I am a landscape painter juxtaposing color in pastel to create the illusion of light.

My Lesson in Complex Color Harmonies: Wrestling with the 7th Chord

I began this painting with the idea of using a complex color harmony—referred to as 7^th chord.

For this painting, I chose a 2-3-4-3 spacing of Blue-Green (BG), Blue-Violet (BV), Red (R), and Yellow (Y). These colors came directly from my memory of a night scene, a photo reference and a plein air sketch. I thought they’d sit beautifully in the lower part of the value scale.

What Is a 7th Chord Color Harmony?

The term “7th chord” in color theory borrows from music, suggesting a layered, nuanced harmony. In painting, this often means using a sequence of hues spaced unevenly around the color wheel using 2-3-4-3 interval, to create complexity and depth.

My choice of BG (Blue-Green), BV (Blue-Violet), R (Red), and Y (Yellow) in a 2-3-4-3 spacing was my attempt to balance cool and warm tones with subtle transitions.

I thought this harmony would lead to delicate shifts in value and temperature, those quiet transitions that breathe life into a painting. I was excited by the challenge. But as I worked, I quickly realized how difficult it was to make the scheme function. The values were too compressed, and the temperature shifts I had hoped for were barely noticeable. The painting felt muddy, not mysterious. I kept pushing, studying, adjusting—but eventually, I had to admit it wasn’t working. I gave up and repainted the study with a clearer, simpler approach using a single complement of Blue and Orange.

What I Learned Through the Struggle

• Working in a low-value range is tricky. It compresses contrast and makes it harder to distinguish temperature and hue shifts.
• Trial and error is essential. Repainting wasn’t a failure—it was part of the process. It helped me refine my understanding and reminded me that growth often comes through frustration.

What I’ll Do Differently Next Time

I’ll probably do a small pastel study first—just to see how the harmony behaves before committing to a full piece.

I believe in the emotional power of complex harmonies, and I will continue to push myself to understand them by doing more studies before I start a painting.