In the sixth color residual session, the group shared their ongoing explorations of color relationships in various media. Follow-on sessions will be scheduled depending on interest, and Dick will offer art history and color relationships classes in the fall.
The spring 2014 Color Residual group: Patt, Dick, Kari, Melissa, Valerie, Emily. Not shown: Betty Hay & Cheryl. Guests: Bonnie (on iPad), Chris
The sixth color residual session was held on Saturday, June 28, 2014. The group shared their ongoing explorations of color relationships in various media.
Sharing and critique
Patt brought in some tri-hue watercolor landscapes. She’d started some in a Hui class on painting a watercolor in three washes.
Patt captured the different colors that result at different times of day, and successfully overcame a common problem when painting with tri-hue, of the primary colors being too dominant.
Valerie explored layering color, and being bolder with color, in two tri-hue watercolors. Her focus was color, not subject matter or composition. But Dick urged her to also consider composition, to avoid having the background be a second class citizen. Some options are to add other flowers in the background, or crop in tightly. Every inch should count.
Bonnie used PowerPoint to show her oil painting experiments since she was thousands of miles away.
Chris brought in a selection of cubes she assembles from tri-hue watercolors. She achieved some stunning color interactions.
All Is Not Lost is another in Melissa’s “Agents of Change” series. She’s completed 8 works of a planned total of 12.
The End of Going Everywhere, another in the “Agents of Change” series. Melissa has a concept and personal message about a serious subject, but doesn’t want to dictate peoples’ response, so her works are abstract and grounded in aesthetics.
Betty Hay went back to a familiar scene and recreated a composition from the past, in order to explore it from her new awareness of color relationships.
Emily felt blocked and frustrated, but once she explored that in a painting, she felt freed up and created a more satisfying abstract work. Dick suggested she inventory the “1s, 2s, and 3s”and try to use more tones (3s) to make the colors relate more.
Kari brought in a small seascape and an abstract that she painted recently. She also shared her explorations of searching within photographs for abstract inspiration. Dick suggested she try some less familiar colors.
Looking ahead – future classes
Dick talked about his plans to offer an art history class, another color relationships class, and continuing the color residual critique group in the fall.
Dick considers knowledge of art history essential for any artist: “If you’re serious as a professional, you owe it to yourself to be aware of the options from the history of art. I can’t tell you what it opened for me. Keep asking ‘why?’ to get to the core – to get to the roots – of who you are. Art is too precious and important in our culture to do superficially.”
He’s started a list of people interested in the color class. If you know others, have them get in touch. Dick will interview everyone to ensure a good fit.
Most of the group was interested in continuing meeting for critique, after a summer break. We’ll need to add a few people, especially if anyone drops out. Members of this group will have the first option, then others in the 2013 classes and possibly others by invitation. New candidates will be carefully screened in order to maintain the sense of trust and openness this group enjoys.
Abstract versus representational: Do you have to choose? Nine artists explored their use of color, and discussed goals, difficulties, solutions, and ideas. Evidence mounts of increasing color awareness and sophistication.
The fifth color residual session was held on Saturday, May 31, 2014. Three guests and five regulars contributed to stimulating discussions between artists, sharing goals, difficulties, solutions, and ideas. Evidence mounts of increasing color awareness and sophistication.
Opening comments
To set the stage for the session, Dick shared a quote from educator Jerome Bruner on effective surprise. “When a work takes your breath away,” elicits an “Aha!” or “Wow!”, “for me, that is the measurement,” Dick said. The illustrations accompanying the quote demonstrate how knowledge of color relationships – color relativity – can create an “effective surprise.” The color of a narrow strip of flat color can appear to be different, depending on its background – here, a narrow gray strip on a light-to-dark gray background, and on a gradient from purple to green (complementary colors).
Several people shared their experiences with trying to apply the color relationships lessons in their work. Valerie described it dramatically as feeling like “jumping off an airplane with a parachute and a manual.” Bonnie, who has been painting all her life, agreed, saying, “You think you understand it intellectually, but it’s incredibly hard to apply…It’s easier to start by using it in non-representational art.”
Dick also mentioned that his colleague and friend, prolific Canadian artist Robert Genn, had recently died. Dick subscribes to his “Twice-Weekly Letters” sent to artists all around the world. Robert’s daughter Sara is continuing their publication. In her announcement of his death, she wrote, “Dad’s dream has been to reach artists of all stripes – individuals with a common joy, journeying in this life-enhancing, inexplicable affair of the heart. He wrote, ‘We have no other motivation than to give creative people an opportunity to share ideas and possibly broaden their capabilities – to get more joy and understanding from their own unique processes.’” These color residual sessions provide such an opportunity for a few people at a time on Maui, and I encourage anyone who seeks that kind of stimulation and fellowship to subscribe to the Twice-Weekly Letters that will continue to be sent.
Sharing and critique
As a prelude to the critique session, Dick shared some favorite thoughts about critique.
Valerie used Dick’s Illustrator experiments with transparent overlays of primary colors as the inspiration for her own layering experiments in watercolor. Questions about saturation falling off, both as the watercolor dries, and with viewing distance, led to discussions about balancing the quantities of colors (which color is the lead actor? which are the supporting cast?) and how artists can provide a rich experience for the viewer both close up and from a distance. Kit commented that John Singer Sargent wore a hole in the carpet in his studio between his easel and the other side of the room, and that one of Kit’s college professors had a “de-magnifying” glass to get a sense of how a piece would look from a distance. Dick said they are (or were) a commonly used tool in printing production.
Betty Hay also took inspiration from Dick’s experiments, as shared in greeting cards last time, choosing key colors for two new landscapes. In one, she pushed the chroma for more drama, and consciously echoed sky colors from the top in foreground vegetation highlights in the bottom. In the second, she explored the subtle magic of luminosity created through vanishing boundaries. Who would have thought that gray could be so beautiful? This reminded Dick of one of Josef Albers’ favorite assignments to students: “Take your least favorite / mud color, and make it sing.” Of the second painting, Dick said, “That sky is one of the most exciting ones I’ve ever seen. I’m especially pleased when these are not just lessons in color, when you begin to plug it in. I think, Betty Hay, that you’ve opened a very important door for yourself and for us.”
After exploring color interaction and shapes in abstract watercolor studies the past few sessions, Patt tried a representational work for this session. Everyone thought her still life of pears was very successful.
Kari wants to make the switch from representational work to abstract. She’s starting by zooming in and focusing on small areas of photos, rotating them, and making their origin unrecognizable. She’s interested in creating luminosity. Dick challenged her to select some parent colors outside of her typical color schemes.
Emily brought in two watercolors, where she was experimenting with bolder use of colors, and trying out abstraction.
Bonnie has been using abstract work to start applying her color relationships learning, and is now trying to work out the color lessons in a more realistic oil painting.
Chelsea brought in two landscapes and an abstract, all using the pastel cross-hatching technique that creates a shimmering, impressionist optical mixture.
Kit shared an unusual photo of a rainbow, which he’d posted on Facebook with this comment: “Here’s a phenomenon that I can’t recall having seen before – a rainbow formed near Makawao town today, but seemed to appear behind a grove of Eucalyptus trees, forming a colorful backdrop. More typically, it seems to me, rainbows appear in front of objects, rather than behind them. Whatever the case, it happened today just as seen here.”
Chelsea also brought in a children’s book, unique in that it uses transparent overlays of the true primary colors (cyan, magenta, and yellow) to physically show how they mix. The book is The Adventures of the Three Colors, by Annette Tison and Talus Taylor, originally printed in 1971 and reprinted in 1980 (the edition she showed us).
Closing thoughts
Abstract versus representational: Do you have to choose? These artists have found both useful and expressive.
In the fourth Color Residual session, three artists shared completed or experimental work. Critique centered on color concepts and strategies. Dick applauded their efforts.
The fourth color residual session was held on Saturday, April 26.
Dick has been “obsessed” with his Illustrator experiments of overlapping cyan, magenta, and yellow swatches of varying opacity, and displayed prints of two recent creations for us to see. He is fascinated with the colors that result, and how they all relate.
Dick asked that today’s and future critiques center on color, in order to deepen the learning from the color relationships course.
Sharing and critique
Valerie brought in her watercolor interpretation of a scene she had previously done in pastel, and we compared the two. Warmer hues in sunlit areas of conveyed a sense of a different time of day, so shadow colors should also shift (see other posts on colored light), and highlights, like wave crests, wouldn’t be white.
Critiquing a large watercolor (in work) of a rose, Dick warned us to watch out for areas that look like a “foreign land” relative to the rest of the painting, and find ways to use color to unify and integrate the whole painting.
Patt’s objective for her work for this session was to “have it DO something,” and discovered some strategies by experimenting and trying to recreate satisfying results. Dick commented that when he was doing commissions, he’d often paint 4 or 5 versions of a painting, working out strategies to get the results he envisioned. When viewing Patt’s abstract designs, he suggested rotating them to see how a different orientation changes the visual effect.
Melissa brought in two more works in her “Agents of Change” series. We discussed formal qualities – line, form, pattern, space, texture, color – and she described some of the processes, thinking, and influences that went into them.
Dick “applauded” the artists for the work they brought to this session.
Five students and a guest shared completed or experimental work. Everyone is pushing their skills and exploring new challenges. In a round-robin discussion, Dick encouraged everyone to identify their own message. There was a brief review / quiz on concepts of the visual phenomena of veils, light, and colored light.
The third color residual session was held on Saturday, March 29.
Sharing and critique
We had a special guest, Chelsea Bryce, thanks to a suggestion from Kit Gentry. Chelsea had one piece selected for Art Maui this year, and brought in another piece she’d entered, and two studies for it. She’s experimenting with a crosshatch pastel technique that was inspired by Degas.
Pastel by Chelsea Bryce
Pastel (studies) by Chelsea Bryce
Pastel (study) by Chelsea Bryce
Cheryl brought in an ambitious watercolor sunset painting.
Watercolor sunset by Cheryl Logsdon
Patt brought in a number of watercolor experiments that she’s having fun with. She looked to some of Dick’s tri-hue watercolor lessons for inspiration.
Watercolor abstracts by Patt Narrowe
Dick with watercolor by Patt Narrowe
Watercolors by Patt Narrowe
Valerie said she usually takes several weeks to complete a painting. With guests in town, she didn’t have that kind of time, so she challenged herself to complete one in an afternoon – and then did it again!
Pastels by Valerie Richter
Kari found herself fascinated by the subtle colors in a snow scene, and uncharacteristically, just let herself play.
Snow scene by Kari McCarthy
Melissa showed two recently completed works in her Agents of Change series. She said, “My conservation work informs my art.” With five paintings complete, she has ideas for four or five more.
Miconia and Deer by Melissa Chimera
Rattus rattus by Melissa Chimera
Discussion
What, specifically, are you trying to share or explore in your work? In a round-robin discussion, Dick brought up an “incredibly important” question: Can each of you identify your message? What particular message or emotion are you trying to convey? It’s important to identify, once in a while, where we’re at, and how we got there.
Review / Quiz
Test your understanding of the concepts of portraying several visual phenomena: veils, light, and colored light. Refer to Color Relationships week 5 and week 6 for examples and explanations of veils. For light and colored light, see week 7, week 8, and week 9.
Artists shared current studies and work in the second color residual session, and Dick led a formal critique using the critique guides in this post. The topic of surface was discussed, and principles of films were reviewed.
The second color residual session was held on Saturday, February 22. Artists shared current studies and work, and Dick led a formal critique using the critique guides below.
Water was a subject in one piece discussed, which brought up the topic of “surface”. Light behaves differently when it encounters different surfaces. Water is transparent – light penetrates it – and it can be reflective – light bounces off it. Light is absorbed or reflected to different degrees by other surfaces. Paying attention to this behavior will help your paintings be more realistic, if that is a goal. Dick recommended the Arnolfini wedding painting by Jan van Eyck as a good one to study for examples of careful observation and rendering of different surfaces. Look closely at different parts of this full resolution version of the painting to see for yourself.
Review quiz – films
There was a brief review of concepts of films using the quiz images below. These images were chosen to really challenge your understanding of how colored films work! Refer to Color Relationships week 4 and week 5 for more examples and explanations of films.
Eight people who took the 11-week Color Relationships course last fall have chosen to deepen their learning by participating in a six-part series of monthly “Color Residual” sessions. The first meeting was held on Saturday, January 25.
Some topics that came up, and useful resources, are provided below.
Dick was featured in an alumni profile in the latest edition (Winter 2013) of the Punahou School alumni publication, the Punahou Bulletin. Dick attended Punahou, and later came back to teach and lead the art department. Dick is proud that his 22 years as head of the art department there left a lasting legacy. Comments following the article testify to Dick’s impact and influence. Two of the Color Residual participants are also Punahou alumni (as is President Barack Obama!). The whole issue features art, and another alumnus mentioned was the painter D. Howard Hitchcock. He studied with the impressionists, and Dick admires his paintings of Hawaii scenes. Dick said of him, “The work just glows. He knew how to look.” Dick also thinks Maui artist Macario Pascual has a good sense of color.
Dick had recently watched a video of a talk by a current art professor at Yale, but didn’t have it handy for viewing. It is “Color in Context: Revisiting Albers, with Anoka Faruqee”, embedded below. Anoka Faruqee is an Associate Professor of Painting/Printmaking at Yale University. While she admits that she never took a color class while a student at Yale, she gives an introduction to Albers’ exercises and impact, and explains why Interaction of Color is still relevant and influential today, 50 years after its initial publication. Two quotes from her talk that especially struck me were, “Albers was the one who systematically demonstrated color’s elasticity,” and “I think it’s the discipline in the face of color that makes him so successful as a teacher and so widely accessed outside of the field.” An article in the Yale Daily News student newspaper also reports on Albers’ continuing impact on the art department there.
Dick has frequently brought out his large 2-volume set of Interaction of Color ($165 on Amazon) to show and critique solutions to the Albers exercises. Some people weren’t aware that a more affordable version of the book is also available. The latest paperback edition, published in 2013 for the 50th anniversary of the original publication, includes the full text and has more color plates than past editions (although still not all). It’s available for $12 on Amazon. The Interaction of ColoriPad app ($10) contains all the text, reproductions of all the color plates, the ability to create one’s own versions of each exercise, and brief video clips.
Dick showed a brief screencast video demonstrating how he achieves vanishing boundaries, color harmony, and a wide range of surprising colors in his tri-hue watercolors. The only colors used are varying opacities of the primary colors yellow, magenta, and cyan. Some still images from the video are shown below.
Future gatherings will respond to directions set by participants’ interests, and will also include brief reviews of concepts from the Color Relationships course. We adjusted the four color deception images below interactively, and discussed how their illusions could be made stronger. To review these concepts, see Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, and Week 4.
