The Surrender of Brea

The Surrender of Brea (1635) by Diego Velázquez. Its palette is led by bistre (#312922, 31%) and taupe (#5b4e37, 21%), with accents of golden umber, light amber gold and silver. Overall the canvas is mid-toned, moderately saturated and warm.

Color note

Velázquez worked from a restrained palette of earth colors, lead white, vermilion and blacks, and was admired for his silvery greys. Manet, who studied him in Madrid, called him the painter of painters.

Palette

#312922 MG 219 bistre 31.4% of canvas
#5b4e37 MG 176 taupe 21.3% of canvas
#80979f MG 208 pigeon grey 16.9% of canvas
#82714b MG 183 golden umber 14.1% of canvas
#acbbbb MG 207 pale slate 10.8% of canvas
#c8ad71 MG 037 light amber gold 3.2% of canvas
#e1e3d9 MG 206 silver 2.3% of canvas

Color families

Brown 48%, Black 18%, Gray 18%, Blue 7%, Green 4%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.50
Contrast: 0.56
Vividness: 0.030
Warmth: +0.56
Complexity: 211 cells
Hue range: 0.57
Focus: 0.03

Composition

57% of the visual weight is in the left half, 70% in the upper half. Symmetry 0.39 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 6% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 33% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1635
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 307.0 × 367.0 cm
Genre: genre art
Made in: Spain
Collection: Museo del Prado, Madrid

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