The Raft of the Medusa

The Raft of the Medusa (1819) by Théodore Géricault. Its palette is led by bistre (#261b16, 32%) and taupe (#5a4d3a, 30%), with accents of putty and pale tan. Overall the canvas is dark, muted and warm.

Color reading

Brown covers more than three-fifths of the canvas. Even its most colorful tone, pale tan #CAB191, stays close to gray.

Palette

#261b16 MG 219 bistre 32.5% of canvas
#5a4d3a MG 176 taupe 29.8% of canvas
#0d0d0d MG 223 soot 15.2% of canvas
#75624f MG 175 stone 10.6% of canvas
#978f7e MG 173 putty 7.2% of canvas
#cab191 MG 163 pale tan 4.7% of canvas

Color families

Brown 62%, Black 33%, Orange 2%, Gray 2%, White 1%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.36
Contrast: 0.55
Vividness: 0.027
Warmth: +1.00
Complexity: 205 cells
Hue range: 0.33
Focus: 0.06

Composition

53% of the visual weight is in the right half, 54% in the upper half. Symmetry 0.26 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 12% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 30% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1819
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 491.0 × 716.0 cm
Genre: marine art
Collection: Department of Paintings of the Louvre

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More by Théodore Géricault

The 1821 Derby at Epsom, 1821
Portrait of a Kleptomaniac, 1820s