Summary
Highlights
A lot of representational art tries to realistically portray the world, but Color Field painters of the 1950s and '60s reinforced the idea that a painted canvas is a flat, two-dimensional space. They created large paintings with often one or two colors, not representing the outside world but emphasizing the painting itself and the beauty of color as a subject.
Color is one of the seven elements of art, alongside line, shape, form, texture, value, and space. We see color when light reflects off an object, with different materials absorbing and reflecting light differently, determining the color we perceive.
Red, yellow, and blue are primary colors, as they cannot be made by mixing other colors, but can be mixed to produce countless other hues. Green, orange, and violet are secondary colors, created by mixing two primary colors in equal amounts. Mixing a primary with a secondary color results in a tertiary color, such as red-orange or blue-green.
Individual colors can be altered by changing their value through tinting, shading, and toning. A tint is made by adding white to a color (e.g., red becomes pink). A shade is created by adding black to a color. Adding both black and white creates a tone. A monochromatic color scheme uses only the tints, shades, and tones of a single color.
Colors are often categorized by temperature. Reds, oranges, and yellows are warm colors, associated with warmth and sunny days. Blues, violets, and greens are cool colors, often bringing to mind overcast or rainy days. The combination of warm and cool colors can significantly impact the mood or feeling of a painting. Colors also evoke various associations, feelings, memories, and thoughts, which can influence how we interpret and create art.