The Oil Painter's Color Workbook

This collection of exercises draws on the bestselling The Oil Painter s Color Handbook (Monacelli Studio, 2022), with the addition of 12 new exercises. It can be used alongside the Handbook or on its own. The chapters are standalone modules, meaning painters can follow the book in chronological order or jump in where they like.

Because exercises increase in complexity, the book is ideal for a range of skill levels. However they use it, practitioners will gain an understanding of light and perception, as well as of their materials and the skills they need to succeed as an oil painter. Early exercises delve into how pigments, layering of paint, mark making, and brush language all influence how artists see and how that translates into a finished painting.

Subsequent chapters focus on the underlying structure of color, applying color to simple forms and creating color strings. The book s final chapters delve into the palettes used by major artists and what can be learned from them, as well as the most sophisticated aspects of perception: color harmony and the psychology of color.

Above all, these exercises are meant to be astarting point to help painters at every level deepen their understanding and their toolboxes (literal and figurative) in order to create with greater ease and skill. As Casey reminds his students: the purpose of knowledge is action.