On careful observation, note that these two paintings have been created with basically the same palette. In greater abundance are burnt sienna, raw sienna, burnt umber, cadmium yellow medium, cadmium yellow light, chromium oxide green, phthalo blue and titanium white. In lesser amounts are alizarin crimson, Indian yellow and a pinch of cadmium orange hue. The big difference is in one pair of blues.
"Drifting into Winter" takes place close to sundown in the autumn. Light is losing its brilliance, shadows are darker and coolness is evident. As was stated in the previous process post, this effect was achieved mostly with the addition of a new blue, called iridescent blue in the Novacolor paint line. The painting "Heralds of the Dawn" is a spring painting, but it is not yet really warm outside in spite of hawthorn blooms and bluebird presence. Dawn has barely risen. A mix of cerulean blue and cobalt turquoise make up this blueness, along with some phthalo in the darker area. But this sky is, none-the-less, cool in tone; just not quite so cool as in the other painting.
Now let's face it, blue, by nature, is a cool color. If you want to wear clothes that speak "summer", for instance, they will not be blue ones, unless they are very light blue. But that can be true of any blue....why? It's because of the addition of white, which warms up any darker color. Since blues are by nature cool there are a myriad of opinions out there about which are comparatively the warmest blues. It breaks down to this, I believe, for painting; if it appears brighter to the eye, it will seem warmer. Add white, add warmth, with one caveat. There will be a mid point beyond which the addition of white will make it appear more cool again. Add a little yellow, add a little red, again blue becomes warmer. But again, beware the midpoint. Darker greens and purples are going to again become cool.
So what is this confusing mish mash? Don't go telling your art teachers I said this, but warm and cool, in the realm of paints, are more in the eyes of the beholder than any other sense. Phthalo blue is considered a warm blue by color theorists because it has an addition of red. But to my eye, phthalo blue is cool, cool cool. These designations are, after all, visual perceptions that are seen through sight sensors, of a temperature perception, felt though skin sensors; both of which can result from the lack or presence of light. It's all in perception, which includes more mental processes than those provided by the senses alone. Nearly everyone will associate warmth with summer and daylight and coolness with winter and darkness.
If you put blue next to orange, it's compliment, the result pops, giving the combination warmth, as does friction. But if you mix blue and orange, the result is a neutral, which generally, by nature, is cool. It moves back in space, it calms colors around it, etc. If you are totally confused buy now, just go paint....it works! And while you're at it, remember those same blues show up in that cool water and those dark neutrals.
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