There's no denying the heat of vermillion....the fire of stomach acids in digestive transformation; the fire that keeps a house warm in winter; the humbling, trembling awe one feels when they know themselves to be on the threshold between life and death, earth and spirit, power and humility.
"Friday I tasted life. It was a vast morsel
a circus passed the house- still I feel
the Red in my mind though the drums are out..." Emily Dickinson
Scarlet (or Vermillion) makes a dramatic impact by
seeming to 'come towards us'- this is known as color perspective.
Warm bright red can almost leap off the page.
Bringing red into a painting is a challenge."
-Colour Dynamics by Angela Lord
Indeed, bringing vermillion into a painting IS a challenge and I always go back to the Renaissance painter Fra Angelico. He captures the awe, the amazement, the deepest soul trembling by painting vermillion in moments where spiritual threshold events are experienced.
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I paint frequently in vermillion and red but am never quite satisfied with the result. It always feels "too much. It is as if the painting says... "I'm done....move on to something else." Balancing the composition with blue or green could be a great solution. Worth a try in the next vermillion painting!
Next week it is orange! Somehow I feel a bit of relief moving out of this red zone:)
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