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The Oil Painter's Color Handbook: A Contemporary Guide to Color Mixing, Pigments, Palettes, and Harmony

by Todd M. Casey

A practical study of color for oil painters

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Awards & Recognition

  • Critical praise

    Praise from Eric Rhoads, Publisher of Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine

    Rhoads calls it an impressive and comprehensive book on color and praises its range of concepts and examples.

AlbakiReads Editorial

A practical study of color for oil painters

Todd M. Casey organizes color as a set of connected decisions in oil painting, from light, value, and pigments to mixing, palette arrangement, harmony, and technique. The book opens with color’s use across art history, then builds through lessons that pair explanations with historic and contemporary paintings, diagrams, charts, and finished examples. Step-by-step demonstrations and exercises give the concepts a practical dimension, while the sequence moves from foundational ideas toward more complex ones. The approach also places color within the broader work of picture-making, linking it to drawing, shadow, form, and composition. It serves as both a visual reference and a structured course in color for oil painting.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Oil painters seeking a structured introduction to color concepts and techniques.
  • Art students, instructors, and serious hobbyists interested in illustrated lessons and exercises.
  • Painters curious about how color has been used across art history.

Themes

Color theory and oil-painting techniquePigments, mixing, and palette arrangementColor harmonyColor in art historyInstruction through demonstrations and exercises

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

A contemporary and accessible foundation of color theory and advanced techniques for the oil painter at every skill level

"In The Oil Painter's Color Handbook, Todd Casey presents priceless information that every art school should teach and every art student should learn. The book breaks down the subject of color into useful pieces of knowledge that painters can put into practice. He analyzes color in terms of light, value, pigment, mixing strategies, palette arrangements, and painting techniques. Each topic is clearly and succinctly explained in the text, illustrated with captions, charts, diagrams, and finished paintings. By the end of the book, the reader will have a clear understanding of how realist painters and illustrators have used color through history." - James Gurney, artist and author

"This is the most impressive and complete book on color ever produced. It covers a wide range of color concepts, including some I'd never seen before. It digs deeply into color harmony, techniques, and has powerful examples to demonstrate every concept." - Eric Rhoads, Publisher, Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine

From Todd M. Casey, acclaimed artist and expert teacher, The Oil Painter's Color Handbook: A Contemporary Guide to color Mixing, Pigments, Palettes, and Harmony provides everything the oil painter needs to understand all aspects of color and empowers the reader to paint with confidence. As Casey notes, every artist and artist-in-training must learn how to "master the main concepts of picture-making: drawing, light, shadow, value, form, composition, and color."

A follow-up to the bestselling The Art of Still Life: A Contemporary Guide to Classical Techniques, Composition, and Painting in Oil (Monacelli, 2020), The Oil Painter's Color Handbook begins with an in-depth look at the use of color throughout art history. Casey then breaks down the process of understanding color into easily digestible lessons--each clearly explained and richly illustrated with both historic and contemporary paintings--so that the reader can learn progressively and layer more complex ideas as each skill is achieved.

Through clear instruction, step-by-step demonstrations, and challenging exercises, readers will learn to apply these techniques and concepts to their own painting. Once educated with this fundamental knowledge, as an artist, one can begin to find the balance between the science and emotional intuition in creating art. This informative and visually dynamic book will be accessible and appealing to artists, art students, and art instructors, to serious amateurs and hobbyists.
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