In this tutorial we’ll take our study of tone into colour with a wonderfully sunny yellow cone, exploring how one colour can change dramatically as it moves from bright light into shadow. We’ll look carefully at the reference and mix a range of yellows, from fresh lemon highlights and warm buttery mid-tones through to the cooler green-grey colours that appear in the shaded areas. I’ll show you how to prepare those colours in advance and then let them gently blend together across a wet glaze. We’ll also practise lifting reflected light, softening transitions and creating a convincing cast shadow, all while preserving the lovely curved form of the cone. This is a gorgeous exercise for training your eye to see that shadows aren’t simply “darker versions” of a colour. They can shift in temperature and hue too – and noticing those changes will bring so much more life to your paintings.
