This shade of blue has me flummoxed...

[mtpalms]

I am trying to reproduce this shade of blue (/green? aqua? bondi?), and can't quite get the combination right. I have mixed varioous combinations of cobalt blue, manganese blue and cerlean blue. I've come close, but nothing quite strong enough



Any suggestions? Pthalo blue perhaps?

[Alan P. in OC]

It looks to have a slight greenish tint to it, the closest to it that I have is MH prussian blue.

[fxoflight]

If you're not already, you might need to try glazing in order to achieve this particular blue effect of light.

[birdhs]

fxoflight's comment made me think of Maxwell Parrish who achieved his luminous effects with glazing - and this seems like a "Parrish Blue". Do some research on his work, it is quite an interesting study.

Greg

[mtpalms]

Thanks! I think I got it.

[RHStanley]

Sampling this color in photoshop, is has a value of 44% Cyan and 7% Yellow. Going by Bill Martin's recommendation of the closest color to Cyan in oil being Grumbacher Thalo Blue (PB15) and the closest primary yellow being Winsor & Newton Transparent Yellow 653 (PY128), I'd think you'd be able to nail the color you're after.

[mtpalms]

Thanks again. Before I saw your post, I used Grumbacher Thalo Blue and W&N Cadmium Lemon.

If I can find a tube of W&N Transparent Yellow, I might mix a little up just to see what I get.

[Ron Francis]

You should be able to get a more saturated colour by using phthalo blue and phthalo green rather than adding yellow.
As already suggested, glazing will also give you a more saturated colour.

[sidbledsoe]

i agree with ron, i wouldn't use yellow, my Winsor newton manganese blue hue is already a phthalo blue and phthalo green mixture, with the addition of white, i think it is getting in the ballpark:
here it is sampled from the upper part beside the mix i did:

[RHStanley]

Sorry if I sent you in the wrong direction. It's one of the reasons I lurk more than I post...

[Ron Francis]

Originally Posted by RHStanley

Sorry if I sent you in the wrong direction. It's one of the reasons I lurk more than I post...

On the contrary, I think what you wrote was logical and in the right direction.
Phthalo looks the closest, but its hue has to move toward yellow and I believe that you would get very close using cadmium yellow light or lemon yellow.
But the further apart colours are in hue, the less saturation you will achieve, so moving it toward yellow by adding green does the same thing, and should retain a little more saturation.
This is speculation though, and it would be interesting to see actual samples to compare the difference.

[mtpalms]

Thanks Sid, the maganese blue just wasn't working: It's a blue spotlight reflected off a sunburst Gibson 330 (w/ P90 pickups), and the blue is also reflected on the strings, hardware and Bigsby tailpiece. Even your paint sample looks dull compared to the point sample next to it.

I will post a picture tomorrow of what I got, although Ron's idea of using Pthalo green is intriguing, the Cad lemon is really intense, even more so than the W&N Trans Yellow. I may mix some green and blue and see what I get

RHStanley, your suggestion was very welcome, ask a dozen artists their opinion and you get a dozen answers.

[stapeliad]

Marcia, just to throw it out there, how about cobalt turquoise?

[sidbledsoe]

marcia, remember that images online vary so widely, everything is different from the cameras and lighting to the editing and monitors. are you painting from a photo or an image on your computer?

[mtpalms]

Originally Posted by sidbledsoe

marcia, remember that images online vary so widely, everything is different from the cameras and lighting to the editing and monitors. are you painting from a photo or an image on your computer?

Both. The photo for basic purposes, the computer for detail. The photo is pretty close to what the monitor sees.

Jessica! I will scrounge around and see what I can find.