Color Relationships 1, Summer 2015 week 3

The third session of the Color Relationships 1 class for Summer 2015 was held on Tuesday, August 11th. We heard from participants about their latest experiences with color, critiqued the last two assignments, and moved on to explore a new facet of color interaction: equal value. This was a favored trick of the Impressionist painters, and when properly utilized can manifest the most beautiful and luminous fields of color. But matching value is much more challenging than it seems! It is truly the mark of a skilled colorist, one who can control their value selection as much as their choice of hues.

Color Relationships 1, Summer 2015 week 2

Wow, only our second session and we are fast covering ground! In this class, we moved right ahead, learning more about arrays; the importance of recognizing the difference between hue and value; how to look at your work objectively; and most importantly: HALATIONS! The following post summarizes our exciting class activities, the importance of critique, the new homework, and the fun videos we watched (no shortage of laughter!). Read on for more …

Color Relationships 1, 2014 week 5

The fifth session of the Color Relationships class for Fall 2014 was held on Friday, November 7. We tried to find Color-Aid swatches of equal value; discussed real-world observations of luminosity through equal value in an autumn forest scene with Kit Gentry; critiqued the warm-cool color transposition exercises and free color studies; and had a demonstration of creating luminosity in watercolors. This was the final session of the course so there was no new homework assignment. A six-week follow-on class will be offered beginning in January, covering the visual phenomena of films, veils, volume color, white light, and colored light.

Color Ribbons

Color ribbons

Aloha all you color enthusiasts! Just wanted to share some color experiments I have been doing with the help of my computer, Albers, students and fifty-plus years of painting and teaching. It’s reasonable to assume that few, if any, artists could arrive at these color combinations through the traditional methods and theories of color composition.…

An artist's "fence posts"

Color Relationships 2013 week 10

Homework You will set your own assignment for a final project. You could set your criteria from the eight “fence posts”. Here are two examples of free color study assignments. Luminosity, Lose a shape Class recap Critique – Assignment 9, Transposing colors of equal value Several students said this was the hardest exercise yet. Distinguishing…

Color Relationships 2013 week 9

Homework Transposing colors of equal value Think of 1-3 ideas for a final project Optional: vanishing boundaries Rework or refine any previous assignments. Look for positive and negative examples to share. [gview file=”https://dicknelsoncolor.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/TransposeColor.pdf”] [gview file=”https://dicknelsoncolor.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Synthesis-project.pdf”] Class recap Critique – reworked assignments 1-7 Reworking an assignment strengthens your understanding of the concepts and provides a lasting…

Tri-hue watercolor class, week 7 homework

For our final assignment, Dick has “removed the fence posts” constraining subject matter and technique. He said, “My goal is to make you more independent. With each assignment I’ve given you more flexibility. You have the opportunity to push your boundaries.” He offered the following guidelines and checklist. Look at what’s happening Look at your…

Tri-hue watercolor class, week 2

We had a long critique session, looking closely at each practice piece and making observations. At the end of class, Dick told us, “These are terrible! You’ll look back in future weeks and realize it. These show the origins too much [cyan, magenta, yellow].” And he assigned us to do it again, with new eyes,…