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Color Theory: Reference Book For The Serious Art Student: "An Introduction To Art Techniques"

Color theory describes the properties and physical effects of color. It explains the color wheel, primary and secondary colors, warm and cool colors, complementary colors, and monochromatic, analogous, and contrasting color schemes. The document also defines key color theory terms like hue, value, intensity, shade, tint, and tone.

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819 views23 pages

Color Theory: Reference Book For The Serious Art Student: "An Introduction To Art Techniques"

Color theory describes the properties and physical effects of color. It explains the color wheel, primary and secondary colors, warm and cool colors, complementary colors, and monochromatic, analogous, and contrasting color schemes. The document also defines key color theory terms like hue, value, intensity, shade, tint, and tone.

Uploaded by

pacifistlight
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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COLOR

THEORY

Reference Book for the Serious Art Student: “An Introduction to Art Techniques”,
by Ray Smith, Michael Wright, and James Horton; DK Publishing;1995

Drawing I – Course 0104340 Instructor: Dr. Brown


Objectives
j
Students will review and discuss:

•Color Theory
•Color Intensity
•Luminance / Value
•Tint and Shade
•Color Wheel
•Primary Colors
•Secondary Colors
•Tertiary Colors
•Warm and Cool Colors
•Discuss the visual impact of Warm and Cool colors
•Complimentary / Contrasting colors
•Analogous colors
•Monochromatic Colors
COLOR THEORY
C l Th
Color Theory
• In the visual arts,, color theory y is a bodyy of
practical guidance to color mixing and the
visual impacts of specific color
combinations.
combinations
• Specifically, color is light, and light is
composed of many colors—those we see are
the colors of the visual spectrum: red, orange,
yellow, green, blue, and violet. Objects absorb
certain wavelengths and reflect others back to
the viewer. We perceive these wavelengths as
color.
I t it saturation
Intensity, t ti d value
and l are inter-related
i t l t d tterms
and have to do with the description of a color.

Usually, colors with the same hue are distinguished


Usually
with adjectives referring to their lightness or darkness
in value, such as with "light blue", "pastel blue", "vivid
blue .
blue”.

Example of MONOCHROMATIC COLOR scheme. A color scheme


made up of shades, values, and tones of one color.
Intensity:
y The brightness
g or dullness of a
hue. One may lower the intensity by adding
white or black.

Value: A measure of the amount of light


reflected from a hue. Those hues with a high
content
t t off white
hit have
h a higher
hi h lluminance
i or
value.
Shade and tint are terms that refer to a
variation of a hue.

Shade: A hue produced by the addition of black.

Tint: A hue produced by the addition of white


white.
COLOR WHEEL
The color wheel or color circle is the basic tool for combining
colors. It is the basis of color harmony. The wheel
encompasses various aspects of color theory, which assists
artists to make strategic color decisions.
Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Colors
The primary colors are red,
yellow
ll and
d bl
blue.

The three secondary colors


(green orange and purple) are
(green,
created by mixing two primary
colors.
Red + Yellow = Orange
Yellow + Blue = Green
Red + Blue = Purple

Another six tertiary colors are


created by mixing primary and
secondary colors.
W
Warm d Cool
and C l
Colors
The color wheel can be
divided into warm and cool
colors.

Warm colors are vivid and


energetic, and tend to
advance in space.

Cool colors give an


impression of calm, and
create a soothing
g impression.
p

White, black and gray are


considered to be neutral.
COOL COLORS
Warm Colors
l is
If a color i made
d
lighter by adding
white the result is
white,
called a tint.

If black is added, the


darker version is
called a shade.

And if gray is added


added,
the result is a different
tone.
tone
Tint, Shade, and Tone
C l t
Complementary C t ti C
or Contrasting l
Colors

Colors that are opposite


pp each other on the color
wheel are considered to be complementary colors
(example: red and green). Also opposite color
groups like warm and cool colors are considered
as complimentary or contrasting colors.
Complimentary Colors
Analogous colors are a series of three colors/shades that appear side-by-side on the color wheel, such as red, red-orange and orange, for example

C
Analogous Colors
Analogous colors are a series of
pp
three colors/shades that appear
side-by-side on the color wheel,
such as blue, green and yellow-
green for example.
green, example

The colors in this color group


always have one color in common
common.

They usually match well and create


serene and
d comfortable
f t bl d designs.
i
Analogous Colors
COLOR THEORY

VOCABULARY REVIEW
COLOR This is the basis of color harmony.
y The wheel encompasses
p
WHEEL various aspects of color theory, which assists artists to make
strategic color decisions.

PRIMARY Red, yellow and blue make up this color group. These
COLORS colors are used in combination to create all other colors.

Green, orange and purple make up this color group.


Secondary
Th
These colors
l and
d th
the primary
i colors
l make
k up th
the color
l
Colors
wheel.
TERTIARY These are the colors that lie between the primary and
COLORS secondary colors
colors. They are made by mixing a primary color
and a secondary color. These include yellow-green, blue-
green, red-violet and others.

ANALOGOUS These colors are a series of three colors /shades that appear side-
COLORS by-side
by side on the color wheel, such as red, red-orange
red orange and orange, for
example. The colors in this group always have one color in
common.
COMPLIMENTARY Colors that are directly across from each other on the color
or CONTRASTING wheel -for example, blue and yellow, red and green.
COLORS

WARM These colors occupy roughly the right side of the color
COLORS wheel, from red to yellow-green. They appear to be
representing “hot temperatures”.

These colors are those on the left side of the Color Wheel,
COOL from purple to green. These colors appear to be
COLORS
representing “cool
“ temperatures”.
NUETRAL
COLORS white black
white, black, gray and brown
brown.

MONOCHROMATIC a color scheme made up of shades,


COLORS
values, and tones of one color.

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