Harley Brown's Law For Color

'Knee Deep in Wildflowers' 11x14 pastel ©Karen Margulis

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Do you need a good reason to use an Analogous Color Wheel? How about Harley's Law for Color? If you are familiar with Harley Brown 's work and books then you may have read about his 'Law for Color' in his book 'Harley Brown's Eternal Truths for Every Artist'. The entire book belongs on every artist's book shelf and the chapter on color is a must-read. Harley's color wheel is based on the Munsell theory of Color. Using an Analogous Color Wheel will help you follow Harley's Law. Read more about the Analogous Color Wheel in my post HERE.

What is Harley's Law for Color? Here it is taken from page 73 in his book:

1. A painting should have a dominant color that is evident.
2. Complimentary color may be introduced,occupying much smaller space at full intensity, or greater if greyed.
3. Discord colors which add spice to the visual stew, may be added, sparingly,in approximate equal amounts.

The painting above was the demo for my weekly pastel class. I used the Analogous Color Wheel and Harley's Law for Color to help me plan the colors in the painting. The flowers in my reference were really that red-orange. They were in a meadow in Maine so if anyone knows what they are I'd love to know!