A search for circus images invariably brings up pictures in the highly saturated color palette associated with the trade. My own personal feelings for the circus are mixed. I admire the skill and craft, but am a bit overwhelmed by the garish colors and overall excess. My best circus experiences involved smaller ones that focused on skill more than glare. In any case one never expects a circus to be too subdued, and I'm sure I would be dissapointed if clowns wore ochre or beige. 

I tried my hand at some circus images that I intentialnally kept subdued in a limited palette. I wanted to caputre the color vibe of children's books from my youth, which were often two or three color productions. I also wanted a complimentary/teriary thing to happen. Hence the predominance of the coral and teal leaning colors, rather than straight red and green. The elephant and monkey then pop out from this color scheme with their blue-grey and tan-brown hues. To my eye it gives a nod to a 1940's to 50's look, but with a more contemporary quirk. At least that was my goal. 

These were done for fun. Most of my work leans toward a brighter, higher keyed color scheme, but lately I had a couple of assignments that required a more subdued tone, and I liked the change of pace. I hope you enjoy them as well.