The Colorist
Archive

A living archive of how artists work with color across time. Each artist profile scans publicly available works to trace dominant colors, a chromatic fingerprint, and the arc of a palette across a lifetime.A living archive of how artists work with color across time, tracing palettes, fingerprints, and lifetime arcs from public works.

Begin with an artist, carry a palette into the drawing system, or read the wider project.Begin with an artist, carry a palette into the drawing system, or read the wider project.

Scanning works…

Johannes Vermeer

Vermeer's palette is one of the most restricted and deliberate in all painting. Lapis lazuli ultramarine, lead-tin yellow, and a warm ground — the most luminous interiors in art.

Palette: #1F1912 #3C2D21 #594D3C #9A917D #8A5337 #664027 #C6AC7F #AA7252

  • A Maid Asleep (ca. 1656-57): #211813 #0A0A08 #3C2E24 #654934 #391B18 #4F2B21
  • Diana and Her Nymphs (1650): #2A1D15 #452C1C #5A3D24 #18100B #734D2A #906232
  • The Geographer (1668): #1D1A16 #413527 #75644A #33241A #5D3E24 #7A5632
  • The Procuress (1656): #0B0B0C #4D3425 #51130D #606274 #791C14 #77523F
  • Saint Praxedis (1655): #2A2220 #151315 #240B0C #B75153 #3B5480 #360D0E
  • Woman with a Pearl Necklace (1660): #0B0A0D #EAEBDD #969382 #6C5537 #C3C2B0 #43342B
  • The Milkmaid (1660): #D3CBB9 #443828 #79644D #A1957E #0D1C2F #643E23
  • Girl with a Pearl Earring (1665): #262015 #A68D6A #65553C #423D2E #1C1206 #E2C3A1
  • Woman with a Water Jug (1660): #B0AB97 #5B4E37 #0B1F37 #2E3C3E #8B8E80 #83653F
  • Allegory of the Catholic Faith (1670): #24231F #3B3326 #595645 #1E2A35 #574227 #817A64
  • Officer and Laughing Girl (1658): #12100C #A49884 #6E6151 #433929 #291911 #28221B
  • View of Delft (1661): #E3E1D9 #58493D #978B79 #C0BEB6 #B7CCE0 #E2B48D
  • The Astronomer (1664): #1A1810 #302B11 #292A20 #57512E #201B06 #716D48
  • The Little Street (1658): #C9BEA8 #805039 #2F2820 #706351 #4B3221 #9D7E62
  • The Art of Painting (1667): #806F55 #3A2B1A #26221B #574026 #2F3635 #171613
  • Girl with a Red Hat (1669): #574127 #121920 #3C2D1F #261E18 #2B2F22 #360D17
  • A Girl Asleep (1657): #31231B #0F0E0B #7E573F #532823 #574739 #A77B55
  • Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window (1658): #37312A #1C1B19 #5A534D #7C5D41 #D5D6CC #644231
  • The Love Letter (1668): #221A10 #130F0B #352A1B #523618 #695637 #88795A
  • The Wine Glass (1659): #150C17 #4A4B4D #503528 #5C171A #6C4B31 #322E36
  • A Lady Writing a Letter (1665): #080B01 #483C1F #1E1906 #9F8350 #5E5237 #30250B
  • Portrait of a Young Woman (1665): #1C0F03 #CCBEAE #98856C #2E1C0A #41301E #856742
  • The Girl with the Wine Glass (1650): #392729 #95847E #53413A #C65346 #715E5A #CFC1B5
  • The Music Lesson (1662): #111112 #D5CEBC #59503F #916F38 #A09171 #BDAC7E

The Palette

The Works

How the palette changed

Chromatic Comparison

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