Scribd
Upload
397 views6 pages

Zorn Color Chart: A) by Michael Lynn Adams

The document provides instructions for creating a color chart using the Zorn palette of Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Red, and Ivory Black. The chart is made up of a 12x10 grid where the top row contains mixes of the pure colors and subsequent rows add increasing amounts of white. The bottom five rows also add a trace of the third color to the mixes. Completing the chart systematically from one column at a time and keeping the palette clean is advised. The chart demonstrates the wide range of colors and harmonious combinations that can be produced from the basic Zorn palette.

Uploaded by

aguirreart
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
397 views6 pages

Zorn Color Chart: A) by Michael Lynn Adams

The document provides instructions for creating a color chart using the Zorn palette of Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Red, and Ivory Black. The chart is made up of a 12x10 grid where the top row contains mixes of the pure colors and subsequent rows add increasing amounts of white. The bottom five rows also add a trace of the third color to the mixes. Completing the chart systematically from one column at a time and keeping the palette clean is advised. The chart demonstrates the wide range of colors and harmonious combinations that can be produced from the basic Zorn palette.

Uploaded by

aguirreart
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 6

Zorn Color Chart

a) By Michael Lynn Adams

This exercise involves creating a color chart where the basic Zorn Palette of Yellow Ochre,
Cadmium Red, and Ivory Black are systematically mixed from full saturated hue to a barely tinted
white. The resulting chart demonstrates the remarkable range of colors you can get from this basic
palette. I also discovered the beautifully harmonious color combinations that are created by
limiting your color choices.

STEP 1: Draw the Grid


On a 16 x 12 canvas panel I drew a grid of 1-inch squares, 12 across and 10 down.

STEP 2: Mask the Grid


Using house painter’s masking cut in 1/4-inch-wide strips to mask the edges of 10 rows and 12
columns of squares where mixed colors will go.
STEP 2: Mixing and Painting the Grid – Here is where the fun happens

Using a small palette knife (you can use a brush) I painted in the grid.
Top Row: Colors straight out of the tube, either pure or mixed with another pigment – but no
white.
Next Four Rows: Mix white with the color in the top each column to create a progressively lighter
value of that color. The percentage is an approximate value. The point is to show a gradual but
clear difference from the pure color to a light tint of that same color.
Bottom Five Rows: I added a trace of the color that was not mixed in upper half of the chart. So
where Yellow Ochre and Red are mixed I added to trace of Ivory Black – enough to see a shift in
saturation without overwhelming the original mixture. The idea here was to see what kind of color
shift from warm to cool happens when a trace of the third color is added.

Zorn Basic Color Chart


TIP1: Mix One Column At A Time.
Mix a large puddle of pure colors first and divide it into five smaller puddles. Then add white to
each puddle to create the gradually lighter mixes. After those colors are painted on the grid, add
the third, trace color, to each mixture to use in the lower half of the column.

TIP 2: Keep Your Palette Clean


Clean your palette after you finish each column to keep your colors clean.

b) By Nicholas Robinson

Step 1: draw the 12 x 10 square grid.

The very top and bottom rows of 12 squares are for various yellow, red and black mixes. The 10
squares on the side are for the same colours mixed with different quantities of white.
The top row of 12 is specifically for:
1. yellow
2. 2 parts yellow to 1 part red
3. 1 part yellow to 1 part red
4. 1 part yellow to 2 parts red
5. red
6. 2 parts red to 1 part black
7. 1 part red to 1 part black
8. 1 part red to 2 parts black
9. black
10. 2 parts black to 1 part yellow
11. 1 part black to 1 part yellow
12. 1 part black to 2 parts yellow
The very bottom row is for:
1. yellow with a trace of black
2. 2 parts yellow to 1 part red with a trace of black
3. 1 part yellow to 1 part red with a trace of black
4. 1 part yellow to 2 parts red with a trace of black
5. red with a trace of yellow
6. 2 parts red to 1 part black with a trace of yellow
7. 1 part red to 1 part black with a trace of yellow
8. 1 part red to 2 parts black with a trace of yellow
9. black with a trace of red
10. 2 parts black to 1 part yellow with a trace of red
11. 1 part black to 1 part yellow with a trace of red
12. 1 part black to 2 parts yellow with a trace of red

The row down the side gradually adds white to these mixes.
Row 2 is an 80% mix with 20% white
Row 3 is a 60% mix with 40% white
Row 4 is a 20% mix with 80% white and
Row 5 is 5% mix with 95% white

That is then repeated from the bottom up with the trace mixes.
The colours I used were (from left) Old Holland ivory black, Sennelier Chinese vermillion, Michael
Harding yellow ochre and Old Holland titanium white.
Step 2: I considered first painting the first row of colours with no white (the top row) and then
work down the whole row, like this:

But in fact it’s much easier to mix a pile of a top row colour, paint the top square. Then add the
trace and paint the bottom square. Then add the white for the first top square with white (80%).
Then add the trace and paint the first bottom square with white and so on, gradually working into
the centre:
The final result:

It’s very difficult to make the ratio of each mix the same and it’s clear some are very much darker
or lighter than they should be. As Michael Lynn Adams says, keeping your palette very clean is a
must.

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy