I’ve been meaning for sometime to post a definitive article about what full spectrum colors are , and what makes them superior to ordinary paint colors you will find in all paint stores. So let’s get started with the basics. There is no absolute definition of a full spectrum color since it would be impossible to re-create the full spectrum of light with any colorant combination. This is bound to add to the confusion, but with that in mind I can define what I’m talking about. A full spectrum paint color as we know it consists of one that employs no fewer than three chromatic colorants, one yellow, one red, one blue, or any two of the above with one of it’s complements, violet, green, or orange. All of Philip’s Perfect Colors are also what I would term “complex colors” which means that they have at least 4 colorants. So if you combine “full spectrum” with “complex color” you get one that has at least four (preferrably more), colorants and some element of yellow, red, blue, and or any of their complements. Most importantly of all they contain no black colorant of any kind.
Now that we have the WHAT let’s explore they WHY. The reason for employing no black colorant is simple-it reflects no light. Since ultimately paint color is a reflection of light off of a wall it makes little sense to add a colorant that is not going to contribute in any meaningful way to this luminosity. In fact, it only serves to “dechromatize” the other colorants being used. I liken it to taking a black baseball bat and smashing the other colors. This image works for me, you can image whatever you like. The bottom line here being that if we want to create walls that truly “sing” we have to employ a multitude of “notes”.
By using complementary colorants instead of black to “dechromatize” the other colorants we create a more complicated stew while at the same time retaining and even adding to the overall luminosity. I like to use a food analogy here. I can prepare the above mentioned stew with a lot of salt and pepper and you will definitely have flavor, but it won’t be very subtle. On the other hand if I substitute 5,6, or even more spices delicately balanced in just the right proportion you have something much more complex and satifying to your palate. You may not even be able to identify exactly what the spices are that you are tasting because the sum has now created something greater than the parts. You just know that it tastes great. In the same way you might not be able to immediately identify what’s in the color as it fools your eye so to speak. Is it blue? Is it green? Is it gray? You see what I mean.
This ambiguity of color also helps in the coordination of other colors in the room or on an exterior color scheme. Full spectrum complex colors have a natural affiniy for each other because of the fact that they share many of the same pigments albeit in differing amounts. So your red has some blue in it, your blue has some red in it and so on and so forth. Another way of looking at it is that all colors are welcomed into the room since there is a precedent for everything set by the full spectrum nature of the wall color(s). This explains one of the reasons why it is so difficult to get exactly the right shade of a conventional paint color. There just isn’t much there to work with, so you have a greater chance of getting it wrong than you do of getting it right. The odds are definitely against you.
My favorite analogy is that of “musical colors.” If you’ve read my previous posts on this topic you have some idea what I’m about to lay out. Colors that are made with one or two colorants become boring and monotonous very quickly just like an instrument playing the same one or two notes over and over again would be. Simple music has it’s place but no one can argue the enduring quality of Mozart, Beethoven, and the other classical masters. Likewise Philip’s Perfect Colors have a timeless appeal that transcends the latest color fads while at the same time giving you ample color choices to play within these trends.
Finally look at nature. The color of our world informs us in the most basic way. Who among us doesn’t enjoy the spectacular show of a hillside painted with wildflowers? The key here is to remember that nature always balances itself. What field of yellow flowers isn’t made the more breathtaking by the lonely violet ones poking their heads through? Travel the countryside and you will see the odd pairings that nature uses to balance and complement itself. Let us also remember that the vast majority of our natural landscape is made up of complex neutral tones. It is against this backdrop that nature shows her accents. Imagine what an unsettling place this world would be if the landscape were primarily a shocking red or yellow. I don’t think we can even imagine it. Our color sensibilities are so deeply hardwired into our DNA that we are not even aware of it. It is this deeply seated sensibility that Philip’s Perfect Colors speaks to.
