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Interaction of Color Practice - Part 1

Lesson 7 from: Color for Designers: Exploration, Theory, & Application

Richard Mehl

Interaction of Color Practice - Part 1

Lesson 7 from: Color for Designers: Exploration, Theory, & Application

Richard Mehl

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Lesson Info

7. Interaction of Color Practice - Part 1

How do you make one color look like two? Join Richard’s students in manipulating the eye and experimenting with color subtraction. Richard gives tips for working with complementary colors.

Lesson Info

Interaction of Color Practice - Part 1

and then we have beautiful colors and it's just so this, by the way, thats app has been out for a few years and there's a new version that was released about a year ago in this corresponds to his book. And, um, what it allows you to do is basically take his experiments and make your own versions. And you can look at his experiments for reference, but then make your own, which is kind of cool. So I'm just gonna bring up a few that I worked on last night. Um, so, uh, if you can, if you concede at the top, it says the color has many faces and that's sort of what he's talking about, and now he'll show you his version, which you're going to see in the book. And the idea is to use a single color, one color against two different fields and just to see how different it is, just as a proof. I did a few of these, and that's kind of what you're doing right now, except you're doing it with one color. So the next thing for you to Dio is to try to do it with two different grounds. Now it's a very di...

fferent cause. You're looking for something in the middle that's just gonna look dramatically different on these two different grounds. So why don't you go ahead and try that? Christine, if you want to work on the up Yeah. There you go. You can sit in my position here and do you know how to do this? So you this is your color palette. So you tap that thing in the corner, and that brings it up, and then he can basically dragged these colors out. And you have these little things out here, and if you want that color, go away top on the X. Yeah, And when you're ready to apply it to a field, you just basically drag it over like this, and it'll go into the background and the same thing with the foreground dragon in the foreground. It will go in there like that, and it fills both at the same time, because that's what you're trying to do. Okay? And if you want it to go away, you double click, and then you'll be able to see the whole thing. All right? And double click back and you can always undo things are just going to this. Okay, Okay. Okay. Thanks. Have fun. So try a different color in the center. It doesn't really even matter. You're not trying to reciprocate this time. You're just trying to find colors Look dramatically different on those grounds here. We're going for Matt. Maximum effective difference. So focus your attention on the distinctions of these colors. You're looking for one color that looks dramatically different on the grounds and also feel free to change the grounds. Right? Always remember that with these Albers things, you have total control over the inside colors and the outside colors, and everything is in flux constantly. When you get into these different color backgrounds still continue to think about the subtraction concept. Now you're subtracting late in dark, but you're also subtracting the hue that's a little bit trickier. A little bit more complex. What does it mean to subtract yellow from a color? When you subtract yellow from green, you're taking the yellow out, making it look cooler. Yeah, making it look more blue when you subtract purple from that same green, it's also a matter of light. And dark was the purple, but darker than the yellow purple is Ah, harder is harder to imagine what you're subtracting from green. But essentially, you're taking out the purple, probably shifting and more toward yellow. And if you look at this, you kind of get that sense, right? So this definite looks starts yellow lighter. It's a little bit of yellow. Er, yeah, science to this in that using your color that complements their contrast or isn't near it on the color wheel is gonna have a different effect. Or is it really wouldn't? Actually, when we get to using complementary grounds, you're kind of using complementary grounds, right? So maybe the next step for you is to try to imagine what the middle color is between yellow and purple. So a mixture color? Yeah, um, if you try to remember back to with the complementary mixtures, so look for a chromatic gray that's either purple or yellow and see what happens when you put those on top. So there was she some pretty dramatic effects happening then, looking very different. What color would you say that you chose there in the center? Well, I was trying to think what's in between red and blue, so I try to go for a kind of a purplish in, and then, uh, this one seems to have a little more slightly more saturation than this one. And so I also tried to line that up. I went through a couple where there were it was too light or too dark, and so it was almost kind of trying to get those contrasts that you talked about in line. So maybe that's everyone. Now shift toward, um, two complementary background colors so purple and yellow, red and green, uh, orange and blue. And when you're using these background colors, just a za cute. Based on my experience, try different levels of saturation, one that's very, very vivid and one that's not so vivid, maybe dull, so vivid and dull backgrounds. And then that trying to find that middle color in that mixture color. Now think back to Britain mixture. Color is going to be some kind of ah, a bit of a neutral with some chromatic value, so perhaps a gray. It has a little like in this case, if it's yellow and purple, either a little yellow in it or a little purple in it and see what happens, so try making this local this green a little bit darker and see what happens. Actually, what you can do is just click on this Onda move in this direction like that. So now it looks almost the same, right? And as we move through, this is a great way to just find variances just quickly. Kind of move through. It's like changing the background very quickly. Definitely, very different. Um, let's try moving onto two compliments. So red and green, uh, yellow and purple or blue and orange, and then try to look for a middle color. That is a mixture color. So a chromatic gray of some kind. Put that down and see what happens. So, what do you think? Yeah, I think, uh, the squinting definitely helped when I squint it. Definitely. It does seem like these. These were different. This one seems a lot brighter than this one. Definitely. So the light and dark is definitely the latent darkest of working. What about the reciprocation? In terms of the colors? The Hughes? Uh, yeah, this one. It's very slight, but yeah, it looks like this one is sucking the the yellow out of the gray square attracted. And so, Yeah. And then vice person for here. Yeah, and this is starting to look like that, but this is not starting to look like that. So keep looking for a middle color where you get that reciprocation happening. So this definitely looks like that. It's getting closer. That's tougher part. Yeah. Try it a slightly darker green in the background and see what happens. And we might have to lighten this up a little bit. I don't know if we're ever gonna reach that pink, though. That's tried, haven't you, Price? You're actually an app designer. Interactions. Yeah. So how if you use color in in that sense, you discover that, you know, using paper except for is very different to using digital colors. Uh, it is different, obviously, and working with your hands. But it's similar in that you do want to think about how the colors are going together. What's the hero color that you kind of base everything around. And then what? Complementary colors or other kinds of colors? Do you want to go with it? Yeah. This is actually really good Already. You did it. So I'm gonna move this toe white and just see what it looks like. It's better. Do you usually have a preference? Like when give these like white or black or it doesn't know me. It definitely makes a difference. You have to kind of try it on both.

Class Materials

bonus material with purchase

Playing With Color - Color Design Glossary
Playing With Color - Color Wheels
Playing With Color - Leaf Collage
Playing With Color - Patterns
Color Grid Template
Tangram Template
Playing With Color - Wallpaper - 1280x800
Playing With Color - Wallpaper - 1200x900
Playing With Color - Wallpaper iPad
Playing With Color - Wallpaper iPhone

Ratings and Reviews

Nabha
 

The course was great. Richard was a very good teacher, appreciating the students’ work and helping them expand and improve on it. I learned from that alone. I feel more confident in choosing colors, and hope to bring a greater sense of fun to my design work. Thanks again.

PETE
 

How wonderful to have such an experienced, thoughtful teacher, who takes educating others so seriously. The depth and breadth of his teaching skill is matched by his knowledge of the subject. I studied art in school, own some of the color books he recommends, and learned far more than I thought possible. And he does it all in such a kind, affirming, supportive way. What a calm guide. How lucky are we to have access to a class with him!

Joe Loffredo
 

I was concerned that I wouldn't like watching everyone work, but I found that it was the best part! It allowed you to see Richard's lessons being put into action by the various students, each of which is talented in their own right. And Richard is great. Knowledgeable, intelligent, and supportive, he's got the attributes a great teacher should have. I'm a painter, not a designer, but the class really helped me a lot. When I go back to the canvas, it will be with a much deeper understanding of color, and how colors interact with each other.

Student Work

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