A Landscape Painter’s Guide to Why You Need Black in Your Paintings – Easel Talk #51
A lot of modern painters do not use black pigment in their process. This is a legacy handed down from the impressionists who famously banished black from their palettes. However, tonalism definitely employs black, and once I started using it wholeheartedly, my work became more authentically tonal.
I learned with two guys who had no black on their palette: Bob Rohm and Kevin McPherson. Both got me off into chromatic black territory. When you use black and brown in underpaintings, you get an effect very much like the old masters, without the problems of bitumen, which is basically tar and creates a brittle paint surface. You can get that same rich effect with everyday ivory black mixed with burnt sienna.
The History of Ivory Black
Ivory black is basically burnt bones. You also have vine black, which is burnt twigs, but ivory black is more common. Originally it was made by charring elephant tusks in closed containers without oxygen. The resulting charcoal was then ground into a fine pigment. The ancients prized that velvety black.
As elephant ivory became scarce and expensive, painters began using bone black made from charred cattle bones. The black has remained, though. This pigment was essential to many 19th century American and European tonalists. Unlike some historic pigments that fell out of favor due to toxicity, ivory black has been a constant presence on painters’ palettes up until modern times.
Why Modern Painters Avoid Black
Your average student just grabs black to make things darker, but black also makes things muddier. It’s another way of saying gray, very powerful for muting colors. That’s why many teachers discourage it, especially early on. They’re not wrong to be cautious, but black deserves a place in your toolkit if you understand how to use it.
Two Tools, Two Purposes
I use black for two specific purposes: to knock colors into a natural feel. Ivory black is my cool color killer. If I mix a color that needs to feel more natural and knocked in, I add a little black. For a similar effect in a warm way, I use raw umber. These are absolutely essential to my process, no question about it.
For my darkest shadow areas, I used to rely on chromatic black, which is a mixture of phthalo green and alizarin crimson. It gives you a good effect, but ultimately it’s less tonal. About eight or nine years ago, I switched to ivory black. It’s highly transparent and actually beautiful, though it gets a bad rap. For some applications now, I use Mars black, which is at least twice to three times as opaque and solves different problems entirely.
The Strategic Shift to Ivory Black
This shift to ivory black helped me get a more tonal effect. You get a purplish cast with chromatic black because shadows become cooler. With ivory black, you get a richer, deeper, more authentic tonalist feeling. When you look at tonalist paintings that really move you, that’s the feeling you’re after.
I was struggling with greens for years until I started making what I call Mike’s green, ivory black mixed with Hansa yellow (PY 73 or PY 74). It became vital to my process. The richest, best everyday green for landscape painting came from that discovery. Frankly, it would have been way easier if I’d just used ivory black from the start instead of struggling with chromatic black for so long.
Mars Black: When You Need Opacity
About three or four years ago, I was doing a sepia series and ran into a real challenge: raw umber is too transparent. I needed something that would cover and hold. I brought in Mars black, which is at least twice to three times as opaque as ivory black. In mixtures that are transparent, opaque Mars black supports you and gives you quicker, cleaner shadow areas. It totally solved my problem, and I’ve been using it strategically ever since.
The Philosophy of Black
Tonalism is the dark part of the yin and yang of painting. Impressionism is the light; tonalism is the dark. I’m not afraid of darkness. How are you going to have light without dark? It’s not possible. The shadows bring the emotional depth to a painting.
If you’re going to try something very poetic and expressive with a lower timbre, you can’t do it in a bright way. You just can’t. That’s where black becomes philosophically important to your work, not just technically important.
Stay True to Your Vision
Every artist needs to contemplate their own philosophy of art. Black is philosophically part of my process and technically part of my process, it’s got to be there. If I had to have only one black, it would be ivory black, not Mars black, because Mars black is kind of ugly. I can make it work, and a lot of times I’ll make it really pretty by adding a little rose madder or alizarin crimson.
Collect art that moves you. Build little folders on your tablet or desktop where you’ve gathered the paintings that resonate with you. After a while, you’ll get a real feeling for what you want to do as an artist. Everything’s been done that can be done, but you haven’t expressed your vision completely yet. There’s only ever going to be one you.
Finding Your Own Approach
Black can be divisive between artists. There’s a story of John Singer Sargent visiting Claude Monet. Claude said, “Want to paint? I got this garden with some lily pads.” Sargent looked at Monet’s palette and said, “I can’t work without black. I’m done.” He needed his black, and Monet worked without it. Both were great painters.
Try different approaches and see what resonates with you. You might prefer phthalo green and alizarin crimson. Some people use burnt umber and ultramarine blue. But I’d rather have ivory black, it’s a lot prettier. Whatever works for you is what matters.
The Practical Truth
Experiment with black. For tonalism, black pigment is essential and important. Always be mindful of how you use it.
You don’t just add black to make things darker, that deadens colors. Do your best to mix the color without black first. Then if it’s too strident or chromatic, bring in a little black to cool it down, or raw umber to warm it down. Black straight from the tube, I don’t usually use it like that. I’m always adulterating it with burnt umber, rose madder, burnt sienna, or mixing it into greens.
In the finishing stage, I might use thin Mars black to reestablish darks in the darkest areas. But I’m strategic. I’m not going to paint everything with flat black and then try to make it work. It’s got to be done with intelligence and sensitivity. When appropriately mixed with other colors, black creates rich, complex tones that feel natural and contribute to your painting’s overall success.
The Opaque Raw Umber Bonus Tip
I struggled with raw umber’s transparency for years. This was a real problem during my sepia series. When you need opaque raw umber, don’t just use it straight from the tube, it won’t cover anything.
Here’s the secret: grab a big heap of raw umber, then a far lesser amount of Mars yellow. Blockx makes a good Mars yellow. Mix those together. Of course that’s not looking like raw umber anymore, it’s something else. Then bring in a little ivory black. That goes right into a raw umber tone, except the huge difference is that it’s opaque. That’s way more effective when you’ve got expanses or areas in your painting where you need a raw umber type tone. It’s right in there between a red and green, and it gives you the coverage you need to make those areas sing.
Take good care of yourself. Stay out of trouble. And fight the power.
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