world of often overlooked colors. White, gray and black occupy the core neutral zone, and watercolor paints of these colors can be purchased. A neutral color is one without a strong chromatic hue. Although often overlooked, neutrals play a vital role in the success of a composition. Neutral colors are those with little or no color saturation.