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…

Lucas Cranach the Elder

Cranach's palette is distinctively Northern — deep forest greens, rich blacks, and pale flesh against decorative gold grounds, with flashes of vermilion.

Palette: #2A241C #533E29 #7F5B3E #A28969 #78301C #4F2516 #9F6A40 #4B8188

  • Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine (16th century): #2C2622 #A69163 #473625 #4D291B #865733 #705D3B
  • Mary Magdalene (?) (ca. 1525 (Renaissance)): #2C2824 #1E1B18 #5E3F29 #C2B6A3 #9F907C #7D6F5E
  • A Prince of Saxony (c. 1517): #0F0E0A #572D15 #362315 #906C44 #6D2A18 #5F4528
  • The Martyrdom of Saint Barbara (ca. 1510): #3D362A #24241F #635036 #865D3A #8A3925 #703425
  • Venus and Cupid (ca. 1525-27): #191918 #9E7D62 #6F5641 #2F2C27 #514436 #382620
  • The Judgment of Paris (ca. 1528): #2D271C #1C1A16 #A4886E #493D29 #71553D #737061
  • Judith with the Head of Holofernes (ca. 1530): #222220 #8B7C6C #6E533E #583124 #382F24 #4F4E49
  • Samson and Delilah (ca. 1528-30): #201A0E #100E0A #AB7F5E #372B19 #7B4F34 #32140D
  • Saint Maurice (ca. 1520-25): #0F1109 #80573B #5E5548 #312D23 #573925 #7D7C70
  • Venus with Cupid the Honey Thief (ca. 1580-1620): #191815 #483B28 #866C53 #2B241A #A3947D #184E4F
  • Portrait of a Man with a Rosary (ca. 1508): #141210 #2E2713 #8F6B4E #2A1F18 #99856D #73503B
  • Friedrich III (1463-1525), the Wise, Elector of Saxony (1533): #2E2A23 #533A25 #1B1B1B #677D70 #5C4C3D #978C7A
  • Johann I (1468-1532), the Constant, Elector of Saxony (1532-33): #583F2B #2F2822 #65786D #1D1B19 #734F36 #9C8F80
  • Johann (1498-1537), Duke of Saxony (ca. 1534-37): #1B1A18 #7C2C1A #311D19 #9B6A4A #77583F #978067
  • Martin Luther (probably 1532): #1D1D1C #64918E #7D5B48 #B17960 #49382E #526561
  • Portrait of a Man (1537): #1B1B1A #1C2316 #8F7253 #4D422F #75492F #4F5D4C
  • The Crucifixion (Unkn): #121614 #909691 #E2DCDA #5C471F #C7AA9B #946F44
  • An Ill-Matched Pair (1517): #18131D #BE925D #2E1D20 #50312C #7E553B #9B6C46
  • Christus und die Ehebrecherinchrist and the Woman Taken in Adultery: #683621 #291C12 #89694C #C3A582 #8E4D2E #48291B
  • Hl. Anna Selbdritt: #1E201A #B09B78 #836C4E #4C3E2A #2C2C1D #72492B
  • Maria Lactans: #9C8648 #1C1D19 #6E2A1B #705930 #4C3C25 #2C271C
  • Selbstmord der Lucretia (1525): #1E1D19 #37291E #A88759 #7B5F3D #523F2B
  • Hl. Hieronymus Als Büßer: #322D25 #514231 #90714A #67614A #A6956E #705236
  • Samson and Delila (1696): #302C1C #1D1C14 #5A4E31 #D3D1C2 #9AAFB1 #707161
  • Venus: #21201F #CE9C67 #A4734B #3F3529 #85532F #5A4734
  • Birth of John Baptist (1518): #5C3222 #22211B #813524 #D59148 #D64828 #ECE4D1
  • Apollo and Diana: #292115 #140F09 #82603E #493A23 #477790 #D3B296
  • Duke Henry the Pious (1514): #060603 #A5632E #76441B #5C2D10 #451E0A #321608
  • Melancholy (1532): #1D1D1B #3A3C36 #362619 #A16548 #B18362 #B4A68F
  • The Garden of Gethsemane / Agony in the Garden: #2B2C2D #9B8457 #494435 #675537 #DBAB70 #6E6E63
  • The Three Graces (1535): #080604 #C09A81 #8F6F57 #6C513E #473226 #ADA18F

The Palette

The Works

How the palette changed

Chromatic Comparison

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