In this article, we will tell you which colors to mix to get brown. This information will be interesting first of all to beginning artists, because painting professionals are well aware of all the secrets of colors. Well, if you have gouache, watercolor or tempera on hand right now, you can immediately start following the recommendations from our article. Empirically, you will see how easy it is to get different shades of brown.
The easiest way
Warm brown is a mixture of black and red. You can get it by simply mixing cinnabar and black paint. Only the proportions of these two ingredients should not be equal: red in this mixture should somewhat prevail. Ideal option: first squeeze cinnabar or red cadmium onto the palette from the tube and then begin to slowly mix the black color.
If you prefer to paint in watercolor, then you can use another interesting technique for obtaining the necessary colors and shades. First, red is applied with light strokes to the paper, and after it dries, a transparent and watery black is applied on top. The effect is as if superimposed on each other two transparent glass.
What happens if you mix blue with orange?
What do you think? Yes, yes, it will turn out exactly the color that we need, that is, brown! We hope you have no difficulty getting an orange color. Just in case, we say that it can be obtained by mixing red (this color should be more) and yellow paint. Happened? Excellent! Now add a little blue and stir, then add a little more blue. As a result, you should get a beautiful chocolate brown paint.
If the shade does not suit you, and you want something brighter, then mix more orange to get a light brown color. Blue can be in the form of ultramarine, Prussian blue or cobalt.
Experimenting with green and red
First we get green by mixing blue and yellow. Remember: if there is too much of the latter, then the greens turn out to be too bright, and if you go too far with blue, then, on the contrary, it is too dark. It’s best to achieve a middle ground. Red must be mixed with the resulting green. You already know that shades of brown can be very diverse, and this depends on which particular paint prevails in the composite color.
If, as a result of the manipulations done, the palette turned out to be warm red-brown, and this absolutely suits you, then the experiment can be considered completed. But in case you want something else, try adding more green (chrome or emerald green). Perhaps you can invent a recipe for your signature brown paint.
Purple and yellow
Let's continue to look for the answer to the question of what colors to mix to get brown. In our searches and experiments, we turn to a mixture of yellow and purple. To get started, we get dark royal violet and combine blue and red in equal proportions. Isn't it true that purple is very beautiful? And now there is nothing left - to mix yellow paint in this beauty.
If there is a lot of it, then a yellow-brown color will turn out , and if there is more purple, then the final result will come out darker and deeper. Much depends on what kind of yellow paint you use: bright cadmium or, perhaps, restrained yellow light ocher.
Mix all the primary colors
You have not found the right shade? Then we continue our creative research. We take 4 primary colors: black, navy blue, dark green and, of course, red. The process of creating brown begins with the combination of an equal amount of green and blue. Next, mix black with them, then red and at the very end yellow (the more it is, the more light brown you will get).
Learning to use ocher
Once upon a time, artists made paints on their own and used only natural pigments for this. The most accessible and widespread paint was ocher (golden, yellow, red), which was extracted from ordinary clay. Look at the ancient Russian icons - they are dominated by a restrained color - brown-golden. You can also learn to get such shades of brown, if instead of yellow paint you use ocher when mixing.
The main thing is proportions
Take a ready-made set of watercolors and gouache, in it you will definitely find brown paint, sometimes not even one. Why do artists prefer to mix different colors rather than use ready-made ones? The answer is very simple: nature rarely uses pure colors, it paints in thousands, millions of shades. Well, the artists can only take an example from her and, before embarking on creativity, find out what colors to mix to get brown, gray, purple, etc.
By changing the proportions of the mixed colors, you can achieve amazing results. Give it a try! Sometimes it’s enough to change the shade of the paint by adding just one extra drop of any color. Mixing colors on a palette is a very interesting creative process.
Avoid Dirty Shades
Beginning artists often sin in the pursuit of originality when receiving this or that shade they begin to combine too many colors with each other at the same time and instead of creating a beautiful color, they spread on the palette the usual dirt that can not decorate the picture. Try to avoid dirty shades, adhere to those tips that are given in this article, they clearly indicate which colors to mix to get brown.
Finally
In the end, I would like to wish all aspiring painters not only creative success, but also courage in comprehending the new. Create, try, dare, mix different colors, look for your unique color combinations! That is what all the great artists did. They were not afraid of anything and always went their own way, not paying attention to criticism. Who knows, maybe, and success and deafening glory await you ahead!