Why is the sky blue?

Science says it isn’t really blue. Why? The Short Answer: Sunlight reaches Earth's atmosphere and is scattered in all directions by all the gases and particles in the air. Blue light is scattered more than the other colors because it travels as shorter, smaller waves. This is why we see a blue sky most of the time. After the Storm, oil, 24x48, Available. If I remember correctly, I used Cobalt for the blues in this painting. The range of blues that I use (in oil) ranging from cool to warm are: Ultramarine Blue: a royal blue that leans toward purple. Cobalt Blue: does not lean as far to purple as Ultramarine. Cerulean Blue: the only opaque blue, very similar to Manganese but not as green leaning. Manganese Blue Hue: leans toward green Phthalo Blue: (phthalocynanine blue) vibrant blue-green and the warmest blue. There is another blue-ish color I haven't tried--Cobalt Turquoise (on the far right above) that leans very green. I am going to order a tube next time I need paint.

Colorful Sky, oil, 12x12, Available. I used Phthalo blue here near the horizon, also cobalt blue.

Blue Dusk, oil, 18x18, Available. I used Ultramarine blue in this sky. Along with lots of pink too.  Cloudscape #3, oil, 36x24, Available. The blue in this painting looks like I used Cobalt Turqoise (which I don’t have) but I actually used Cerulean lightened with Naples Yellow that made it lean towards green. Ultramarine is used at the horizon--you can clearly see here how it leans toward violet..  I love painting skies and I love all the blues that are available. What is your favorite blue? Send me an email and let me know!

I am represented in the St. Louis area at Grafica Contemporary Art in Webster Groves. My web site is: http://janetfons.com You can follow me on instagram: http://instagram.com/JanetFonsFineArt (In case you missed it. This is a copy of my newsletter sent on June 15, 2020.)