Following recent racial equality events around the world, we have received a lot of correspondence regarding the bias towards caucasian skin and flesh tones, among colour ranges supplied by colour manufacturers. We couldn’t agree more that this is wrong and we decided to investigate further, change our own colour names and ask our suppliers for their comments. Many had already undertaken changes.
top row from left to right: Self Portrait by M. V. Dhurandhar; A Passion Like No Other by Lynette Yiadom-Boakye; Arearea by Paul Gauguin, Portrait of Zhu Yuanzhang, First Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, circa 1300s (artist unknown)
bottom row from left to right: The Holy Virgin Mary by Chris Ofili; Night Talk by Jiab Prachakul, Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar (1831–1896) by Bahram Kirmanshahi, Self-Portrait, Black Background by Helene Schjerfbeck
Statements from Art Materials Companies
Here is a list of responses from art materials manufacturers that we received when we asked them if they had plans in place to update their colour ranges (please note that for many English is not their first language).
AV Vallejo
AV Vallejo have expressed to us that they believe ‘flesh colours should be renamed’, and that adding the word Caucasian alone does not solve a problem as their ranges do not cater for other ethnic groups. They said, ‘we will take a look at this matter as we agree with the point and something needs to be done’.
Bruynzeel
‘All our pencils where Tint or Flesh are mentioned, these will change to Naples Yellow Red going forward’.
Daler Rowney
‘We are addressing this issue. Portrait Pink was implemented one or two years ago to replace Flesh Pink, but this is clearly not enough.
We will be changing this shade to Peach. This is a growing concern that we should have been addressed already in the past and that we will address now’.
Derwent
‘It is an important issue to us and we are already in the process of reviewing all product names which we consider to be sensitive and updating them as a running change. The next production of any single pencils and tins referring to skin will have the new names’.
Faber Castell
‘Last year (we) made the decision to drop the word skin from all of (our) packaging and on the individual colours. (We) did have Dark Flesh, Medium Flesh and Light Flesh and they have now become Salmon, Coral and Beige Red’.
Gamblin
‘Robert Gamblin developed Caucasian Flesh Tone back in 1989. At the time, it felt wrong to call it Flesh Tint or Flesh Tone. So what to do? The honest path seemed to be to call it what it was, as best we could. Over the last thirty years, the feedback from artists regarding our approach has been overwhelmingly positive. But did we ever really like the name? No. We didn’t. So much so that we haven’t talked about the color in many, many years. Interestingly, however, it’s been our fastest growing color over the last five years. So it’s clearly doing the work and has earned its place on many painters palettes – both for figurative work and for landscapes.
We’ve been working on some new colors and had been planning to change the name as part of that introduction. But there’s really no better time than the present to make a change. So, we’re changing the name to Naples Orange. In value, opacity, tint and texture the color relates very closely to Naples Yellow. It also felt right given that so many landscape painters have the color on their palette for warm light situations.
There are a couple of other changes we are going to make at this time as well. Indian Red and Indian Yellow are fabulous pigments whose origins trace back to India. If you know the stories of these pigments (and they’re good ones), then you get it and no worries. Absent the story, however, the color names could feel quite different and, basically, not good. That’s no good for us. No one’s asked us about this, but it always bothers us, and so we’re changing these two colors to India Yellow and India Red to more clearly reflect the stories of these pigments’.
Holbein
Japan-based company Holbein were receptive to our suggestion that some colour names could be changed in order to make the range more inclusive, and are working to implement changes for the future.
Jackson’s
Jackson’s is committed to equality, and so we felt it essential that we look at our product lines to ensure they were in line with our company values. We have renamed our Flesh Tint oil colour Pale Terracotta and are working to add more shades to Jackson’s Handmade Soft Pastel Portrait set so that it caters for all skin colours.
Molotow
‘Due to the discussion about names of colors in respect of skin tones that arose in the general market, also MOLOTOW™ started to have a look at its own color assortment while analyzing the color shade names. Color scales with color terms existing for more than 25 years in the general art market, never were investigated in depth and/ or inspected critically.
As MOLOTOW™ is a dynamic, liberal-minded and international brand with a sustainable brand core and long-established company philosophy, the brand with an urban character wants to distance itself from all kinds of presumed, politically-questionable facts of the case. As a sign of brand positioning, the existing ONE4ALL color shade skin pastel will be changed into powder pastel as soon as possible.
Due to a long chain of corresponding processes and several platforms in prints, at b2b partners and online, a change of a color name is a very complex, extensive and partially long-drawn-out measurement. Therefore, MOLOTOW™ asks consumers to show leniency: a complete conversion of all labels and corresponding digital and non-digital images and medias will take its time’.
Montana
‘We already implemented a “silent” change for those color names and even more in our assortment. The first ones will be
Black 8030 Skin -> Iced Coffee
Gold 4040 Babyskin -> Pale Pink
We didn’t communicate this yet as it may take some time until all colors with the old names are sold out but we are aware and adjustments are in progress.’
Old Holland
‘We will be changing the names of these colours and we will announce these soon. The changes will roll out as new labels and colour charts are printed’.
Roman Szmal
In a bid to provide further information on the history of the colour Flesh Tint, Roman Szmal has added the following information to all tubes of Flesh Tint colour: ‘Shade traditionally used in medieval times for portrait painting of the wealthy, formally known as Flesh Tint’.
Royal Talens
‘Creating art can be a medium for expression and a voice for those who need it now more than ever. 2 years ago we were emboldened and reviewed our product lines to ensure they were in line with our core values, and took the decision to stop, review and amend colour names. Furthermore we looked at further ways to support organizations which engage with communities in need of assistance and exposure, as we have been doing since many years with royaltalensfoundation.org. Our commitment to ‘Empowering Creativity’ is strongly tied to empowering equality and celebrating diversity.
Schmincke
‘Thank you for your note on the name Skin Colour, which we use in some of our assortments. This is a traditional, historical designation in the international artists’ colours sector. We take your concerns about the perception of this designation and also unintentional possible associations very seriously and will change them in our future developments of the assortments concerned. However, we also ask for your understanding that any adjustments (labels, brochures, remaining stocks in the trade) and conversions will take some time. We thank you for your comments’.
Sennelier
‘Artists Oil and Oil Sticks will definitely be amended in 2021 and the rest will follow as a rolling change’.
Shin Han
‘Long term we are looking at ways to make changes across all ranges. We have added a Skin Tones [B] set in the TOUCH Twin range (comprising the following colors YR27 / YR29 / BR107 / BR112 / BR93 / R139 ). Also we’ve recently decided to change the color composition of our TOUCH TWIN 12 MARKER SET [Skin Tones] & TOUCH TWIN 12 BRUSH MARKER SET [Skin Tones]. We will share the details soon’.
Staedtler
‘Here at STAEDTLER we think it is right to question traditional terms for products such as “flesh”. That is why we are already in the process of renaming products from our FIMO and coloured pencil ranges to remove any reference to skin tone and instead, use colour names such as “peach” and “pale pink” in our product ranges in future.’
Tombow
‘A really important point you make and we had already contacted Tombow HQ regarding the ABT single pen called Flesh and we have suggested that they change this to pinkish cream. The only other product we have is our Skin Tone pack from Tombow with contents… Peach (ABT-020), Blush (ABT-772), Baby Pink (ABT-800), Pinkish Cream (ABT-850), Coral (ABT-873), Pale Cherry (ABT 912), Tan (ABT-942), Chocolate (ABT-969), Saddle Brown (ABT-977), Light Sand (ABT-990), Blender Pen (ABT-N00) and Black (ABT-N15)’ .
Winsor and Newton
‘Following the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement, as a company, we have reflected on how we can make a positive change in our industry. While Flesh Tint is a historical colour name, this is not a part of our history that we will be carrying forward.
We have made the decision to change the name to Pale Rose Blush across the different Winsor & Newton ranges and are working to ensure our products have the same colour with the new name to be available late August.
In addition to the Flesh Tint colour range, we are also continuing to review all product and colour names to ensure we remain inclusive at all times.
As a company, we are committed to be a positive force for change, and we are continuing to identify actions we can take to eradicate injustice, racism and inequality from our business and industry as a whole’.
The History of Flesh Tone as a Colour Name
The term Flesh Tone, with reference to portrait painting, is known to have existed since the 17th century, when resources including Roger de Piles’ Dialogue sur le Coloris was written. In a chapter titled De la Peinture à Huile, he offered advice on how best to lay out colours on a palette for portrait painting. At this time the subject of western portraiture was almost exclusively white men and women – wealthy people who had the means to commission the work. The suggested method of laying out the colours on a palette was based on the assumption that the portraits would be of white men and women.
The availability of a pre-mixed Flesh Tone paint in oil paint ranges is a twentieth century development; a blend of the pigments often used by portrait painters throughout art history. Although different brands of Flesh Tone contain different pigments, most of them contain a mix of traditional pigments such as Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Red, Alizarin Crimson and Zinc and/or Titanium White.
105 Comments
This is so thorough and phenomenal! I
actually got chocked up several times,
seeing that all of these international
companies are stepping up. Thank you,
thank you, thank you!!! Great job, Lisa
Takahashi and Jackson’s! And kudos to
those companies who are doing the right
thing!
Thank you!
Thank you for this. 🙂
Thank you for this.
What rubbish – what was called “flesh
tint” never was a useful colour for flesh.
You always have had to mix in oranges,
yellows, a variety of browns, even blue.
Political correctness is getting stupid – I
have four “black” grandchildren who I
have painted many times, and never use
black either.
I plan to write a post about colours you can use to mix almost any skin hue, without the need for pre-mixed tubes of paint, soon!
That would be fantastic! I am not
good at mixing for skin tones, as I
stated in another comment here. What
you propose would be extremely
helpful to beginners such as myself.
Some of these new names, would not
give me a clue.
https://www.jacksonsart.com/blog/2021/02/02/colour-mixing-exploring-the-zorn-palette/
That would be great, Lisa!
https://www.jacksonsart.com/blog/2021/02/02/colour-mixing-exploring-the-zorn-palette/
Great! That would be fantastic thank
you!
https://www.jacksonsart.com/blog/2021/02/02/colour-mixing-exploring-the-zorn-palette/
Yes, absolute pandering rubbish. Why wasn’t the choice made by these companies to celebrate the many beautiful skin tones found the world over. How ? Oh, I don’t know…. celebrating beautiful portraits and sharing the palettes chosen to create them. What a missed opportunity to celebrate color. Bravo, you pandered to those trying to divide us as though “Flesh Tint” was white supremacy in a tube. When we learn to “truly” celebrate diversity things will change. We can rename everything and that won’t change a thing. Seriously, who exactly has been offended by the name on a tube of paint.
Thanks for your thoughts. As you say, there isn’t just one flesh colour so having a tube of colour called Flesh is like having a tube of yellow and calling it Flower colour. It is incorrect and isn’t useful. It isn’t about offending people, it is a symptom of old-fashioned lazy thinking to assume that pink skin is the only colour meant by Flesh colour. As we become more aware we change the way we talk about things. The words we use for things affect how we think about them.
Absolutely NOTHING wrong with
calling it a Flesh color, because
that’s what it is! It IS a flesh color!
No one ever said that is is ALL
flesh colors. It wasn’t meant to be.
It’s a starting point. That’s like
saying one yellow tone is the ONLY
yellow tone, which there are
actually many, from greenish
yellow to orangey yellow. Does
that make it BAD to call the
different tones of yellow just
“Yellow”. NO. Hey, why don’t all
these manufacturers get rid of the
name “White” while they’re at it.
God forbid they use that word if
Flesh or Cacasian Flesh is so bad.
Call it Cloud maybe. Oh, and just
to be fair, get rid of the paint name
“Black” too, so no one out there
might be offended by it. Call it
Night maybe. Oh, and anything
with the word “Brown” in it needs
to be renamed too, so nobody
thinks it favors “brown” races. Call
it Mud or something like that.
Thank you for your suggestions. I hope you will be able to adjust to the changes. The colour will still be available so if you’re able to make a note of the new colour names you should be able to continue painting using the colours you enjoy using.
With all good wishes
The unfortunate reality is that
this will never change and
people will continue to find
something to be unhappy about.
No one can choose their skin
tone and it doesn’t make
someone more or less of a
person by any means but this
political correctness is making
people more hyper sensitive and
actually making things worse.
I’m not sure how “flesh tone”
could offend anyone.
Personally, when I hear flesh
colour I think of meat, not skin,
which is the same colour
regardless of race. I get both
sides of the argument. I think
what is significant is not so much
the changing of colour names, but
hopefully how these companies
address issues of diversity
throughout their dealings. I would
hope that the new names are both
an acknowledgement of past
injustices and a sentinel of
changed attitudes put into action.
Согласна с Вами полностью!!! Давайте
радоваться разнообразию, а не
выдумывать проблемы.
I agree!
Therefore it sounds like it is a good idea to change the name of colour, if ‘Flesh Tint’ is no use for painting skin?
That’s because black people aren’t really
black. They are different shades of brown.
Never black. Put a person of black ancestry
in front of a midnight black screen and
anyone who doubts this will see the
difference VERY clearly.
Hear, hear!! I have 2 mixed race girls and 2 grandchildren. I have to
mix my own colours and black is never one of them
Wow I appreciate everybody’s intent on
this, that makes it harder for people like
me when we are looking for colors to use
for portraits. I would never think to grab
a tube of something called iced coffee to
be used for a portrait. That is just a
single for instance. Perhaps If you were
to make a separate file on your website
as well as everyone else who sells
supplies suggesting specific colors and
supplies that would pertain to skin
colors so that it would be easier to
choose those it would be more likely
that I would purchase them. But
because I’m often nowhere near
choosing the right color on my own it’s
likely I’ll end up just not buying them at
all. Just a suggestion. If you could do
that it would be great and I would
probably purchase more
If the changing of a colour name may put you off buying paint and painting portraits, maybe it’s an indication of how important portrait painting is to you?
As a company we struggle to see how the inconvenience of a paint name change can outweigh the outdated bias intimated by these colour names, largely coined in the twentieth century. We are confident that those requiring paints, whatever their names, will learn to adapt to necessary changes in time.
Never heard such a ridiculous idea in all my
life. Paints have been named since time
began. Get over it everyone.
Hi, paints are still being given names, and paint names are being changed all the time by manufacturers, for various reasons. We have reported on this instance as many are changing the names of certain colours for the same reason. Many thanks.
Well, no. Color and pigment development continue to evolve. And the number of pigments and mixes now available truly dwarfs what was available during the Renaissance, for example. Here’s an interesting article to get you started in learning about artist pigments:
Treasures from the Color Archive
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/09/03/treasures-from-the-color-archive
This article on pigments and pigment naming is also quite great: Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours
By P. Syme
https://www.c82.net/werner/
Great article, thanks.
hi elizabeth. take a moment sometime
and reflect how things feel from another
perspective other than your own. it can
actually bring on maturity!!
I have never used premixed flesh
colours, in fact, I can’t understand why
anyone would because the result would
be very flat. It is more beneficial to mix
your own colours. So it seems that the
paint and coloured pencil manufacturers
are aiming at the total beginner and in
doing so undermine them, making new
artist think that they lack the skill to
produce realistic flesh.
This warms my heart! As a black woman
new to painting it does offend me when I
see ‘flesh tone’ but none reflecting mine.
Now, if only the same advancement
could be made with bras!!
why not make one instead of cancelling the
others?
I didn’t realize you could “cancel” paint
colors now.
Hi,
In all instances to date the colour is not being removed by any paint manufacturers, only renamed. Therefore I disagree that there are colours being ‘cancelled’.
Many thanks
Lisa
I really enjoyed reading this. Thank you to
Jackson’s for publishing the responses.
While there is historical context to “Flesh
Tone”, it definitely does not mean we can’t
move on from these names. We can
acknowledge and honour the past while still
creating our own future.
As usual….completely over the top.
As if the world has not real problems!!
There’s no denying there are bigger problems in the world. However these companies have decided to make the changes that they can, and we are pleased to highlight those changes, as we hope that they may play a small part in contributing to bigger changes.
that’s strange – you don’t think racism is a “real problem”? I disagree. It’s very limiting to name a color “skin tone” or “flesh tone” when it clearly only represents the skin tone of some (white) people. What that communicates is that white skin is seen as the norm. That excludes many other people from having their skin tone represented as well. Artists relate to the world, and making sure we don’t accept and carry on racist ideas is very important.
It would be very useful if the previous name could be included in brackets, at least until people have a chance to get to used to the new names. It’s hard enough when food shopping to buy the right thing when the manufacturer changes the label and will be even more difficult with paint because the link to skin tones through the new names is tenuous or even non-existent.
Thanks for the comment, the codes will stay the same so you should be able to identify the paint from that, if not the name.
Never heard such rubbish in all my life,flesh
tints have been going for years.
Please do not change the names.
Hello – the name changes have been made by the manufacturers listed in the post. We have no control over how our suppliers market their paints. However Jackson’s has also decided to change the name of our Flesh Tint paint for reasons indicated in the post. We hope you will be able to adjust to these changes in time. Many thanks.
What about this: add a notification on
tubes that hold colours used in portrait
painting?
Thank you for your suggestion. To be honest I feel this may lead to further confusion. There are many schools of thought regarding colours to use for portrait painting, but they are all wholly dependant on whose portrait you are painting, in what setting and in what approach. Matisse famously used bright yellow and green in portraits. There are no hard and fast rules in painting.
Is everyone going to climb on the BLM bandwagon? People need to
be aware that BLM is an anarchic political organisation that has
hijacked the original group of well-meaning protesters. BLMS
avowed intentions are to bring down governments and wreck the
world stock market so that a new world order can be created. LOOK
THEM UP before offending artists with your facile self-promotion.
Some paint-makers have decided to change the names of some of their colours in order to make them more inclusive. That is all this article is about.
Llewellyn, you’re offended that paint colors are being renamend, but you think it’s ok to “lock up” activists because you disagree with them? That’s a strange reaction.
Some of these comments are really disheartening and I hope they don’t represent the full community of creatives and artists who use these materials.
Wow! You got some really ‘interesting’ responses Lisa. Sorry to
see that.
Well done to Jackson’s for getting involved in this issue. It might
seem a small thing, but it is really important and big buyers like
Jackson’s can make a big difference in influencing the market.
Would Jackson’s also consider asking their manufacturers to sign
up to a scheme that ensures their pigments are ethically sourced
and don’t contribute to exploitation of child labour and
environmental pollution?
Some manufacturers like Wallace Seymour for instance and
Winsor & Newton in part are already doing this. It would be
amazing to get assurances from other manufacturers as well.
Well done on the great job you do on the Jackson’s blog, really
interesting and well written 🙂
Thank you Ian, you make a really good suggestion here and we will be looking into this further. We supply a huge number of different brands and so seeking assurances from each one may take time, but we agree that this is important and will endeavour to communicate with everyone on this issue.
Many thanks for your support.
Jacksons Art I applaud you for bringing this to not just
our attention but also to all the manufacturers. This is
a good step in the right direction. I must say flesh tone
always looked too pink and it was never a good colour
for portraits. I like the idea of a colour mixing blog post
to help those new to using paints. I do think however
quite a few of the comments on here are ignorant of
what is happening in the world and one must respect
these changes.
Well done to all the manufacturers! About
time too. As for trying to market anything
as “Flesh” colour you are on to a looser
from the start. Human skin tones range
from very very dark to albino, and varies
over different parts of one person too. No
way you could squeeze that into one tube
of paint or even a set. Still need to get the
message over to the underwear
manufacturers and, apparently, vast
numbers of the population, going by some
of the responses above!
Thank you Julia!
This is really great. So called flesh
tinted colors have been useful for many
things other than painting protraits.
Besides people need to learn to mix
portrait colors. That’s was art is all
about. Paint the color of the object. No
two faces are the same color anyway.
Hello, Although your article and the
paint companies responses may be well
intentioned, please be aware the the
definition of Flesh is as follows and has
nothing to do with skin tone
Def:
flesh
/flɛʃ/
the soft substance consisting of muscle
and fat that is found between the skin
and bones of a human or an animal.
Hi, this article is about ‘Flesh tone’ the paint colour, and not flesh per se. Many thanks.
Very happy to hear this, thanks for the
article.
No Golden or Liquitex?
Hello, Golden do not sell a Flesh tone or Skin paint. Liquitex has a ‘Light Portrait Pink’ in their range, which we will ask about.
Many thanks
Skin tones vary round the world. Spaniards are darker than
Iceland-ic blondes. Zulus are paler than the peoples of the Sudan.
The Basutos have paler skins than the Zulus. In China there are
differences in skin tones between the Northerners and those from
Canton and further South. There are huge differences in India
from very dark to quite pale. To call mixtures “Flesh” may be
traditional but one is painting the colour of the skin. Flesh is a
red and usually a dark red. I was once asked by an African
teenager how to mix the colour of “European skin.” I said :”Make
an orange, add white and then tone it with Burnt Sienna.” Just
because a man’s skin is the colour of chocolat does not mean one
should ignore the fact. But I recognize that some people are
sensitive about their own colour.
Everybody’s got “skin” so the term should
not be offensive to anyone. As a beginner,
learning as I go along, I do hope that
manufacturers still use the term, “skin tone”
with their colors, so that I don’t have to
waste a lot of time and money trying to
figure out the right color to use. I am not
very good at mixing to get a proper shade,
so the more assist I get, the better. Some
of these proposed “new names” throw me
for a loop. I would not have a clue going
forward what to choose for any ethnic skin
tone.
everybody indeed has skin- that is
EXACTLY why calling one single tone a
“skin tone” is problematic, see , everyone
has skin, but every single person
actually has a UNIQUE skin tone. so i’m
sorry to say but if you want to accurately
reproduce the tone of flesh as it actually
appears … your e going to have to
actually learn how mix some paints
together ! here’s a tip for all – FAIL FAST
/ FAIL OFTEN!
Thank you, I must say I agree!
Well done Jackson art and all the
manufacturers who have come alive to
the fact that their customers dont just
come from white Anglo American
backgrounds. I’m sorry so many find it
impossible in their hearts to understand
what having to fit into one section of the
world’s population does to the rest of
the world.
Great and helpful names are coming
forth so that it is possible to judge how
to mix instead of a catch all ‘flesh tone’
which means nothing. Certainly nothing
like the colour of my flesh and I’m white.
What about body tone instead of flesh
tone?
Thank you for your suggestion. The assumption that every body is the same colour is still implied, or that there is a ‘norm’ when it comes to body tone. The change in these names is to dismantle these assumptions and offer colours without them.
I never thought that skin color names will
be so troublesome.
I usually had to mix paint to create the
“skin” color paintings. But I remember that
a few years ago when i wanted to
purchase the “skin colour” paint, it was
always named “nude”.
I don’t live in english-speaking country,
and the country is pretty
homogeneous(white people), so any “skin”
looking color is still named as “nude”.
I am appalled that so many artists here in the comments found issue with name changes. “Because tradition!” Many traditions over the centuries have changed because people of current times considered them harmful, and we will keep doing that. Artists have a huge role in dismantling racism and white supremacy because our vision of the world gets portrayed in the media and is left to our descendants. White artists (including myself) have blindspots, and instead of feeling annoyed that standards are changing to be more inclusive, let’s learn!
If someone has to rely on being told by a manufacturer that this or that shade is good for portraits, this only demonstrates your painting skills need more work. Choosing the right color recipe is part of a painter’s job, and you do it based on the individual model and lighting. Not only that, but building your own portrait palette adds to the uniqueness of your expression. There are so many free resources available online on how to mix pigments to get different skin tones. How can anyone say they “don’t know”? It is very easy to find out.
Anyway… I appreciate that so many manufacturers are stepping up. I hope that color pencil, pastel and marker ranges will widen to accommodate many different skin tones.
Thanks for your comments!
thank you for this !! did you find any
companies reluctant to change? or
ignoring the issue altogether?
Hi,
No, everyone we spoke to felt this was an important issue and were thinking of ways to respond to it, if they hadn’t made changes already.
Many thanks
Lisa
That’s heartening.
Many thanks for this comprehensive
roundup of manufacturers’ views on a VERY
important issue.
I’ll be picking this topic up on both the
websites I’m working on at present – and I
think we maybe need to talk…..
Thank you so much Katherine!
Thank you for doing this.
I contacted Joann’s fabric back several
months ago about some of their fabric
color names. When I was searching online
to order some fabric, I came across a
peach colored fabrics called “flesh” color. I
called (no luck) then emailed the company
and got a typical polite customer service
reply and was not really able to make
additional contact. I just went online again
and noticed that nothing has been
changed at their website. I have been
trying to contact the Corporate Office but
haven’t had any luck at this point. I still
have my email communications with them
a screen captures of the fabric colors.
I don’t have a problem with changing the
name to avoid excluding people who are
not white. The obvious and easy solution
is to rename it to reflect the proper
intention, which is White or Caucasian
Flesh Tone. It is obviously no good
anyway for studied portraits, but for other
uses, e.g. cartoon images (or a base to
mix into), it’s useful. Now it can’t be found.
It is a colour created for a purpose, and
the purpose is still valid.
Dear Charles,
We understand your concern, and of course these name changes will bring about some inconvenience in some situations. Although we cannot speak for other paint manufacturers’, it is Jackson’s firm belief that this inconvenience is small by comparison when you think of the many years that products have been produced, referring to skin, leaving many skin colours out, therefore creating a culture of exclusion. If ‘Flesh Tone’ doesn’t even resemble White Caucasian skin it would be inaccurate to describe it as such. All artist paint ranges are presented online and within actual shops with colour charts, which facilitate being able to locate any colours you need.
Many thanks
The world of skin make-up has been
thinking about these issues much
more than the paint world. I’m
surprised no one noticed.
https://skincaregeeks.com/skin-
tone-names/
Hi Gary
Absolutely, I imagine the art materials world is slightly more ‘niche’ than make-up. But we are glad to follow in their footsteps.
Many thanks
Lisa
Thanks for that. For some reason
you link only got to the home
page. I’ll try again for others
benefit:
https://skincaregeeks.com/skin-
tone-names/
This is a good article, but I am kinda
disgusted at the type of negative
comments I’m seeing (although I sorta
expected comments like those).
For me, I completely understand the issue
with “flesh tints”. Not only because of the
racial aspect of it, but because those
colors are incredibly inaccurate. Flesh
tints are not even produced in a range of
skin colors, and even then, the default
“flesh tints” are inaccurate by “Caucasian
skin tone standards”.
Personally, the world can do without flesh
tint paints, and it will benefit people if they
stop wasting extra money on such a color,
and actually spend time learning how to
mix flesh colors!!
Thanks for your comments, definitely food for thought!
Best wishes
These paint manufacturers are being
pressured by a mob and being Monkey See,
Monkey Do. Paints called Flesh have existed
for hundreds of years. Never an issue. I find
Flesh Tone to be the perfect starting point
for many different skin tones. It’s not meant
to use straight out of the tube without
mixing with other colors. For me, it makes
mixing skin color a lot faster. And now, all of
a sudden, like someone waved a magic
wand, the color name “Flesh Tone” and
names similar to it are RACIST? That’s about
the dumbest, most absolutely ridiculous
thing I ever heard. All these weak, pandering
companies are blindly allowing themselves
to be controlled by a dangerous, communist
organization: ANTIFA. SHAME on you! No
matter what dumb names you people put on
a flesh tone tube of paint, I will STILL be
calling it WHAT IT IS: FLESH TONE.
Dear Sharra,
I hope you are able to accept and welcome the changes in time.
Best wishes.
I’m wondering, what does ANTIFA and
Communism have to do with this flesh
tone debate?
But anyway, I would suggest just mixing
skin tones without wasting money on a
“flesh tint” color. So what if flesh tints
have been used for a long time. As time
goes by, things change too, many times for
the better. Back then, painters used
fugitive mercuric pigments that were toxic.
Just because “tradition” tells you that it’s
okay to use mercuric pigments, doesn’t
mean that it’s perfectly fine. Tradition
doesn’t dictate everything.
Things change, and you always have
another option available to you. If you
don’t like the change, then use another
option. No need to get worked up over a
tube of paint (that you could replicate
yourself).
Slavery, sexism and racism have existed for
millennia. Are you suggesting that we
should just accept them in the name of
tradition?
It’s total insanity with this dark color. This is the natural understanding that there is a light skin tone, and there is a tanned skin or a darker skin tone. And what do the names of the colors have to do with it????? You are deliberately introducing dirty politics into painting. Especially, still outraged by the idea of renaming the Indian yellow and red. I do not live in the United States, and from the outside, such an emphasis on the topic of the superiority of others over white people seem to be pure racism. If this goes on, then you will think of renaming the Venetian red, the English red to the faceless and empty red.
Hi,
I appreciate your view, thank you. My understanding is that these art supply companies are aiming to level the playing field, rather than exercise superiority of one colour over another.
This post is a report to notify the steps taken by many art supply manufacturers, so I’m not sure who you are referring to when you say ‘you are deliberately introducing dirty politics into painting.’ We feel these are positive steps in making colour names more helpful and less misleading, while also removing unnecesssary, outdated bias.
Many thanks
Lisa
Just read this article and thread.
Surprising comments. Clear and patient
replies. Thank you for this and great to
see things shifting. “Flesh” has always
bothered me as a description and I am
quite old! Good response from the paint
makers. At last…..
Thank you Fionnuala!
Hello,
This is BRILLIANT! Thank you so much and
congratulations!!! I am so glad that you
made some of the brands accountable for
their choices and encouraged change. On a
personal note I have been in touch with
Winsor and Newton in early 2018 about their
skin tone gouache name in particular and
their reply was so dismissive and
patronising. I am glad that under more
pressure they and other brands are making
change.
Thank you for your comment, and yes let’s hope for even more positive change for the future.
Best wishes
Lisa
I really don’t rely on the name on the label so
I don’t care what the call it. I read the
pigment names which many companies are
kind enough to include on their labels. Of
course I don’t know the proportions of each
o the hues will differ somewhat. However, I
can see if there is a paint that is using the
one pigment and calling a different name. I
teach my students that too, so they are
informed from the beginning.
Thanks Claire!
I’ve just discovered this in a search
resulting from a conversation between
artists. Very useful and heartening piece,
thank you for being so thorough. I am
shocked at the number of angry small
minds huffing in the comments though –
among artists! As is clear from other
comments, the use of ‘flesh’ as a term for
colour is lazy and inaccurate anyway – I
couldn’t re-create my own, white, skin tone
from those products alone (your ‘flower
colour’ analogy was good). Fancy calling a
bad habit like these colour names
‘tradition’! I believe it’s not solely
‘pressure’ causing many companies to
make such changes, but in part a more
responsible approach that acknowledges
that language matters, and that systemic
racism is what you have when people
loudly profess not to be racist but are
overly comfortable with the continuation
of language that implies a dominance,
default or supremacy of ‘white’ skin tones.
It’s not political correctness or tokenism
to make these changes, it’s respect, self-
awareness and emotional intelligence.
Hi Anna,
Thank you so much for your very thoughtful and articulate response. I agree wholeheartedly.
Best wishes
Lisa
What a load of baloney if we call people with brown skin
black and people with pink skin white why should you get
hung up on terms that have discibed colours for years as
offencive. I find it offencive to be called white when my skin
tone does not reflect it.
Thank you for expressing your view.
The world is full of many people and a harmonious environment is best created by promoting inclusivity where possible. On occasion this can be at the cost of tradition, especially when the tradition is not helpful or necessary.
I hope that the inconvenience of these colour change names does not cause too much distress, and you are able to adapt in time.
Many thanks.
Please stop bringing politics into art. Art
is supposed to be an escape from the
hard and suffering of life, instead you go
into art these days only to be preached
at. This woke stuff is toxic, it is dividing
people, it’s full of hate. If you’re offended
by a tube of paint, the problem is not
racism, it’s you. Just because you’re
offended doesn’t mean you’re right.
Hi Bobbie.
I’m not sure who your message is directed to, but I’m afraid I see little logic in it. I’m not sure how promoting inclusivity could ever be construed as being ‘full of hate’. As for bringing politics into art, I’m afraid it’s been there for several centuries, if not more!
Many thanks
Lisa
You fail to see the logic in it? So, you’re
telling me you’re pushing ‘inclusivity’
(Diversity, Inclusivity, Equity? Identity
politics?) without even knowing the full
scope of it, the repercussions to the fabric
of society itself, that goes beyond what
you call “positive change”, because that
so-called positive change is only on the
surface. Investigate beyond that. Go
further. Widen your world view on your
activism, please.
I wasn’t clear on the “bringing politics into
art” bit, I apologise. I should’ve been
clearer. Art can be political, it has been for
a long while, yes, and we are all aware of
post-modernism – the killer of joys. But
political arts come from the artists, not
from the art suppliers. It’s up to the artists
how to use their supplies, the art
suppliers’ task is to provide the necessary
materials for the artists to spread their
message – political or not, or to “bring
positive change” or not.
When an artist injects political message in
their art, it’s up to the world whether to
take on the message or not, it is not
rammed down their throats. What you’re
doing is policing others into behaving the
way you want them to (“softly” asking if
they have any plans to change their colour
names), and also pushing your political
message on to artists, whether they like it
or not. You don’t like “flesh tint”, I don’t
mind it (and I’m not Caucasian, I’m an
immigrant in the UK), but I have to accept
and live with your “preference”?
We humans need our apolitical space, it’s
in our nature. That’s why the more political
stuff being injected into everything we do,
the more miserable we are (do you know
studies find 58% of liberals/those who
adopt identity politics and inject it into
every single aspect of life, are diagnosed
with mental health problems?) So please,
keep your political activism away from our
art supplies. Keep selling good art
supplies, that’s your channel if you want
to be a catalyst for change.
Dear Bobbie,
Thank you for your thoughts. I’m sure that you understand that paint names have always been decided by the paint manufacturers, and if you see this as a problematic example of living with someone else’s preferences, may I suggest you make your own paints? There is a great post here on how to make your own watercolours which will allow you to steer clear of any paint names that you dislike. You can even give your own handmade paints any names you like. As the article states, many art suppliers much like Jackson’s had already made changes to their paint names before we asked them for their thoughts. They clearly feel differently to you. I’m sorry the change of a name to some paints displeases you, but I hope you can adjust to the change in time.
Best wishes
Lisa
Oh I’m not worried about my feelings
over paint, I can handle that. I’m
more worried about those 58% I
mentioned to you – I’m not making
this up, look around (I have friends in
real life who are struggling with
mental health due to being
bombarded by politics and activism
through social media, maybe you do
too) and look it up, the data was
reported a week or two ago. We are
fast approaching a huge mental
health crises in our society. Now,
imagine being them, they’re told by
their doctors to try and escape from
politics and activism every now and
then to recharge, try going offline,
not watching the news, maybe
making art – only to find they’re
getting more political messages
through their art supplies. Making art
is no longer the therapy people can
do. What you and those companies
are doing is actually taking away the
balm that could soothe their souls.
I get it, it’s not easy. I wouldn’t want
to be in your shoes. But that is life,
it’s complex and sometimes you have
to choose the lesser of two evils.
Would you choose saving the
feelings of those who are offended
by the name of paint, or would you
choose to be the sanctuary for those
suffering already? I’m not an expert
in this, I’m only an artist – an
observer of life, maybe there’s a third,
less problematic option? I sure hope
so for all of our sake.
I just hope that this message opens
people’s eyes to the second hand
impact, third had, fourth, and so on.
It’s a domino effect. We need to be
cautious and careful. Choosing the
lesser of two evils is never easy, but
morality is like art, it means drawing
a line somewhere.
Best wishes to you.
Thanks for your comment. I’m afraid I won’t be able to respond to any further comments, you have made your point that you dislike this post and the fact some paint names have changed their names, which we appreciate.
Many thanks.