How important is it for an artist to work within color schemes? It is important if the artist wishes to create a certain mood or control of his subject. It is important if an artist wishes to create harmony in the painting.

• Primary color scheme: Red, Yellow, and Blue.
• Secondary color scheme: Orange, Green, and Violate.
• Tertiary color scheme: Yellow-Green, Blue-Violet, and Red-Orange

Many artist paint directly from nature, or have studied the different colors in nature and have an understanding about the color schemes and how they work. Nature by itself has created the color schemes.

Some landscape artists will stay within the confines of strict color scheme and will insist it is the “only way.” I personally believe anything that restricts the creativity of the artist is something better left off. Again, there is value in understanding color schemes, but when it comes to landscapes, nature generally takes care of itself.

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