The Art of Mixing Black: Recipes for Watercolor & Oil Painters

Black is one of those colors that can make or break a painting. A flat tube black can sometimes feel dead — lifeless shadows, muddy details, or chalky overtones. But when you mix your own black, you can control its temperature, transparency, and depth, giving your work a richness that store-bought blacks often can’t match.

Today, we’ll walk through two classic approaches:

  • 🌊 Mixing a beautiful black in watercolor

  • 🛢 Crafting a deep black in oil paint

Let’s get mixing.

🌊 1. Mixing Black in Watercolor

✍️ Classic “Velvety Black” Recipe

  • Perylene Green (or Phthalo Green) – 1 part

  • Alizarin Crimson (or Quinacridone Rose) – 1 part

  • French Ultramarine Blue – 1 part

🧪 Instructions

  1. Start with Ultramarine: Lay down a rich Ultramarine Blue puddle on your palette. This gives the mix body and a slightly warm undertone.

  2. Add Crimson: Slowly introduce Alizarin Crimson, stirring until you get a deep violet. This is your “shadow core.”

  3. Introduce Perylene Green: Mix in the green a little at a time — you’ll see the violet swing toward a neutral, almost black tone. Adjust until it looks nearly black in the palette.

  4. Test on Paper: Always stroke it on watercolor paper — blacks can look deeper wet than they’ll dry. Adjust temperature:

    • Too warm? Add a touch more green.

    • Too cool? Add a bit more crimson.

    • Too flat? A tiny flick of Ultramarine wakes it up.

💡 Tip: If you want a transparent black for glazing, thin the mix heavily with water and layer it gradually. The triad of complementary pigments builds luminous depth when glazed rather than plopped on thick.

🛢 2. Mixing Black in Oil Paint

✍️ Rich “Painter’s Black” Recipe

  • Ultramarine Blue – 2 parts

  • Burnt Umber – 1 part

This is a classic warm black beloved by landscape painters.

🧪 Instructions

  1. Start with Ultramarine: On your glass palette, squeeze out a generous ribbon of Ultramarine.

  2. Add Burnt Umber: Place half as much Burnt Umber beside it.

  3. Mix with a palette knife until you get a smooth, even blend. The warm umber knocks back the blue’s intensity, creating a neutral black that leans ever so slightly warm.

  4. Adjust to taste:

    • Want a cooler black? Add a touch more Ultramarine.

    • Want a warmer black? Lean on Burnt Umber.

    • For maximum depth, introduce a smidge of Alizarin Crimson — this gives the black a subtle inner glow.

✨ Alternative Cool Black Recipe

  • Phthalo Green + Alizarin Crimson — equal parts → a stunning, deep, cool black.
    This combination produces a near-inky tone with high tinting strength, perfect for dramatic shadows or night skies.

🌟 Why Mix Your Own Black?

  • Control temperature: Warm vs. cool blacks affect mood and realism.

  • Depth: Mixed blacks have subtle undertones that make shadows feel alive.

  • Harmony: You’re using the same pigments already in your painting, which keeps your palette cohesive.

  • Avoid chalkiness: Tube blacks (like Ivory Black) can dull mixtures and sit flat on the surface.

🧠 Final Thoughts

Whether you’re working in the luminous transparency of watercolor or the buttery richness of oil, mixing your own black gives your paintings a living, breathing darkness. It’s less “dead void” and more “rich velvet curtain” — a backdrop that lets colors sing.

Once you try these recipes, you might find that tube black gathers dust in your paint box. 😉

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