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Artistic Expression - The Basics of Color and Creativity
Colors have an amazing
impact on our lives. From the red of our stop signs
and traffic lights, to the ever important green of a
dollar bill, color is integrated into every facet of
our daily adventures. No where is this more clear, than
in our art and in our artistic creativity.
Artists and designers are able to use
color as a tool to capture our moods and emotions, to
identify shapes and objects, and to convey messages.
They use color almost like a gardener uses a shovel
to dig in the soil. They poke us and prod us with harsh
or depressing color mixtures, and they gently sway us
or quiet our spirits with subdued or gentle pallets.
Color can actually be the strongest element in any piece
of artwork, due to the way it affects us on so many
levels.
So, how about we look at a couple of
the strategies for using color in our creative outlets
and our designs, to have the greatest impact on our
viewers and to help us become even more inspired.
Color adds a lot to any design, so we
must be confident in our expression and use of it. There
is a lot to learn from basic design theory, about color,
so make sure you study color concepts thoroughly. For
now, let us focus on two basics...
1. Experimentation is one of your most
powerful strategies in using color. Never be afraid
to try anything, with color, in your art. Discover relationships
between different colors. Explore playful, soft, dark,
bright, vibrant, and any other mixture of color with
a fresh, new eye towards inspiration. Now, just to bring
sanity back to the table, before you add new colors
and inspirations to any piece you are already working
on, please test your colors and combinations first.
But the concept still rings true... experiment with
and explore new colors.
2. Color wheels are another essential
tool in any artist's arsenal. Color wheels, paint chips,
or even color reference books, like the "Pantone
Guide to Communicating with Color", or "Color
Index: Over 1100 Color Combinations", simplify
the process of choosing colors by providing a reference
for how colors work together. There is way too much
to cover here, to make a color wheel understandable.
Suffice it to say, whether you are a painter, a photographer,
or any other artist, you will want some kind of color
wheel, or color reference book, to help you get clarity
on how colors relate and work together.
The most important thing to remember
about working with color, in all your creative exploration,
is to know that there is not, and may never be, a perfect
combination. But, you can be confident in your own creative
expression and artwork, if you will find colors that
you enjoy, and that do not go against your own perception
of great creative design.
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