Black Magic: A Versatile Powerhouse

Introduction

The color black is ubiquitous and integral when it comes to horse color but all the same, it's a tricky color when it comes to actually painting with it. Nature has a perfect handle on it, of course, but we have to learn the ropes if we ever hope to wield black smartly. Really, while it seems simple enough at first glance, it’s really not as straightforward as it seems. Indeedy, black has its peculiarities we need a handle on if we ever hope to wield it adeptly and ping our target colors, so let's talk about this complicated color a bit.

The Dilemma

You see, using black in a mix can be a bit of a dilemma. Why? Well, because black tends to kill a color outright. What does that mean? In essence, black tends to destroy a color's luminosity, saturation, and glow and can muddy a color faster than just about anything. Lean into blacks too much or become too dependent on them then, and the adaptability of our paintjobs can suffer for it. Blacks can also skew a mix into unpleasant directions with its different undertones so knowing how "warm" or "cool" a black is can be critical for avoiding unwelcome results. Like if we try to blend a black into the golds of a buckskin on the legs, we get green? Yeah, that. So we need to use blacks with caution and really know how to use them before simply adding them onto our palette. For this reason, using color theory to mix up a complementary mix is often the better option rather than using black to dampen or darken a color. For instance, to dampen orange or rust use blue or green rather than black. Or likewise, instead of using black to darken Burnt Umber, use a dark blue. In this way, applying color theory often gets us to our target color much more effectively and vibrantly.

The Spectrum of Blacks

However, that said, sometimes black is called for so how we use it can be instrumental to our success. But first we need to understand the different blacks before we can tease out how they behave in mixes. So to that end...

• Ivory Black: With its blue cast, this is a cool, transparent black. It was made by burning ivory in the absence of oxygen, but now it's made from the bones of animals so it's not vegan-friendly.
• Mars Black: A brownish (therefore reddish) warm black, this is an opaque powerhouse that's super powerful in mixes so be careful with it. It's a synthetic iron oxide pigment made from iron sulfate reacting to an alkali.
• Payne's Grey: With it's very blue, cool cast, this transparent dark grey can look black with layering. It's typically made from combining blue pigments with reds or violets to create a "black" color.
• Carbon Black: A true neutral black, this is a powerful opaque color that's immensely versatile in mixes, being neither cool nor warm in undertone. It's made from the soot created by the partial combustion of natural gas.
• Lamp Black: A cool blue-toned transparent black, it's made from the soot of oil lamps (so it's not vegan-friendly if the oil was derived from animals).
• Bone Black: A very warm, brown-toned opaque black, it's made from the charred bones of animals so it's not vegan-friendly.

Homemade Black

Beyond pre-made blacks though, we should also know how to mix our own black because these mixes can often garner even more complex, adaptable, and richer hues. So to do that, think about mixing a cool blue like Ultramarine Blue with a warm brown like Burnt Umber. Another option is Prussian Blue with Burnt Sienna or Red Oxide or Alizarin Crimson or Terra Rosa or Burnt Umber. Or yet another way to create black is by mixing Alizarin Crimson and Phthalo Green, or Phthalo Green with Quinacridone Violet. Also consider mixing dark blues or greens with Raw Umber for a new set of blacks. And yet another way to make a highly adaptable black is to mix our primary colors together: Red, yellow, and blue. Just not in equal proportions, mind you, so go easy on the yellow. So there's lots of ways to mix up a host of blacks for lots of versatility on our palette! Like if we want to create that purple or blue cast sooty bay? Well, mixing our own black is a handy way to do it!

Oh, but it doesn't end there! Also think about cutting those pre-made blacks with Burnt Umber or Raw Umber to brown them up a snidge for a more natural effect. Just keep in mind that Burnt Umber is a warm brown and Raw Umber is a cool brown. If we mix the two together first then, we'll get a more neutral brown to add to our black. The point is, this is a handy trick if we're trying to blend blacks with golds, for instance. That brown component will help to prevent the green effect so often encountered when blending golds and yellows with blacks like on buckskins, some duns, and black bays.

On a similar note, if we lighten our different blacks with white to produce a grey, we'll find that this yields us a whole series of different kinds of greys. For example, Ivory Black will produce a cool, blue-toned grey while Mars Black will give us a warmer grey then Carbon Black will render a more neutral grey. So if we want to neutralize that blue-tone in an Ivory Black grey, for instance, we can add in some brown, like Burnt Umber, to cancel out that cool undertone. But knowing which black to use can also be instrumental in targeting the different kinds of greys such as porcelain grey which tends to have a comparatively bluish cast to it, or using Mars Black for a rosegrey with its warm undertone. So a better understanding of blacks helps us to better understand our greys, with big implications for our paintwork from color mixing to skin color to hoof color to the palmar feet to chestnuts.

That Good Ol' Black Magic

Okay, now that we have that all under our belt, how do we apply it? Well, think of it this way: Black is our lowest note possible, right? So we can use it to deepen the dimension of our paintjob in those coats that call for black like, for instance, on bays, buckskins, grullas, blacks, greys, and roans. For instance, on sooties, notice how the sooty pattern deposits black on key areas on the body and head? Or on a grey pattern, note how the darkest values stick to the joints on the legs and characteristics areas around the body? Or on varnish roans how the darks stick to characteristic areas?

Or on the other hand, pay attention to when black may be needed to dull a color such as on some silvers, grullas, duns, or mushrooms, or classic champagne. Indeed, black can rip the vivid quality of a color right out, making it a handy means to mute color into those odd tones hard to get at any other way.

So pay attention to where the lowest notes are on your reference(s) and determine whether that calls for a black, then follow suit. This will give your paintjobs added realism, depth, and dimension, and more intensity with their impact. Likewise, think about using black as a muting agent to dull and skew colors with purpose. Absolutely, knowing how to dampen any color with black is one of the most useful skillsets when it comes to duplicating horse color! The trick is though learning caution with black, of using the bare minimum to get the job done. Why? Because black is an inordinately powerful color, even in its transparent forms, so a little bit really does go a long way. So add in blacks a teensy bit at a time until you build up the color to what you want because once you add it in, there's no getting it out!

Another trick to using black is knowing what to mix it with to get some really neat browns and rusts and such. For example, mixing a black with Red Oxide, a bright rust color, produces a super versatile brown that's great for everything from basecoats to blending, particularly on bays and sooty bays or some unusual chestnuts. Or try it with Burnt Sienna or Terra Rosa for some variety. Or think about mixing a black with bright orange for another interesting muted rusty brown that can be helpful for black bays and chestnuts, in particular. Dark hooves also benefit from black, of course, both for coloration and for muting as does dark skin and chestnuts. Another key insight is knowing when to mix in some brown into our black if yellows or golds are involved to prevent that greening effect so typical when we blend those two together. What's more, on some fuzzy foal coats, like especially for bays or blacks, think about basecoating the piece in a black-based hue then drybrush your additional colors and highlights on top to create lots of "pop" to the fuzzy texture. That dark basecoat will remain in the hair creases as coloration and shadow, adding welcome dimension to fuzzy coats. So add it all up, and black can be applicable to lots of colors and effects so play around with it to discover what it really can do for you.

Conclusion

Put it all together then and we can apply black on our palette with a lot more color savvy to not only avoid unpleasant "dead" results or green skews, but to also achieve a richer, deeper look to our coat colors. So the overall trick with this powerhouse hue is knowing the "temperature" of our black to stay on target and to avoid unwanted greenish or bluish results. Get a handle on that, and we're well on our way. The other thing to know with using black on our palette is to mix in just a little bit at a time because it tends to be a strong influence. Really, once we add black, we can't go back! So use it with great caution and carefully, adding only small amounts at a time to achieve the target color.

Once we get a handle on black though, a whole new section on the horse color spectrum opens up to us. Because black isn’t just like any other color…it’s powerful and omnipotent, but it can also be highly versatile if we know how to use it well. Black is bold, beautiful, and bountiful, so play around with it and practice, and you too can add that enticing black magic to  your paintwork!

“I’ve been forty years discovering that the queen of all colors is black!”

— Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Black Magic: A Versatile Powerhouse