About this combination
Combination 277 of 348 in Wada's six-volume 1933 work. A 4-colour grouping of Spinel Red, Rosolanc Purple, Olive, Dull Violet Black, as documented in the original plates.
Historical context
Plate 277 of Wada's 348 anchors Spinel Red, Rosolanc Purple, Olive and Dull Violet Black in the red family — a 4-colour grouping with a refined, warm, bold character, recorded in Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations (six volumes; Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint), and in the public domain by age. Its strongest pairing — Spinel Red on Dull Violet Black — reaches a contrast ratio of 6.38:1, meeting the WCAG AA bar for body text, so it holds up for text-on-colour layouts as well as decorative use.
Studio
Taking Spinel Red & Rosolanc Purple +2 off the screen
A hex code is an instruction to a screen, not a colour. Where this palette is going decides what it needs next.
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...onto paper
Start here if the palette gets printed. Screen colour and ink colour are not the same colour, and this is the deck that translates between them.
Listed on Amazon as Pantone Formula Guide – Coated & Uncoated | Professional PMS Color Matching System for Print, Packaging & Graphic Design | GP1601B
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...onto a screen you can trust
Start here if it stays digital. An uncalibrated monitor is the single most common reason a palette that looked right on your desk looks wrong everywhere else.
Calibrite
ColorChecker Passport Photo 2
Listed on Amazon as Calibrite ColorChecker Passport Photo 2 Portable Color Calibration Kit for Photo and Video, 4 Target Set for White Balance, Exposure and Creative Look
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...by hand
Start here if you are mixing it. Wada's plates were flat printed colour; gansai pans are the closest everyday medium to them.
Kuretake
Gansai Tambi 24 — Art Nouveau
Listed on Amazon as Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 24 Colors II - Art Nouveau
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