The Encaustic Painter's Dozen: Unbleached Titanium, Manganese Violet & Indigo

Detail of work by R&F Tier Instructor Kelly Williams

To help you understand why we chose the colors we did for our new limited edition Encaustic Painter's Dozen, we reached out to our Core and Tier Artist Instructors and had them pick a favorite. This week we are featuring Unbleached Titanium, Manganese Violet, and Indigo.

Debra Claffey, Blue Star Blues, 19" x 24", encaustic, Pigment Stick, Art Graf on Thai paper

"I love Unbleached Titanium. It's a chameleon. It can be the highlight against darker color. It can be a midtone when there's a lighter color nearby. It can be warm or cool. Unbleached Titanium is all about context and nuance. Its neutral nature brings out depth in saturated colors and shines as the star performer against warm blacks. It's gorgeous next to white too."

- R&F Tier Instructor Debra Claffey

Kelly Williams, Swimming The Depths, 36" round, encaustic on panel

"I often utilize the subtle glazes that Manganese Violet can make to add a depth without overpowering a piece. Playing it against a range of yellows and gold also creates an atmospheric feel that adds complexity. When tinted with white it produces a soft pastel that can act as a neutral it a high keyed painting. This violet is a regular in both my abstracts and figurative work to create cool shadows so is a must have on my palette."

- R&F Tier Instructor Kelly Williams

Susan Stover, P113, 6" x 6", encaustic on paper

"I love Indigo. I can use it as a chromatic black in a painting or tint it with white for some beautiful shades of neutral blues. I'm particularly fond of indigo dye as it has such an interesting history and is a magical process. The color speaks of the earth and has a grounding effect on me. I also like to use it as a toner to create color harmonies."

- R&F Core Instructor Susan Stover