Alex Waterhouse-Hayward

The Colour Of Skin

Friday, June 06, 2014

Guest Blog
Ilse Taylor Hable - Artist
Guadalajara, Mexico

Portrait of Teresa - medium / support: oil on linen size: 76x61 cm, 30x24 in. Ilse T. Hable

About Skin Tones

In one of his many, blogs, my friend Alex Waterhouse-Hayward describes the trials and tribulations of the photographer, who wants to capture perfect skin tone on film. When he asked me recently if I would write an essay on flesh tones from my perspective as a figurative painter, I was delighted and agreed.

To the layman, or the student painter, nothing seems to be as difficult as mixing the right colors for skin tones. We painters, especially portrait painters, are often asked the same question: "What color do you use for your skin tones?"

The answer is, of course, that there is no such thing as a recipe for painting skin tones. First of all, there are hundreds of variations of colors of skin and secondly, there are just as many types of light, under which each of them will appear to be different. Apart from that, there is reason to believe that different people see colors differently. And finally, different brands of paint will produce different results.

To understand color is to understand light, or better said, the light visible to the human eye. This is a section of the electromagnetic spectrum between red and violet. Light enables us to recognize color and shape.

First, let’s talk about the quality and temperature of light. Both depend on many factors, such as time of day and geographical location, but also atmospheric circumstances like the concentration of UV rays, moisture and pollution. It also makes a great difference whether the light source is natural or artificial, and if it is artificial, what kind of light bulb is being used. All of these factors will have an influence on the perceived color of an illuminated object or the skin tone of a person.

Then there are the shadows. Light inevitably creates shadow. Local color will take on a different hue and value, depending on whether it is in light or in shadow. The change in value is obvious: shadows make things look darker.

But the hue? Is it not the same color, just darker? No, it isn't, especially not for the painter. While we paint, we tend to start seeing the colors of our subject matter with a much keener eye. We observe for a long time, until we see of what components each color is made of. Master painters like Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida and John Singer Sargent have shown us so convincingly that skin tones are not a mere variation of beige and brown, but that they are full of real color.

El Bote Blanco, Jávea, Spain Oil on linen 105 x 150 cm - Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida - 1905

If the light that illuminates an object, or in our case the skin of a person, comes from a warm source, lets say direct sun on a hot day in the tropics, or an incandescent light bulb, the shadow colors will be cool. If the opposite happens, like outdoors, on a grey day in the northern hemisphere, or indoors, using a fluorescent light bulb, the colors in the shadows will be warmer in comparison to the colors in the light.

Charles Woodbury by John Singer Sargent 1921

But that is not all: A particularly beautiful thing happens, when reflected light hits a shadow area. Shadow areas can take on a hue totally different from their local one, when another color, coming from an illuminated object nearby, is being reflected into that shadow. The surface of the object in shadow will be influenced by that secondary light source.

Here are a few examples.

Nude with Pink Curtain - medium / support: oil on canvas size: 61x91 cm, 24x36 inches, Ilse T. Hable

"Nude with Pink Curtain" is bathed in soft colors. Daylight, coming from a high window, produced cool highlights and the shadow areas are comfortably warm, giving the whole painting a tender, feminine feeling.

"Mangos" is a different example: Strong sunshine illuminates the woman's skin with warm tones. In the shadow areas I saw cooler colors, but only relatively cooler, given the hot temperature of the tropical location of the scene.

Mangos medium / support: oil on linen size: 61x46 cm, 24x18 inches Ilse T. Hable

"Lying Nude with Green Pillow" demonstrates reflected color: There is green from the pillow in the shadow of her arm and her nose; blue along the body, where it rests on the blue cloth. Where flesh throws a shadow onto flesh, like in the thighs, the shadow color appears much warmer, due to the warm local color of the source.

Lying Nude with Green Pillow - medium / support: oil on linen size: 45x61 cm, 17.5x24 inches -Ilse T. Hable

Color is relative; each color is affected directly by light and indirectly by the colors that surround it. For the painter, at least the representational painter, it is a must to refresh one's eyes constantly. I do this by establishing the color relationships early on in the process, trying to be accurate and moving rapidly from place to place, covering the whole canvas, so as not to "fall in love" with one area of color. The brain can get accustomed very quickly and you can lose the ability to use critical judgment about color relationships. A tone that appears to be warm may well look cool in comparison to another, much warmer one, next to it. If I leave an area white for too long, this whiteness will affect my choice for the surrounding colors.

In a painting, be it a portrait or a nude, the flesh tones are only some of many colors that make up the whole. They have to be mixed carefully to reflect the complexion of the sitter, but they also have to harmonize with the surroundings.

"Portrait of Teresa", a commissioned painting, may be a good example for that last point: The blue of her favorite chair was in strong contrast with the red of the dress. I normally don't pair two primary colors, but Teresa is definitely a "red dress woman" and somehow the cool, blue color of the chair made that even more obvious. I painted this portrait quite a few years ago and can only assume that I kept the skin tones relatively neutral, because the overall harmony demanded it so.

You see, with painting, there is always the element of gut - if you listen to it (and your ability allows it), you will do the right thing.

Ilse T. Hable

The Colour of Skin - Part II

Link to: The Colour Of Skin