By Bob Bahr
John Banovich shared a lot of information at TexArt during his one-day presentation/demo. One of the chunks of information that participants may not have had time to write down is his color palette. Banovich explained how some of his colors he only uses in scenes set in Africa, or in North America. Here’s a quick recap.
ultramarine blue
burnt sienna
brown madder
burnt umber
raw sienna
raw umber
yellow ochre
yellow ochre light
cadmium orange
Naples yellow
Naples yellow light
chromium green
cadmium yellow
cadmium yellow pale
permanent mauve
alizarin crimson
terra rosa
cobalt blue
cerulean blue
turquoise
unbleached titanium
titanium white
ultramarine violet
Banovich pointed out that he uses a few colors only in Africa, particularly terra rosa, burnt umber, and chromium green. On the other hand, permanent mauve, and ultramarine violet are used only in scenes set in North America. Raw umber is his brown for North America. He pointed out that Naples yellow light is perfect for African grasses, and he never uses ultramarine blue as a sky color—though he will use ultramarine in clouds and in animals. Banovich finds unbleached titanium to be perfect for warmth in clouds.
He uses poppyseed oil and Liquin for mediums.
Although he is particular about his paints, preferring Williamsburg Handmade Oil Paints, Banovich pays little attention to brands when it comes to brushes. When he finds a brush that works, he buys it in bulk. When asked what the hairs or bristles are from, or what series the brush is in, he reveals that he doesn’t concern himself with it. Ω
