CSC151 2007S, Class 14: A Design Perspective: Colors

Admin:
* Guest speaker: Matthew Kluber, Studio Art
* The exam was clearly harder than I intended.  I apologize.
* There is no reading for Friday!
* Friday's quiz will likely focus on raster graphics and RGB colors.
* Final reminder: Thursday extra tomorrow at 4:30 in 3821.
* Dr. Davis and I are still discussing Friday's topic.

Overview:
* Approaching colors.
* Managing the huge palette.
* Other design issues.

==Introduction==

* Color is part of your everyday experience
* But most of us don't think deeply about it
* Particularly since it's a key aspect of what we're discussing in class,
  it's useful to have a careful understanding of it.
* It's useful to have a perspective on color from a visual arts perspective

* Incandescent vs. luminesent light
  * Incandescent - Produced by heat
  * Luminesent - Created in other ways
* Most paintings are traditionally done with paints that *absorb* light.
  We call this *subtractive* color.
* Computers tend to deal with additive color.
* Artists describe the world in terms of subtractive colors.
  * Sam wonders whether this will continue to be the case

* Hue is the basis of a particular color:  Red, Yellow, and Blue are all
  hues.  We vary colors to get hues.  (Pink, Chartreuses etc. are all
  hue of pink.)

* Color wheel is a way to work with colors.

[Sam can't type at a speed that is sufficient to keep up with Kluber.]

* Our perception of color is affected by the nearby colors.

* Once we understand colors, we can put them together in a color scheme.

* Monochromatic: One color (with variations of saturation and value)
* Different colors can give different approaches
  * Some colors are warm
  * Some colors are cool
  * Cool colors tend to recede.

* Color discord: The opposite of color harmony.  Things that are far
  apart on the color wheel: A primary and a far-away tertiary.

* Issues to think about in design:
  * Color, Value, Texture, Shape/Volume, Rhythm, Balance,
    Scale/Proportion, Line, Emphasis, Unity/Variety

* Geometric forms in different cultures
* Availability of pigments in different areas have had an effect on the
  palettes people use.

* What narratives do we construct from images

* Idea as students think about projects: You may want to do different things
  (but related) at other parts of the image