Daniel Greene's Palette

[Mike McCarty]

Thank you very much, ladies.

[Doreen Lepore]

Mike, I found this link in an old post of Steve Sweeney's. I just bought the old pastel and the oil videos and received them within a couple of days.
www.Art-Video.com

[Steven Sweeney]

Regarding sap green, there is no question that it is one of the relatively fugitive pigments. I don't have information as to what that means in terms of how long it will be before noticeable degradation occurs. Some manufacturers are now marketing a "Permanent Sap Green". For what it's worth, here's a question and answer clip from Richard Schmid's site: :
[QUOTE]Q.

[Doreen Lepore]

Thanks, I didn't know it could be mixed. I've seen the Gamblin Sap Green called permanent, maybe that's mixed.

[William Whitaker]

Doreen,

Gamblin's permanent sap green is indeed a mix of very sound, permanent colors. However, it is NOT exactly like the real sap green.

Genuine sap green is fugitive and while it is one of the loveliest colors imaginable, I wouldn't use it. It won't last.

Bill

[Doreen Lepore]

Thank you so much for responding. It's too bad because Sap Green is such a useful color. I'll try to mix, since I love a good experiment, then I'll look at the "Permanent" ones on the market. Thanks again.

[ReNae Stueve]

Thank you. Once again, the name of this site has proved itself. I've been having trouble with the shadow cast on the throat of my current portrait. The comments on Alizarin and Sap leaped out at me...and my problem is solved.

I feel as if I should send each of you a check for classes. My formal training spanned the ages of 12-18 with a wonderful artist named Marie Burton, in Itasca, Illinois in the 60's. From 1974-2000 I didn't pick up a brush (long boring story). I'd give anything if she were here now, but in her place, like the angels I love to paint, I'm drawn to all of you.

I think the proceeds from my first sale will come to this site.

For now, just hold my I.O.U

[Alicia Kornick]

Little confused as to the use of sap green for the shadows. I like to make a transparent black by mixing sap green, alizarine and ultramarine blue. Also like to use it for the rich dark mahogany tone spoken of earlier. Should sap green be made by mixing viridian, cad yellow and transparent red oxide as suggested by Virgil Elliot and then using this in the mixture for black and dark shadows?

[Steven Sweeney]

Just to stay in Virgil Elliot's good graces, I'll jump back in to say that the sap green "mixture" I quoted was from Richard Schmid, not Virgil.

As William Whitaker mentioned, the "permanent" version of sap green now available through some manufacturers isn't quite the same hue as the sap green you might be used to. Nor is Permanent Alizarin exactly the same hue as your old tube of alizarin. So if you decide to prudentially switch to the less fugitive products (I'm doing so, as I replace my old stock), be aware that you'll have to make some adjustments in your favorite mixtures.

Since Daniel Greene's palette includes around a dozen mixtures that contain nothing but sap green and alizarin (a series of warm shadow colors, and a series of cool), I would be most interested to hear from anyone who knows whether he has any misgivings, these decades after developing that palette, about their inclusion. I would think he'd be the last one to invite long-term physical degradation in his work. Yet the current advisories generally echo those of Schmid and Whitaker.

Actually, pending that, I think I'll write to him as a previous workshop participant and see if he'll comment on the issue. If I receive a reply, I'll post it here.

[Alicia Kornick]

Thanks, Steven.

I too have started adding new paints by Gamblin: Permanent Alizarin and Flake White and his version of ultramarine blue. Thanks for the info on Sap Green, I'll be interested to know what Daniel Greene has to say.