Artists and illustrators often talk about a “signature style.” It’s that look, that feel, that je ne sais quois that makes a person’s work instantly recognizable. We could spend all day analyzing styles and what makes them unique, but this articles’s focus is color. Specifically, creating a palette of color to call your own.

Color is very personal, and just as our “palette” for certain tastes is not quite the same as anybody else’s, we all see color differently. As you mature as an illustrator, you become more adept at mixing color and developing a palette all your own. Newbies tend to use “straight out of the tube” color. That is, the colors that come pre-loaded every time you start your drawing software.

In the image on the left below, quisp65 has chosen a subtle, harmonious color scheme. It looks really good. For some contrast, we took the file and changed it into some straight 'out of the tube' colors: red cardinal, green tree, blue sky. The sort of colors a beginner might just assume they ought to use.

As you can see, even the colors by themselves are much more pleasing than the ones in the “out of the tube” example. They hang together quite nicely, whereas the other colors seem to be fighting. Quisp65’s use of colors are one of the things that gives his work a consistent style and a hip, organic look.

So how do you develop your own signature color palette? One way to choose colors is to simply look around you — we’re all influenced by our environment. Sample the colors from a photo of your surroundings and save the swatches to a new Color Group. To do this, select the filled objects on your artboard, click the New Color Group icon at the bottom of the Swatches panel, and check “Selected Artwork” in the dialog box.

You can also experiment with colors without ever leaving Illustrator. Click the icon at the bottom of the Swatches panel to show the Color Libraries. Here you’ll find tons of pre-made color palettes with descriptive names like “Foliage,” “Textiles” and “Russian Poster Art.” Within these libraries are even more color groups.

Try recoloring your artwork with different groups to get an overall feel for the palette (be sure to read Recoloring Artwork for a how-to). If you find some groups you really like, add them to your main Swatches panel by simply clicking on their folder icon.

Kuler

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