Pleasure Island Online

Color Wheel Pro
a program that allows you to see color theory in action: you can create harmonious color schemes and preview them on real-world examples.

By Brad A Hall

So you’ve been given the task of decorating a new home or remodeling your existing home and you wonder where to start when choosing colors.

Maybe you’ve had a chance to decide on the type of furniture as it pertains to the general function of each individual room but you need help on choosing a color scheme. Maybe this is something you’ve never done before and you find it to be a bit overwhelming. One thing I have learned is there is a fine line between an exciting room and a room full of warmth and color and a room that just doesn’t flow.

Getting yourself started on the right foot by picking the right color scheme is the place to start. First of all, there are some basics you need to understand. Are your colors going to be warm or cool? Are you going for the dramatic or the neutral? What about textures?

Understanding the Color Wheel

One resource you want to check out is a color palette that can be found on a color wheel. No some color wheels come in complex versions, some come in simple versions. Bottom line, if you understand the functionality of the wheel, a simple wheel will work perfectly. I have included a color wheel below but you may want to go down to your local art store to pick up one you can use in person.

Color pallets in a diagram form have been used since 1666 when Sir Isaac Newton first developed the basic color wheel.

First, you need to understand the three Primary Colors. You may remember this from art class in school. These are the three starting colors that all other colors or hues are formed from by mixing different amounts of each of the Primary Colors. These Primary Colors are Red, Yellow and Blue.

In Color Theory, by mixing equal amounts of each Primary Color, you form what is called Secondary Colors. This doubles the number of colors on this more complex wheel to six colors. You have now added Green, Orange and Purple. Are you starting to notice colors that seem to work well together on the wheel? The most common color schemes which work with just two colors typically pick a color from the wheel and then use the color directly across the wheel to compliment the first color. These are called bi-color or complimentary color schemes. An example of a bi-color scheme would be purple and yellow. Using a light and bright color gives the feeling of openness while the darker color adds weight and grounds your décor.

As you may have guessed, you can add even more complexity to your décor color scheme by mixing adjacent colors (one primary and one secondary) on the Secondary color wheel to form a Tertiary Color Wheel. You have now added Yellow-Orange, Red-Orange, Blue Purple, Blue Green and Yellow-Green. By using colors exactly across the wheel from one another, you will have the same bi-color concept as described above but now have an enlarged, more sophisticated pallet of colors to choose from when selecting your color scheme.

Would you like to see a Color Wheel? Check out my link to a page showing many different types of Color Wheels along with a copy of this article.

  

Color Wheel Pro
a program that allows you to see color theory in action: you can create harmonious color schemes and preview them on real-world examples.

By K Bidwell Ferreira

Color is appreciated by everyone. Don’t most people have a favorite color? The colors we choose to surround ourselves with can reflect our various personalities and affect our moods. We make important choices when selecting colors for our living spaces and for personal adornment, such as what we wear. Color theory is used by artists and designers but it can also be applied to every day use for any kind of decorating that we choose to do. The variety of colors we choose can affect each other when combined and in their relationships to one another.

Lets start at the beginning. Every color in the universe is made up of three primary
colors; red, yellow and blue. Difficult to believe, isn’t it? This was learned long ago
in the seventeenth century by Sir Isaac Newton who analyzed a ray of sunlight
projected through a glass prism. The dispersed ray of light separates into a
spectrum of color looking very much like a rainbow. You might wonder about black
and white. Actually, they are not colors at all, white is the presence of all color and
black is the absence of all color. All colors displayed through the prism at once
displays as white, the absence of light is black. From these color theory
observations, we not only learn about the three primaries; but also that there are
three secondary colors; orange, green and violet. The secondary colors are made by
adding two equal parts of the primary colors, such as when mixed, red and yellow
make orange. You may have learned this as a child in art class in school. These six
colors, primaries and secondaries, make up the basic color wheel.

The next set of colors we call the tertiaries. The six tertiary colors are made up of
equal parts of one primary and one secondary color. For instance, blue (primary)
plus green (secondary) makes a blue-green. All twelve colors; the three
complimentary colors, three secondary colors and six tertiary colors create the
complete color wheel. Try making your own color wheel by starting with red at the
top and moving around a circle clockwise; red-orange, orange, yellow-orange,
yellow, yellow-green, green, blue-green, blue, blue-violet, violet, red-violet and
back to red.

There are a many other color properties to learn but here are a few of them. A color
by itself is a pure hue. The addition of white to a color changes that color to a “tint”.
Adding black changes the color to a “shade”. A “tone” is created if both black and
white are added, this makes a grayer version of the color. the relative warmth or
coolness of colors Another property of color is called temperature, colors can be
warm or cool. Warm colors have red, orange or yellow present and cool colors
contain green, blue and violet. However, it is also possible to have a warm blue or a
cool red. If a little of a warm color is mixed with a blue, it will become warmer. The
same principles apply if a bit of a cool color is added to red. Color temperatures are
formed by variations in the pigment. Color temperature can create a mood and also
depth. Warm colors come forward and cool colors recede.

Putting colors together and using them in different color schemes can be exciting
but sometimes difficult to know where to begin. There are different types of color
schemes that can be created using color, and here are a few to try. One type, the
easiest to begin with, would be a monochromatic color scheme. This means using
variations of one color only. This color can be modified by adding black and/or
white to create tints, shades and tones and vary the intensity of the color itself. This
type of color scheme is rather subtle with little color contrast.

Another type of color scheme would be the analogous color scheme in which you
would use three colors that are adjacent to one another on the color wheel, or
neighbors. An example would be, green, blue-green and blue. This type of color
scheme works well because the neighboring colors create a color harmony. When
used in a design, one color is dominant while the others are used to enhance the
color. Again, the intensity of each color can be varied with black and white.

The strongest of color schemes would be the complimentary color schemes.
Complimentary colors are directly across from each other on the color wheel. For
instance, red and green, blue and orange, and yellow and violet are all
complimentaries. When complimentary colors are placed next to each other, they
create energy and movement. Two complimentaries create a strong contrast,
intensify one another and attract attention. Often its best to use a warm color with a
cool complimentary but keep in mind that the warm color will come forward while
the cool color recedes. Use the two complimentary colors carefully, as too much of a
good thing can be overpowering!

Balance your designs and color schemes, whether you’re using paint, fabric, yarn or
decorating a room. By repeating color in a design, emphasis is given to the effect
produced by each color and will carry the viewer’s eye from one part to the next.
This movement or flow around the pattern is called the rhythm of color. Contrast is
important too; use lights (tints) and darks (shades) to add impact to your design.
Also balance by keeping colors somewhat uncomplicated. Too many colors and too
much detail will distract from the overall design.

Each person uses color differently to express themselves. Experiment with color and
let your own intuition lead you to your own unique color expression.

  

By Nina Alvarez

I spent 2008 reading art blogs, Web 2.0 marketing blogs, and thinking up guerrilla marketing tactics for artists. I saw social networking, social media, and the democratization of the art marketplace put more selling power into the hands of artists.

Therefore, I’d like to share 5 reasons why, despite (and because of) the economic crisis, I believe 2008 was a good year for artists:

1. Web 2.0: A New Frontier for Art

A number of artists have actually started to create art around the concept of Web 2.0: collaborative, multimedia, and interactive works. For example, an artist may make the artwork, coordinate different contributors, then relinquish control completely to the public. Culture-Buzz.com highlights a selection of interesting projects.

2. Social Networking Sites (Facebook)

A Facebook page is a fun, direct way to connect to your friends, supporters, and acquaintances: usually people who have bought your work in the past. You can easily post your website pages or blog posts to Facebook, which your friends will be more likely to see and visit. The Brooklyn Museum of Art developed a Facebook application called Art Share. It lets Facebook users share works art from Museums around the world on their profile. Artists can upload and share their own work using this application.From Facebook to Artspan to Deviant Art, artists are finding that there’s a lot to be gained from banding together. Online art communities share inspiration, tips, links, ideas, and encourage a spirit of healthy competition. 3. YouTube (Val’s Art Diary) Look out Damien Hirst. Without galleries, auctions, or dealers, this young artist turned herself into a art-selling powerhouse. Her art, under normal circumstances, would maybe make it into only a handful of galleries. Yet she’s managed to go from selling no paintings to selling EVERY PAINTING SHE MAKES by filming in time-lapse, editing economically, posting the video to youtube, then selling the piece on eBay. Almost all computers come with video editing software. Why not try your hand at a video of your own process?

4. Twitter

The world seems divided between people who think Twitter is the greatest gadget of 2008 and those who think it’s a big, weird waste of time. It took a little while, but I now belong whole-heartedly to the ‘greatest gadget’ crowd.

Like any tool, Twitter is what you make of it. If you develop a following and tweet regularly, you can keep your art and your brand on the minds of the people who are interested. If you don’t mind mixing the personal and the professional, Twitter and Facebook are the ways to go.

5. The Recession

That’s right! I said it. A downturn in the economy might be the stuff of nightmares for some, but artists can turn these into defining moments, challenging themselves to really take action, to sell more art, expand their resources, deepen their message, and connect to their comm unities. Why not doubly defy the bad economic news by deciding to:

• donate to an art fund
• sponsor an artist in a developing country
• join more museums
• invest in your art career