The Ray

The Ray (1727) by Jean Siméon Chardin. Its palette is led by dark taupe (#3b3327, 35%) and umber (#5e564b, 28%), with accents of putty and pale grey. Overall the canvas is mid-toned, muted and warm.

Color reading

Brown and black cover nearly four-fifths of the canvas. Even its most colorful tone, dark taupe #3B3327, stays close to gray.

Palette

#3b3327 MG 177 dark taupe 35.2% of canvas
#5e564b MG 184 umber 28.0% of canvas
#14160e MG 223 soot 12.5% of canvas
#776f63 MG 183 golden umber 10.6% of canvas
#a19e94 MG 173 putty 7.7% of canvas
#c2cbc8 MG 212 pale grey 6.1% of canvas

Color families

Brown 58%, Black 20%, Gray 18%, White 2%, Green 1%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.43
Contrast: 0.57
Vividness: 0.019
Warmth: +1.00
Complexity: 130 cells
Hue range: 0.36
Focus: 0.18

Composition

54% of the visual weight is in the right half, 52% in the lower half. Symmetry 0.59 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 39% 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: 1727
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 114.5 × 146.0 cm
Genre: still life
Collection: Department of Paintings of the Louvre

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More by Jean Siméon Chardin

Le Buffet, 1728
Boy with a Spinning-Top, 1738