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…

Masaccio

Masaccio revolutionized painting with volumetric light. His Brancacci Chapel frescoes use warm earth tones and atmospheric blue to create convincing three-dimensional space.

Palette: #5F503A #AE6B37 #853F26 #CE9F51 #B03F23 #976A4D #1B202A #896331

  • The Madonna of Humility (c. 1423/1424): #B87A20 #7D3C1F #A05521 #131E21 #5E321F #C09A52
  • Saint Andrew (1426): #CAAD5F #E0DBD5 #A9873E #535D22 #7B7D30 #38451C
  • Virgin and Child with Saint Anne (1424): #2C3548 #824730 #5B452E #BD684D #AE7537 #8F7556
  • Madonna and Child (1426): #6A4C1B #5B4C2E #303A50 #9D7C4C #171C29 #151E37
  • Crucifixion (1426): #D5A552 #2D4359 #B07837 #C5431F #BB8B5F #835632
  • Saint Paul (1426): #B57D21 #8F5C31 #BA7B42 #75543D #4D4736 #E6E3BC
  • The Adoration of the Magi (1426): #6E5849 #402B1F #A79382 #7D4726 #7F7889 #14101A
  • The Crucifixion of Saint Peter (1426): #5A4B31 #5B3613 #3F301A #82512F #877154 #3C3837
  • The Distribution of Alms and Death of Ananias (1425): #8B4B38 #7A6253 #59555B #493A34 #5E3228 #44221B
  • Madonna Casini (1426): #252126 #9D632B #C28D43 #6B432A #333645 #1C1617
  • Madonna Dell'umiltà (1424): #AD4810 #AA6B2A #BBA578 #DE9B5E #CE7730 #8B6C4E
  • The Decapitation of Saint John the Baptist (1426): #C4B299 #544330 #88401E #887558 #AB5E2B #2A2D3E
  • Raising of the Son of Teophilus and St. Peter Enthroned (1427): #BAB3A6 #B16D3D #887D63 #695740 #96694A #B79771
  • Saints Jerome and John the Baptist (1428): #947038 #A4352C #A35656 #852C2B #312611 #CA664E
  • Altar Predella; Right Panel: the Parricide of St. Julian (1426): #655D48 #42392B #B38444 #AEA98C #936243 #B6563C
  • San Giovenale Triptych (1422): #AF9978 #D7DBDB #C39D44 #191511 #997150 #54462D
  • A Young Man in a Scarlet Turban (1426): #202627 #B84635 #9A6547 #512D2F #2A1E1A #92302D
  • The Crucifixion of Saint Peter and the Decapitation of Saint John the Baptist (1426): #8A856E #8C5636 #595144 #C49675 #2E1E18 #603421

The Palette

The Works

How the palette changed

Chromatic Comparison

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