My Color Tell-all

Written by Art Ambassador Dena Peterson

I have been teaching oil painting classes and workshops for many years. One of the basic tenets that I teach is the importance of values, even over color, in design and composition. I also preach the benefits of a limited color palette. Too many choices can be overwhelming. “Keep it simple,” I say. Just the primaries, ma’am.

However, it’s finally time for me to unburden myself and share my secret. I am having a love affair……………with Royal Talens’ Turquoise Blue. (Either Rembrandt or Van Gogh will do; I’m not too picky).

I realize this is shocking because I am a good Midwestern gal with good Midwestern “values”. You might expect that my favorite color would be something practical, like Titanium White, which is the color I use the most. Or, perhaps something useful, like Ultramarine Blue, which is my go-to when I need to mix a dark value.

But, gosh darn it; sometimes, you just need some excitement on your palette. Turquoise Blue was the color that tempted me, especially during the pandemic, when I was lonely and weak. This color makes a beautiful and vibrant “green-with-envy” green when mixed with yellow. It also creates a gorgeous warm sky, for you daring landscape painters, when mixed with Titanium White.

And in my darkest times of shame…or boredom…I may even use it straight out of the tube, in all its buttery and luscious blue-green glory. Please keep that between you and me; I am happily married, after all.

About the Author

Dena was honored to be selected as one of 120 international artists out of 5000 applicants for the film, “Loving Vincent”, truly a labor of love and tribute to the life and struggles of Van Gogh as told through his paintings.
 
“As artists, many of us can relate to Van Gogh’s struggles, which is why his life strikes such an emotional chord with us.”
 
Dena’s small-town roots prompted one of her art professors to comment that her work expresses a love of intimate, quiet, and peaceful spaces. She enjoys the richness and texture of painting with oils, both en plein air, and in her Colorado Springs studio.
 
“For me, painting is not about copying reality. I want to paint with passion to evoke emotion.”
 
An award-winning artist, Dena’s paintings have been exhibited in regional, national, and international shows, such as Birds in Art at the Leigh-Yawkey Woodson Museum and national traveling show. She received her training at the Loveland Academy of Fine Arts, the Art Students League of Denver, and the Scottsdale Artists School, where she was selected for the prestigious Wade Fairchild Memorial Scholarship.
 
She was invited to be an opening night speaker about her work on “Loving Vincent” at the Plein Air Convention and Expo 2017 in San Diego, CA, sponsored by Eric Rhoads, publisher of Plein-Air Magazine and Fine Art Connoisseur. She has two instructional videos on how to paint like Van Gogh, landscapes and portraits.
 
Among her teachers and mentors are Kevin MacPherson, Kevin Weckbach, and Mark Daniel Nelson. She is a signature member of The American Impressionist Society.

She also enjoys inspiring others through teaching, both home and abroad.