The Gross Clinic

Thomas Eakins 1844–1916

The Gross Clinic (1875) by Thomas Eakins. Its palette is led by charcoal (#28221d, 50%) and soot (#0b0908, 24%), with accents of oatmeal. Overall the canvas is dark, muted and warm.

Color reading

Black covers more than two-thirds of the canvas. Even its most colorful tone, oatmeal #BDB1A4, stays close to gray.

Palette

#28221d MG 222 charcoal 50.3% of canvas
#0b0908 MG 223 soot 24.4% of canvas
#403630 MG 177 dark taupe 12.8% of canvas
#70675d MG 175 stone 9.5% of canvas
#bdb1a4 MG 172 oatmeal 3.0% of canvas

Color families

Black 69%, Brown 25%, Gray 6%, Red 0%, Green 0%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.28
Contrast: 0.41
Vividness: 0.008
Warmth: +0.99
Complexity: 136 cells
Hue range: 0.35
Focus: 0.18

Composition

54% of the visual weight is in the right half, 68% in the lower half. Symmetry 0.00 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 44% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 24% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1875
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 243.8 × 198.1 cm
Genre: group portrait
Made in: United States
Collection: Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia

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More by Thomas Eakins

The Chess Players, 1876
Swimming, 1885