The History of Payne’s Gray

 

The History of Payne’s Gray

I am mulling Payne’s Gray for a background and also for the edging of some plain speech bubbles that are going to be white in the center. Hand-mulling your own paint takes a lot of patience, but it allows you to control the exact texture and binder ratio for specific projects. For these speech bubbles, I needed an outline color that has a strong presence but isn't as harsh or flattening as a straight carbon black. I hope you enjoy this video and tell me how you use Payne’s Gray in your projects in the comments below.

I finished mulling one of my recipes for Payne’s Gray. It came out like a dark Navy Blue, and I thought I failed until I saw a video by Paul Clark on YouTube. When you are working on a glass slab, raw pigment mixtures can look completely different in bulk than they do when spread out in a fine layer on paper. Here is the link on YouTube so you can see it for yourself: How to Paint a Fisherman in Watercolour. In that video I saw that I didn't fail because he showed side by side how each company's Payne's Gray looks different. It was a huge relief to see his side-by-side demonstration because it proves that Payne's Gray isn't a single pure pigment—it’s a convenience blend that shifts from stormy blue to charcoal depending on the brand.

Payne's Gray: Detailed Research Summary

1. Who Was William Payne?

Payne's Gray was created in the late 18th century by the British watercolorist and tutor William Payne (born 1760). He was a pioneer who moved watercolor away from rigid, mapped lines into a softer, more atmospheric style. Like a historic predecessor to modern step-by-step painting instructors, he popularized quick, effective textures, such as using a split wet brush for foliage or the side of a dry brush for rocks. While serious critics of his era sometimes dismissed his techniques as "too easy," his methods opened up the joy of watercolor to everyday students.

2. The Original Recipe vs. Modern Blends

William Payne originally developed the color as a less intense alternative to stark black for his students. Pure black can create "dead spots" in a painting, whereas a mixed neutral keeps the shadows vibrant.

• The Historic Recipe: A mix of Prussian Blue (or Indigo), Yellow Ochre, and Crimson Lake.

• The Modern Recipes: Today, because it is a "convenience blend," manufacturers use entirely different formulas. Most combine a blue (like Ultramarine, Phthalo, or Indigo) with a carbon-based black (like Lamp Black or Ivory Black). Some lines even mix Ultramarine with Burnt Sienna or add a touch of red/violet to balance the temperature and mimic the original tone.

3. Why Every Watercolor Company's Payne's Gray is Different

Because there is no single, standard "Payne's Gray pigment," every paint manufacturing company creates its own custom formulation. This means buying a tube from one brand will give you a completely different visual result than a tube from another.

• Winsor & Newton: Leans toward a traditional, very clean, ink-like blue-gray. It uses Phthalo Blue and a touch of violet to keep the undertone crisp and non-granulating.

• Daniel Smith: Leans toward a dark, earthy storm blue. They include Yellow Ochre in their mixture, which gives it a moody, granular character that replicates the original historic recipe's warmth.

• Schmincke Horadam: Known for using a granulating black base, resulting in a deep indigo-shadow look where the pigments visibly separate on textured paper.

• Maimeri Blu: Uses a highly transparent dual-pigment blend of Ultramarine and Lamp Black. When diluted, the bright blue easily breaks away from the black at the edges of the wash.

• Holbein: Formulas vary, but they often lean far more neutral and desaturated, acting almost like a soft charcoal or a cool black rather than a bright blue-gray.

4. Visual Characteristics, Mixing, & Permanence

In heavy masstone applications, Payne's Gray looks nearly black, but it reveals beautiful blue or lilac undertones when diluted into a soft wash. Historically, it was used extensively to create atmospheric perspective, giving objects in the middle distance a sense of depth, fog, and distance.

When mixing on your palette, keep in mind that because it already contains two or three pigments, adding further colors can quickly lead to earthy, muted "muddy" tones. However, this is actually an asset when you need to paint deep, leafy foliage, shadow cast across a landscape, or moody, wet-on-wet stormy skies.

If you want Serenity of the Mind's Payne Gray you can get it at store.serenityofthemind

Resources

• Video Reference: Clark, Paul. "How to Paint a Fisherman in Watercolour." YouTube. Watch here.

• Historical Article: Hatch, Evie. "The Unexpected History of Payne’s Grey." Jackson's Art Blog. (Updated March 31, 2026).

• Biographical Overview: "Meet William Payne: The Painter Behind Payne’s Grey Pigment." WatercolorPainting.com.

• Encyclopedia Reference: Wikipedia contributors. "Payne's grey." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

• meta description: Why does Payne’s Gray vary so much between brands? Discover the history of William Payne's formula and how to successfully hand-mull your own custom recipes.

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