Color is something a lot of painters struggle with. If that’s you, you’re definitely not alone!

Over the next few weeks, I’d like to talk with you about how I think about and use color.

I’ll give you a hint: it’s practical.

(Complicated color theory makes my head hurt!)

But before we get into color, let’s start with something even more important.

Value.

Color can be misleading, especially when it comes to judging how light or dark something really is.

That’s one reason I like to begin my paintings with an underpainting.

I know an underpainting can feel like an added and unnecessary step. But it allows me to establish those critical values before adding the color variable.

I think of it as value mapping.

Seeing and solving value or contrast problems is much easier when you’re not trying to figure out color at the same time.

The more neutral tone of an underpainting also gives me something to judge my colors against later, rather than trying to accurately gauge them against a stark white canvas.

But you don’t have to paint with an underpainting to understand the importance of value.

Here’s a simple test you can try:

Take a photo of one of your paintings and convert it to grayscale.

Then ask yourself:

Does the subject still have volume, or does it seem flat?

Is the light source clear?

Can you see a strong sense of structure?

Do the important elements separate from one another? Is there enough contrast?

If the painting stops working when you take away the color, you may not actually have a color problem.

You may have a value problem.

That distinction is important.

Because one of the keys to getting better at color is learning to identify what actually needs fixing.

So before you start chasing the perfect blue, green, or orange...

Remember:

Values before color.