red · Oil and Watercolor

Cadmium Red Light

A warm, orange-leaning red. With white it turns salmon, not pink.

IndexPR108

Color#E23A16

Tinting strength6/10

Opacityopaque

Lightfastnessexcellent

Dryingslow

Middling strength: it mixes politely and does not take over.

With white, step by step

pure #E13D16 6:1 #E7431E 3:1 #EB4824 2:1 #EF4C2A 1:1 #F75436 1:2 #FF6048 1:3 #FF6754 1:6 #FF736B pure #F8F7F3

From pure Cadmium Red Light on the left to titanium white on the right. Watch how much chroma you lose on the way — that is the cost of lightening with white, and the reason a tint often needs a trace of something warm putting back.

What to mix it with

These are the partners that take Cadmium Red Light furthest towards neutral, which makes them the ones you reach for when you need a shadow or a gray rather than a color.

with Mars Black quietest point #1E1C1B with Zinc White quietest point #FBFAF7 with Titanium White quietest point #F8F7F3 with Ivory Black quietest point #23201E with Payne’s Gray quietest point #2E3A45 with Phthalo Green quietest point #4A3336

Every pair

Titanium White Zinc White Lemon Yellow Cadmium Yellow Light Cadmium Yellow Deep Yellow Ochre Raw Sienna Naples Yellow Cadmium Red Deep Alizarin Crimson (permanent) Quinacridone Rose Indian Red Burnt Sienna Raw Umber Burnt Umber Ultramarine Cobalt Blue Cerulean Blue Phthalo Blue Prussian Blue Phthalo Green Viridian Chromium Oxide Green Dioxazine Purple Ivory Black Mars Black Payne’s Gray

Is it on your palette?

Tick off what you own and every recipe is worked out for that set, from a color you pick out of your own photo.

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