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One of the most powerful lessons I ever learned was to see through my mind\u2019s misconception about why I found certain paintings so appealing. I thought it was because the colors were beautiful and harmonious (and sure, that was true). But time and time again, I would select and mix a palette of gorgeous, harmonious colors and yet I\u2019d find that my finished painting lacked impact and excitement. It had a dull quality. This was frustrating and disappointing! I\u2019ve since learned that it\u2019s very common, and as I\u2019ve grown as an artist and now as I teach and mentor developing artists<\/span><\/a>, I\u2019ve seen that this is a natural part of the learning process.<\/p>\n Most people aren\u2019t aware of what value refers to when we refer to visual art. As an artist, you likely know that it\u2019s the relative darkness or lightness of a color in your composition. Obviously black is the darkest value and white is the lightest, but other colors are not so easy to guess just by looking at them. You may have a yellow, a red, a pink, a blue, a green, and a brown and assume that you\u2019ve got a nice range of values there. But if you paint swatches of each of these colors and take a photo in black and white, the value range will be made clear to you\u2014and you may be in for a surprise.\u00a0<\/p>\n What\u2019s the big deal? Our eyes and minds work together when we look at art, and it turns out that when a work of art includes a full range of values\u2014not just values from the mid-range but some very dark values and some very light values\u2014it pleases us. This happens without us thinking about value or even knowing about it.<\/p>\n It turns out that many beautiful colors fall into the mid-range of the value scale. That\u2019s why some of my early paintings were full of my favorite colors but lacked impact: I had failed to include very dark values and\/or very light values. Once I learned about this important tip, it became a top-of-mind priority both in the initial stages of a painting as well as the final stage, when I am evaluating the piece to determine if it\u2019s complete.\u00a0<\/p>\n I suggest you take photos or screenshots of artworks that you admire and turn them to grayscale to evaluate the values. Then do the same for your current and past artwork. Are there methods of incorporating dark or light values that you see other artists doing that you\u2019d like to try in your own work? Remember that these darkest darks and lightest lights can be a tiny pop and still be very powerful. Keep in mind that because they are at the far ends of the value scale, they will command a lot of visual attention, so use them sparingly so the other parts of your painting will get some attention as well.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve been where you are, and part of my mission is to help artists at any stage in their development to keep growing and to stay motivated. Be sure to follow me on Instagram<\/span><\/a> for tips with visuals, and be sure to join my email mailing list<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nValue Impacts Us More than Color<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Check Your Values<\/strong><\/h2>\n
I\u2019m Here to Help<\/strong><\/h2>\n