19th-century French painting · art-to-room palette

Café Singer Color Palette & Paint Colors

Six colors measured from Café Singer by Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas, with their share of the canvas, light reflectance, a room scheme and how the wall color shifts in north, south and evening light.

Quick answer

Put Deep Yellow on most walls, use Soft Yellow for the bed, sofa or curtains, and keep Deep Umber to one bold piece. A warm mid-brown suits floors, wood and frames, and Deep Red works best in a single textile.

Artist: Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas
Date: 1879
Movement: 19th-century French painting
Collection: The Art Institute of Chicago
Image license: Public domain (CC0)
Wall color LRV: 62

Café Singer by Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas — Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas, *Café Singer*, 1879. The Art Institute of Chicago, open access. The bar shows each color's measured share of the canvas.

The 6 colors in this painting

Measured from the image and ordered by how much of the canvas they cover. LRV is how much light a color reflects, from 0 for black to 100 for white.

Ink Grey

#373838 · 55.7% · LRV 4

Deep Umber

#73564E · 21.8% · LRV 11

Light Yellow

#B6A57D · 14.2% · LRV 38

Deep Yellow

#EFC98D · 3.8% · LRV 62

Soft Yellow

#D9AE83 · 3.6% · LRV 47

Deep Red

#A3534A · 0.9% · LRV 15

Where each color lives in the painting

Left, every pixel of the canvas snapped to its nearest palette color. Right, the detail where each color is strongest.

Café Singer reduced to its palette colors — The same scene in 6 flat colors.

Detail of the painting where Ink Grey is strongest — Ink Grey

Detail of the painting where Deep Umber is strongest — Deep Umber

Detail of the painting where Light Yellow is strongest — Light Yellow

Detail of the painting where Deep Yellow is strongest — Deep Yellow

Detail of the painting where Soft Yellow is strongest — Soft Yellow

Detail of the painting where Deep Red is strongest — Deep Red

Closest paint colors

The nearest color from each brand. “Near-identical” and “Very close” are hard to tell apart on a wall; with “Similar”, compare a sample with the painting. Brands with nothing close are left out.

Painting color	Closest paints	LRV	Use it for
Ink Grey `#373838`	Sherwin-Williams SW 6994 Greenblack Very close Behr QE-64 Madison Avenue Very close Farrow & Ball No. 256 Pitch Black Very close Valspar 4011-2 Dark Kettle Black Close	4	Small accents, art, accessories
Deep Umber `#73564E`	Behr PPU2-20 Oxblood Very close Valspar 1006-9A Smoked Almond Very close Sherwin-Williams SW 6033 Bateau Brown Close Farrow & Ball No. 244 London Clay Similar	11	One bold piece
Light Yellow `#B6A57D`	Sherwin-Williams SW 7733 Bamboo Shoot Very close Behr PPU8-08 Kaffir Lime Very close Valspar 3005-9C Caraway Seed Close Farrow & Ball No. 75 Ball Green Similar	38	Small accents, art, accessories
Deep Yellow `#EFC98D`	Behr HDC-CL-16 Beacon Yellow Very close Sherwin-Williams SW 6667 Afterglow Very close Valspar 3003-4A Dreamy Caramel Very close Farrow & Ball No. 218 Yellow Ground Close	62	Main walls
Soft Yellow `#D9AE83`	Behr BXC-67 Santa Fe Tan Near-identical Sherwin-Williams SW 7679 Golden Gate Near-identical Valspar 3002-5C Frankincense Very close Farrow & Ball No. 51 Sudbury Yellow Similar	47	Bed, sofa, curtains
Deep Red `#A3534A`	Valspar 2001-5A Toasted Cranberry Near-identical Sherwin-Williams SW 6327 Bold Brick Very close Behr 220D-7 Mojave Sunset Very close Farrow & Ball No. 42 Picture Gallery Red Close	15	One small textile

Paint names belong to their brands. Matches are measured from screen colors and are approximate; Light & Pigment is not affiliated with any paint brand.

How deep yellow looks in your light

The wall color shifted for the light it will live in. Check the version closest to your room before buying a sample.

North-facing room#D2BD9B

Cool, even daylight pulls colors toward grey. Warm wall tones keep a north-facing room from feeling cold.

South-facing room#F3CF98

Strong warm sun pushes light colors toward cream by midday. If it reads too yellow, step down to a cooler version.

Evening, warm lamps (2700K)#C9A56E

Under warm 2700K bulbs colors turn honey-toned and dark colors read almost black. Matte finishes keep the look soft.

Try the palette in a room

Pick which painting color goes on the walls, the big furniture and the bold piece. Floors, shadows and light follow your choices.

Walls

Bed, sofa, island

Bold piece

Wood takes a warm mid-brown and the rug border takes Deep Red in every combination.

Mood board

Details from the painting next to the colors and materials that carry them into a room.

Deep Yellow

Soft Yellow

Deep Umber

Linen

Oiled oak

Lime plaster

Aged brass

Save this palette

A card with the painting, all 6 colors and a room scheme. Pin it, or take it to the paint store.

Save to Pinterest Download card

Guides that use colors from this painting

Contemporary Living Room Color Schemes Modern style

Dark Grey Paint Colors for Bedroom Dark grey · Bedroom

More palettes like this

The Garden of the Tuileries on a Winter Afternoon Camille Pissarro, 1899

Portrait of a Man French Painter

Inter artes et naturam (Between Art and Nature) Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, ca. 1890–95

FAQ

What colors are in Café Singer?

Measured from the image, the painting's six main colors are Ink Grey (#373838, 55.7% of the canvas), Deep Umber (#73564E, 21.8% of the canvas), Light Yellow (#B6A57D, 14.2% of the canvas), Deep Yellow (#EFC98D, 3.8% of the canvas), Soft Yellow (#D9AE83, 3.6% of the canvas), Deep Red (#A3534A, 0.9% of the canvas).

Does this palette work in a small room?

Yes. The wall color reflects about 62% of the light that hits it (LRV 62), so it keeps a small room bright. Keep the darkest colors to one piece of furniture or a textile.

Can I use this image on my own mood board?

The Art Institute of Chicago releases this image as public domain (cc0), so it can be reused freely.

Image: The Art Institute of Chicago, Public domain (CC0). Palette, posterized image, details and room views generated by Light & Pigment from that image. Colors look different on screen than on a wall, so always test a sample.