Understanding colour

I started this blog in mid-January and although I have found the introduction to the history of colour theories very interesting and also another starting point when observing other artist's work, I became engrossed in background reading not wishing to complete the blog until I had finished my research! This has taken the form of desk top reading/reviews of three main reference books, i.e. 

1. Anderson Feisner, E (2006) Colour - 2nd Edition, Laurence King Publications.
2. Itten, J (1973 ed) The Art of Colour, John Wiley & Sons.
3. Jennings, S (2003) Artist's Colour Manual, HarperCollins Publishers. 

plus "Google" web searches supported by further visits to Tates Britain and Modern as well as the Hockney exhibition at the RA. I have discovered there is much to learn about colour theory and its application. I can only hope to grasp the basic principles at this stage of my development and aim to increase my awareness over time.

I was familiar with the general principles of light from prior studies in physics and architectural design. I was also aware of the differences between mixing primary light colours and pigment colours. I now realise I have only scratched the surface in respect of colour theory and its application.

I feel I have begun to increase my awareness of different transparencies and colour bias of the manufactured pigments through experimenting with mixing and overlaying different hues. What has also been enlightening has been gaining a greater understanding about the impact of optical illusion and optical mixing  when mixing or positioning different hues next to each other. I recognise that although as individuals we see things differently, particularly for those who have difficulty distinguishing specific colours e.g. red/green "blindness, certain visual rules hold true irrespective of cultural backgrounds, age or gender.

As recommended, I researched Michel Eugene Chevreul (1786-1889) discovering that he was a chemist/dye master who investigated colour and its reactions with his findings being published in The Principles of of Harmony and Contrast of Colours, a reference document familiar to artists of the period. "He verified that all hues could be obtained from mixtures of the primaries red, yellow, and blue, but his greatest contribution was his recording of the reactions that colours have when placed side by side or in relationship to each other." (Feisner 2006). Chevreul's work led to the colour theory laws of simultaneous contrast, successive contrast and optical mixing. His research also led him to proposed colour harmonies for the production of colour schemes.

"Simultaneous contrast results from the fact that for any given colour the eye simultaneously requires the complementary colour and generates it spontaneously if it is not already present.....The simultaneously generated complementary occurs as a sensation in the eye of the beholder and is not objectively present." (Itten 1973).

"Successive contrast is the afterimage reaction that colours impart when the eye views them one after the other." (Feisner 2006).

"Optical mixing is the result of two or more colours mixing visually to..." appear to be "..another colour."   (Feisner 2006). The pointillist technique of George Seurat (1859-1891) used this optical mixing reaction to great effect.

It is understood that Chevreul's work influenced many artists of the period notably Delacroix (1798-1863), the Impressionists, Seurat (1859-1891) and other Neo-Impressionists as well as the American artist Winslow Homer (1836-1910).

From my own experiments:

• When creating a grey scales, I have observed the optical illusion of mid-grey juxtaposed to white appearing darker than when juxtaposed to black.
• When mixing pigments by adding white to the darker hues helps to maintain a consistent tonal value.
• A greyish hue is created between orange and green blue i.e. a broken/tertiary colour.

Creating my own colour wheel using mixes of my own pigments has helped me start to improve my ability to associate specific combinations of pigments with hues of varying tone. I have observed and experimented with the addition of titanium white to achieve more equal tones - more practice needed!

This process is helping me learn to mix hues with a pallet knife prior to applying rather than mixing with a brush wet in wet on paper as I have with water colours/washes for several years. I am also experimenting with different means of keeping the acrylics moist whist mixing and have found that a sealed Tupperware type plastic box with moist wick under grease proof paper seems to work.

I am now looking more closely at the work of other artists to see how they have applied these theories in practice. At the current David Hockney exhibition at the RA, I was able to explore how he has used the juxtaposition of hues to get effect in his landscapes of Yorkshire.