Like line, color is a basic element of design. Scientists have been studying color for hundreds of years, and we still don't completely understand it! The definition of color is, "a property of light in which wavelengths are absorbed or reflected by matter."
....Okay, I admit, that sounds pretty complicated! Later on in the semester we will get the paint out to learn a LOT more about color. For now, lets take a look at how color is used in designs to communicate ...
(What if you were trying to put together an attractive design for a class, one that would get people's attention right away? Knowing how to make a design that "pops" is a skill that will come in handy if your future career is in business or art!)
If you wanted to create a cheerful picture, which colors would work? If you use bright, warm, saturated colors, they would definitely help to communicate joy! You wouldn't want to use dark and gloomy colors such as gray, navy blue, dark purple, or black!
What about creating a scary painting? What colors do we connect with power, or joy, or anger, or peace? Read on to find out!
Check out these two landscape paintings...one is several hundred years old and one is from the early 20th century. What kind of feeling, or mood, are the artists trying to communicate? Do you think they chose specific colors and lines to help tell the story?
Winter Landscape has dark, gloomy grays throughout the piece, and you can see many more horizontal and vertical lines created by the tree, mast of the boat, and the lines of the water and land. Horizontal and vertical lines are not very energetic! The Yellow Cow, on the other hand, is FULL of energetic curving and diagonal lines! Also, the colors are dynamic, warm, bright, and happy. That yellow cow is dancing for joy! These painters are most definitely choosing specific colors to help them communicate...
Here is another famous painting, Guernica, by Pablo Picasso. He chose to use only grays, white, and black. He created his design after he heard the devastating news that war had broken out in his native country of Spain. Historians believe the colors were chosen because the newspaper article he read was black and white... what do you think?
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| Pablo Picasso, Guernica, 1937, picture credit, khanacademy.org |
Just for fun, here is an interesting article, Superhero Color Theory, by Brian MacLachlan and Aaron Hansen at comicsalliance.com:
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| photo from comics alliance.com |
Also, here is a neat website featuring animations for each color personality:
Another terrific website about color is colormatters.com, where you can find answers to just about any question you have about color:
The leading authority on color in advertising, the Pantone corporation, has spent a lot of time and money trying to figure out HOW people respond to certain colors so they can design better advertisements. Knowing these tricks of the trade can help us as artists, too! Below is a chart which shows common emotional associations with colors:
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| picture credit: pinterest.com |
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| photo credit; pinterest.com |
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| picture credit: pinterest.com |
