The colour yellow is more than just bright—it’s a feeling. Think of the zing of lemon zest, the golden warmth of sunshine on your skin, the cheerful bloom of a spring daffodil, or melted butter dripping down a fresh cob of corn. It’s joy. It’s comfort. It’s a quiet little thrill. I have a feeling you love yellow more than you realize—and I’m here to show you why. Let’s look at the colour yellow through fresh eyes (mine!) and fall in love with it all over again.
The colour yellow wears many hats—it shifts and shimmers along the spectrum between green and orange, taking on different moods as it goes. It can be soft and buttery, warm and mellow, or loud and full of life. Sometimes it whispers; sometimes it shouts. In my studio, I reach for yellow constantly—whether on its own or blended into other hues. It’s the magic behind my favourite lime green, and the gentlest touch in a creamy white cloud. As a primary colour, yellow holds an essential place on any artist’s palette. Honestly, I couldn’t paint without it.
Creating yellow colour schemes can be a fun (and sometimes tricky) challenge. On its own, the colour yellow isn’t always the easiest to work with—it can quickly dominate or shift the mood in unexpected ways.
You might have picked up through my work that although I love colour, I absolutely DO NOT LIKE a colour theme that looks ‘primary school’ or is intensely graphic in nature. This applies to yellow in a big way. My yellow paintings tend to lean a little 'autumn' — I love how orange and yellow fire each other up. But when I go bold with yellow, I prefer to tone it down to a softer, more elegant hue. Pretty, not punchy.
I’ll admit it: even though yellow was one of my favourite colours as a child, I shied away from it in my work for a long time. The colour yellow isn’t always easy to use in a way that feels refined or sophisticated—and for a while, I felt unsure of how to make it work.
But everything changed a few years ago when a client asked for something simple: a large, yellow abstract painting. That request lit a spark. In creating that piece, I rediscovered the magic of yellow—its energy, its optimism, and its unexpected versatility. It was a turning point, and I haven’t looked back since.
I use yellow now more than ever, as a straight-from-the-tube dollop of joy in an abstract painting, or regularly mixed in and amongst my landscape colours as the warmth of a golden sun glows throughout a scene.
All this to say, do not fear yellow! There's a reason it's the colour of happy face emojis. Smile and enjoy it! 😀
