Name: _________________________________________________ Mr. Vedder
Color Theory
Color - Produced by light of various wavelengths, and when light
strikes an object and reflects back to the eyes.
An element of art with three properties:
(1) Hue - the color name, ex. red, yellow, blue.
(2) Intensity - the purity and strength of a color, ex. bright red or dull
red.
(3) Value - the lightness or darkness of a color.
When the spectrum is organized as a color wheel, the colors are
divided into groups called primary, secondary and intermediate (or
tertiary) colors, analogous, complementary, and warm and cool
colors.
Primary colors - The colors yellow, red, and blue from which
it is possible to mix all the other colors of the spectrum. These colors
cannot be mixed to create the pure color.
Secondary colors - The colors orange, green and violet,
obtained by mixing equal amounts of two primary colors.
Complementary colors - Colors that are directly opposite
each other on the color wheel, such as red and green, blue and
orange, and violet and yellow. When complements are mixed
together they form the neutral colors of brown or gray.
Intermediate colors - Also known as tertiary color, they are
produced by mixing unequal amounts of two primary colors. For
example, adding more red to the combination of red and yellow will
produce the intermediate color of red-orange. Intermediate colors are
located between the primary and secondary colors on a color wheel.
Other intermediate colors are orange-yellow, yellow-green, greenblue, blue-violet, and violet-red.
Analogous colors - Any two or more colors that are next to
each other on the color wheel and are closely related. Analogous
colors are sometimes referred to as adjacent colors
Warm colors - Colors are often described as having
temperature as warm reds, oranges, and yellows. Warm colors are
often associated with fire and sun. They appear on one side of the
color wheel opposite the cool colors. Psychologically, warm colors
are said to be stimulating and passionate. Optically, warm colors
generally appear to advance, coming toward the viewer.
Cool colors - Colors are often described as having temperature
as cool blues, greens and blues. Cool colors are often associated
with water, sky, spring, and foliage, and suggest cool temperatures.
They appear on one side of the color wheel opposite the warm colors.
Psychologically, cool colors are said to be calming, unemphatic, and
depressive; and optically, they generally appear to recede.
Tint – To make a color lighter by mixing it with white.
Examples
are pink and lavender.
Shade – To make a color darker by mixing it with black.
Examples are navy blue and maroon.
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