Color Studies by Edith Anderson Feisner - NEW 3rd Edition

A NEW 3rd Edition of Color Studies by Edith Anderson Feisner and Ron Reed has just been published in the USA (21 August 2013).

It should be available in the UK in either September or November depending on which reference source you read.

It's even worth buying just as an investment! Without even having seen it, the value at which the 2nd edition (which I own) now trades for on the Internet suggests that this 3rd edition should be snapped up immediately by all artists who like owning very good books about colour.

This is the book I always used to recommend to people wanting a complete overview of Colour as a topic for artists prior to the publication of Colour and Light by James Gurney.

I can't think of a reason why I wouldn't continue to recommend it very highly since it will be the old contents - with new chapters.  Feisner takes a different approach to Gurney and also has content not found in Colour and Light

Here's the Table of Contents of the NEW 3rd Edition

Table Of Contents

Part I: Color Foundations

Chapter 1: What is Color?
Chapter 2: Color Systems and Color Wheels
Chapter 3: Color Theorists
Chapter 4: Coloring Agents
Chapter 5: Digital Color Media and Technology

Part II Dimensions of Color
Chapter 6: The Dimension of Hue
Chapter 7: The Dimension of Value
Chapter 8: The Dimension of Intensity
Chapter 9: The Dimension of Temperature

Part III: Color in Compositions
Chapter 10: Color and the Principles of Design
Chapter 11: Color and Elements of Design
Chapter 12: Color Interactions
Chapter 13: Color and the Effects of Illumination

Part IV: The Influence of Color
Chapter 14: Color Symbolism
Chapter 15: Putting Color to Use— Past, Present, and Future

Appendices | Glossary | Bibliography

Bloomsbury Books in the UK indicate that the new content is as follows

Feisner and Reed provide an up-to-date discussion of sustainable color applications and green materials as the underlying component of colorants, dyes, and inks in textiles, printmaking and paints. A new chapter on color and digital technology discusses illuminating with color (LED), color tools and management (Pantone), as well as color consulting and marketing.

This is what I had to say about the second edition back in 2008 (on Making A Mark - in Learning about Colour - Art Book Reviews for Artists #1)

This is the most comprehensive book about colour that I've come across to date. It's accessible but I think it likely that it would be of most interest to colour nerds (like me)! Preview this book and the full contents guide on Google Books. This is what it provides:

• explanation of the five main colour wheels and their application
• a historical account of colour theory plus a chronological list of colour theorists (unique?)
• a historical account of pigments and their use in fine and applied art plus a list of historical colour palettes linked to current colour code.
• analysis of the four dimensions of colour - hue, value intensity and temperature
• colour in composition - in relation to the principles and elements of design
• colour symbolism - including colour symbols in religion
• a thorough glossary of colour terms

Intervaled scale: A color scale that forms a smooth equal visual transition from one component of the scale to the next
Glossary - Colour by Edith Anderson Feisner

• over 75 colour charts
• over 100 works by students and well known artists
• coloring agents:
• dry binders
• liquid binders
• pigment origins and characteristics of common colours
• hue - various art media (eg Liquitex Acrylic Paints) matched to colour-aid paper pure hues
• color legibility rankings (background colors and lettering/line colors) Did you know that the most legible background colour is yellow?
• a very comprehensive bibliography

Details of the 3rd edition (UK)

Details are provided by Bloomsbury Books in the UK. It's being published as a Design Book.

 

Published:	21-11-2013
Format:	Paperback
Edition:	3rd
Extent	256
ISBN:	9781609015312
Imprint:	Fairchild Books
Illustrations:	355 illustrations
Dimensions:	280 x 215 mm
RRP:	£54.99
Online price:	£49.49

Authors

The book seems to have acquired a new author for the 3rd edition.  It may be Ron reed who has provided the new material in this 3rd edition. The two authors are

• Edith Anderson Feisner - a Visiting Specialist / Assistant Chair (Retired) in the School of Fine Arts at Montclair State University, USA. She has taught courses in color, design, and introduction to visual arts. She has held many positions in the Embroiderers' Guild of America including certified teacher, teacher certification board, as well as the author of the master craftsman programs in color and design. Her fine art works are in both public and private collections. 
• Ron Reed - an Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator for Interior Design in the School of Family and Consumer Sciences at Texas State University-San Marcos, USA. Reed served as the IDEC Southwest Regional Chair between 2011-2012.

NEW: Analysis of Lightfastness of Prismacolor Colored Pencils

Prismacolor has published its very first detailed color chart detailing the ASTM lightfastness ratings for its existing range of 132 Prismacolor Pencils.

The ratings also apply to Art Stix of the same colour.

Here's the Color Chart (download as a pdf file from the Prismacolor blog)!  See Introducing 18 New Colors; revived and refreshed for 2011!

Prismacolor Premier Lighfast Color Chart

This is the Lightfastness Legend used on the Chart.  It rates the lightfastness of different pencil colors (ie their ability to maintain their colour over time while exposed to light) from Excellent to Poor.

Prismacolor Pencils - Lightfast Legend

The colours have all been tested according to the processes laid down by the ASTM D6901-06 and the lightfastness ratings have been established.  This provides a level playing field for comparing colours and their lightfastness across different brands.

For more about lightfastness see my "resources for artists" website Coloured Pencils - Resources for Artists - and, in particular, the section about COLOURED PENCILS - COLOURS AND LIGHTFASTNESS

My own feeling is that Prismacolor now have far more colours in Groups 4 and 5 compared to other manufacturers.  I'm really not sure why they want to produce quite so many pinks, violets, purple and blues - colours which are effectively fugitive.  Certainly both Talens and Caran d'Ache, which have also had their pencils tested to ASTM standard, have many fewer pencils but virtually all their pencils are Group I and II.

I'd certainly prefer a complete set which had as a minimum a very good standard of lightfastness - even if it meant less pencils.  But maybe I'm a voice on my own on that one?

The general consensus is that artists producing artwork which is intended to be archival should only be using Class I and II (Excellent and Very Good) colours.

Below I list the new colours and also which group all the rest of the colours fall into.

Group I - Excellent Lightfastness rating

• Artichoke
• Lemon Yellow
• Yellow Ochre
• Spanish Orange
• Goldenrod
• Mineral Orange
• Crimson Lake
• Light Peach
• Beige
• Nectar
• Light Peach
• Powder Blue
• Parrot Green
• Yellow Chartreuse
• Green Ochre
• Kelly Green
• Dark Green
• Sandbar Brown
• Sepia
• Jade Green
• Peacock Green
• Light Umber
• Chocolate
• Burnt Ochre
• Sienna Brown
• Terra Cotta
• Henna
• Expresso
• Dark Umber
• Dark Brown
• Warm Grey 10%
• Warm Grey 20%
• Warm Grey 30%
• Warm Grey 50%
• Warm Grey 70%
• Warm Grey 90%
• Cool Grey 10%
• Cool Grey 20%
• Cool Grey 30%
• Cool Grey 50%
• Cool Grey 70%
• Cool Grey 90%
• Black
• French Grey 10%
• French Grey 20%
• French Grey 30%
• French Grey 50%
• French Grey 70%
• French Grey 90%
• White
• Metallic Silver
• Bronze

Group II - Very Good Lightfastness rating

• Cream
• Ginger Root
• Jasmine
• Sand
• Pumpkin Orange
• Carmine Red
• Scarlet lake
• Crimson Red
• Peach
• Beige Sienna
• Chestnut
• Black Raspberry
• Black Cherry
• Black Grape
• Mediterranean Blue
• Indigo Blue
• Chartreuse
• True Green
• Grass Green
• Olive Green
• Kelp Green
• Slate Grey
• Metallic Gold

Group III - Good Lightfastness rating

• Canary Yellow
• Pale Vermillion
• Peach Beige
• Seashell Pink
• Rosy Beige
• Raspberry
• Greyed Lavender
• Violet
• Copenhagen Blue
• Electric Blue
• Denim Blue
• True Blue
• Sky Blue Light
• Peacock Blue
• Cloud Blue
• Non-Photo Blue
• Light Acqua
• Aquamarine
• Light Green
• Spring Green
• Marine Green
• Celadon Green
• Muted Turquoise
• Putty Beige

Group IV - Fair Lightfastness rating

• Sunburst yellow
• Magenta
• Pink
• Pink Rose
• Clay Rose
• Pink Rose
• Mahogany Red
• Dark Purple
• China Blue
• Blue Slate
• Moss Green
• Tuscan red

Group V - Poor Lightfastness rating

• Yellowed Orange
• Orange
• Poppy Red
• Process Red
• Mulberry
• Hot Pink
• Salmon Pink
• Blush Pink
• Lavender
• Lilac
• Dahlia Purple
• Parma Violet
• Imperial Violet
• Blue Violet Lake
• Violet Blue
• Ultramarine
• Light Cerulean Blue
• Caribbean Sea
• Periwinkle
• Blue Lake
• Pale Sage
• Limepeel
• Apple Green

NEW Pencils ( but some with old colour names)

Prismacolor have also released 18 new pencils which are currently undergoing a formal assessment to determine their final lightfast rating.  These revive some of the favourite colours from the past!

I'm assuming that they have tried to address the horrible lightfastness problems that some of these pencils had in the past.

The "new" colours are:

• Deco Yellow, 
• Deco Peach 
• Deco Pink
• Permanent Red
• Indathrone Blue
• Cadmium Orange Hue
• Prussian Green
• Sap Green Light
• Grey Green Light
• Cobalt Turquoise
• Cerulean Blue
• Cobalt Blue Hue 
• Eggshell
• Pomegranate
• Dioaxazine Purple Hue
• Neon Yellow
• Neon Orange
• Neon Pink

The new pencils bring the complete set up to 150 pencils - which will be available soon in all new packaging.

Links:

• Coloured Pencils - Resources for Artists - including
• 2011 POLL: Which is the best brand of artist grade coloured pencil?
• 2011 POLL: What's your favourite watercolour pencil?
• POLL: Coloured Pencils - do you go for Colour or Brand?
• Coloured Pencils - information, advice and resources for artists

POLL: Coloured Pencils - colour or brand?

Which is more important - colour or brand - when buying coloured pencils?  This post is about a new opinion poll for coloured pencil artists.

People vary as to whether they prioritise colour or brand when making their purchase of coloured pencils. 

• My own personal preference is to go for the best colour from a reliable good quality brand. Hence I vary as to which brands I favour for different colours - and use most brands in the process!
• For some they go for the colour irrespective of quality issues
• Other people are dedicated to using one brand - or maybe two. Possibly because that's all the local art store stocks and they haven't yet got used to ordering online.

Here are some possible options identified in a new Opinion Poll I'm running on Coloured Pencils - Resources for Artists.  Click this link to access the poll  POLL: Coloured Pencils - do you go for Colour or Brand?

• I'm always looking for the right colour
• Colour is the priority - but only from brands which are good quality and reliable
• Most of my pencils are from one or two brands
• I prefer to stick to one brand

Below is a sample of the coloured pencils I was using yesterday while I was Sketching the Herb Garden at Sissinghurst. Guess which answer I'll be ticking!

A sample of Coloured Pencil Brands on a sketching outing
They include: Caran d'Ache Pablo, Caran d'Ache Luminance, Derwent Artists, Derwent Coloursoft,
Derwent Signature, Faber Castell Polychromos, Lyra Rembrandt Polycolour, Karisma 

Book Review: Color and Light by James Gurney

Color and Light by James Gurney

I've studied colour and light over the years and have many books on this topic.  However I've never ever come across a book which tackles this topic in such a comprehensive and authoritative way as James Gurney's new book Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter.

Here's my review of this brilliant new book - which in my honest opinion is set to become a standard for all artists working in the realist tradition.

Title: Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter  by James Gurney

Synopsis:  This is a comprehensive art instruction book about all the important aspects colour and light for students of art and those wishing to improve the quality of their painting in any media. It addresses the FAQs about these topics raised by painters and illustrators.

Summary review: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - This is a book for students and improvers and all those who want to know more about colour and how light and colour interact - in life and in a painting.  Practical application of the lessons learned is made possible through a very accessible text coupled with excellent use of images and graphics.  Coverage of this topic is comprehensive.

Highlights comprehensive, informative and stimulating - about every aspect of colour and light relevant to the realist painter James' style is very accessible - succinct and informative and avoids being unnecessarily technical knowledgeable overview of the use of colour and light in different traditions and painting movements he simplifies complex topics.  Enough information is given to enable the reader to grasp the point being made but not so much that it overwhelms the reader useful review of the different types of colour wheel - excellent graphics an excellent and systematic analysis of the properties of pigments (in an appendix) interesting recommended reading list - not one you'll have seen before!

Think Again? Not as technical as those who love the in-depth aspects of colour science might like - however all important aspects are covered in a very accessible fashion

Who should buy this?: artists using every type of media art students needing an excellent primer about colour in every aspect particularly relevant to painters working in the realist tradition those who don't like instruction books which are dumbed down or ignore important areas of knowledge

Who should not buy this? People who like step by step books - because it's not one People who like pointers on "how to mix colours" - because it doesn't do this

Author / (Publisher): James Gurney / Andrews McMeel Publishing LLC Technical data: Publication Date: 30th November 2010 Paperback -  224 pages;

Let me be very clear on this point.   This book comes very highly recommended by me.  

I've not come across any other book which covers this topic in such breath and depth and makes it accessible as well. 

• I've got ones which are more technical - but they're much less accessible. 
• I've got ones which are as accessible - but they don't cover as much as he does

The major plus point about this book is that it is comprehensive and accessible art instruction of a very high order. 

• It does not attempt to dumb down or omit important aspects of the way in which colour and light function and interact. 
• It articulates very clearly how you can make choices about how to use different features of colour and light in a painting.

I am so confident about the impact of this book that I am happy to predict that if you buy and study this book your paintings will improve.

You can get an overview of what the book covers by reference to the Table of Contents.

There's so much one could say about this book - one could write a small book!  The table of contents gives you the headings - the summary below is what they actually mean in practice.  Here then are some of the more specific highlights of this book and reasons why it makes a good buy.

This book explains:

• how outdoor studies of colour and light and plein air painting influence great studio paintings
• how to look for sources of light in the paintings of others - in order to better understand their impact
• how colours respond to different types of light - and why red looks good in a painting

Light and form

• what are the different types of lighting and how it impacts on form
• what's the best type of lighting for different subject matter
• how light impacts on colour saturation and detail
• five general truths about reflected light
• what are the different types of shadows - and how they behave
• how to simplify form in the context of the way light hits it
• how a subject's material and ability to transmit light impacts on colour and light effects
• how light and shade can add value (and drama!) to design of a composition

Elements of colour

• the different types of colour wheel
• the different types of colour
• the characteristics associated with different types of colour
• what a chroma value chart looks like
• how greys and neutral colours can be your best friend
• tips for handling greens (and reds and pinks!)
• how tints and gradations are created

Paint and pigments

• the different - and important - characteristics of pigments
• how pigments can be charted
• why painters start from underpaintings in an opaque colour
• a simpler way of achieving an effective sky gradation
• how you can create glazes
• different ways of organising paint on a palette
• different types of limited palettes
• how to create mud

Colour relationships

• the value of monochromatic colour schemes
• the effect of colour temperature on the viewer
• what are warm and cool colours and how to use them
• the different ways of mixing colour
• how a triadic colour scheme works
• the value of the colour accent

Premixing

• how to make a colour string
• the value of premixing value steps
• why it's important to leave out colours
• what's the saturation cost
• how to create a gamut mask
• how a colour scheme can have a shape
• how to create your source colours
• what pushes you to identify accents
• why a colour script is useful

Visual perception

• how tonal and colour information gets processed
• what can help create a more effective nocturne
• how edges vary in different lighting conditions
• why Goethe was wrong
• how to isolate a spot of colour
• schemes which describe how colours influence one another
• colour associations and their impact on our psychology
• how transmitted light works and what its impact is
• what subsurface scattering is and how it works
• the different colour zones if the face
• how to create convincing hair
• what a caustic reflection is and how it is generated
• three rules of specularity
• the different types of highlights - and how they work
• how to use photographs more effectively

Atmospheric effects

• how the color gradations work in a sky
• the impact of atmospheric perspective on colour
• what is reverse atmospheric perspective - and how it works
• why painters prefer to work at dawn and dusk
• how to paint sunsets from observation
• techniques for painting rainbows
• why transparency is important when painting trees
• how sunbeams and shadowbeams work - and when to use them
• the shape of dappled light
• three rules of cloud shadows
• how the lighting and colour of the foreground influences design and focus
• why the age of snow makes a difference
• reflections, refraction and shadows on water - and why they are different
• how the behaviour of water impacts on colour and light

Now I'd extremely surprised if a lot of this is not entirely unknown to self-taught painters.  Much much may also only be a vague memory to those with fine art degrees - assuming they were ever taught it in the first place!

I first commented on Color and Light in MAKING A MARK: "Color and Light" and Making a Mark.

.......and finally

James Gurney's first art instruction book was published in 2009.  A year ago I published my review of it - see Book Review - Imaginative Realism by James Gurney

Note:  I was sent a review copy of "Color and Light" by James Gurney. 

New colours from new pigments

Winsow and Newton have published an article about the new pigments which they have introduced in recent years in Why are new pigments so important?.  This succinctly describes the origins, pigments used for and performance of the new colours.

By the 1990s there were so many new organic pigments available that Winsor and Newton embarked on some far reaching reviews to ensure artists would be able to enjoy everything from entirely new colours to greater brilliance and permanence. Almost 200 new colours were introduced over the following 15 years and this process is still continuing today.

1996 Winsor and Newton embarked on the most significant change to the Artists' Water Colour range in 164 years. The availability of so many new pigments meant that 35 new colours were introduced into the range, offering artists the widest and most balanced spectrum with the greatest permanence.

They key issue has always been about how to balance transparency with lightfastness.  Older pigments frequently had one but not the other and the challenge has been to develop new pigments which provide quality performance across the spectrum and over time.

Winsor & Newton Watercolour Chart 2010 - see Catalogue 2010

The new colours covered in the article (click the link at the top to read it) are listed below.  The new pigments which are most prominent in the ones listed below are the quinacridones and the perylenes.  I was pleased to note that there is now a permanent carmine based on Quinacridone pyrrolidone.  Apparently it's still so new that it does not have a colour index number as yet!

The acronyms after their names are for Artists watercolours (AWC) Artists Oil Colours (AOC) and artists Acrylic Colours (AAC)

Yellows: 

• PY184 -  Bismuth Yellow (AWC*, AOC*, AAC*)
• PY150 -  Transparent Yellow (AWC), Indian Yellow Deep (AOC), Nickel Azo Yellow (AAC)  

Orange:

• P073 -  Winsor Orange (Red Shade) (AWC), Winsor Orange (AOC), Pyrrole Orange (AAC)

Reds:

• PR255 -  Scarlet Lake (AOC), Pyrrole Red Light (AAC)
• PR254 -  Winsor Red (AWC), Bright Red (AOC), Pyrrole Red (AAC)
• PR264 -  Winsor Red Deep (AWC)
• PR209 -  Quinacridone Red (AWC, AOC, AAC)
• Quinacridone pyrrolidone - Permanent Carmine (AWC, AOC)
• PR206 -  Brown Madder (AWC), Quinacridone Burnt Orange (AAC)
• PR233 -  Potter’s Pink (AWC, AAC)
• PR149 -  Winsor Red Deep (AOC), Perylene Red (AAC)
• PR179 -  Perylene Maroon (AWC, AAC)

Violets:

• PV29 -  Perylene Violet (AWC, AAC)
• PV15 -  Ultramarine Violet (AWC, AOC, AAC)
• PB74 -  Cobalt Blue Deep (AWC, AOC, AAC)
• PB60 -  Indanthrene Blue (AWC, AOC, AAC)

Greens:

• PG50 -  Cobalt Turquoise Light (AWC, AOC, AAC)
• PY129 -  Green Gold (AWC, AOC, AAC)

Earths:

• Mixture due to replacement -  Quinacridone Gold (AWC, AAC)
• PBr7 -  Brown Ochre (AWC, AOC)
• PR101 -  Caput Mortuum Violet (AWC), Mars Violet (AOC), Violet Iron Oxide(AAC)

Black:

• PBk31 -  Perylene Green (AWC, AAC), Perylene Black (AOC) - the first new permanent black for thousands of years!

Below are links to the various colour charts for artists colours which can be seen online

• Artists Oil Colour   
• Artists Acrylic Colour  
• Artists Water Colour