Lesmahagow High School Knowledge & Interpretation: Colour Theory

Colour Basics – The Colour Wheel P S T Primary Secondary Tertiary

Harmony vs Contrast Colours close to each other on the wheel Easy on the eye Colours opposite each other on the wheel Eye-catching Discuss the impact of harmony and contrast in presentation.

Warm and Cool Colours Warm Reds, Yellows, Oranges Advancing Colours e.g. appear to be closer Cool Blues, Greens, Violets Receding Colours e.g. appear to be further away Discuss the impact of warm and cool colours in various environments

Tints and Shades Tint Shade Add black or grey to add a shade Dark shades make objects appear heavy Tint Add white to make a tint Pale pastel colours give the impression of softness

Colours and Moods - Task Different colours create different moods and feelings. To produce work of a high standard students should be able to make colour choices and justify their decisions by describing the mood they are attempting to create. Separate an A3 page into 9 sections. Use each of the following colours as a title for each section, Red; Orange; Yellow; Green; Blue; Purple; Violet; Neutrals; Black and White On the following slide you will find a number of moods which can be related to colours on your page. Allocate each mood to the colour you feel most effectively conveys the mood.

Moods Warm Happy Sunny Cool Elegant Rich Peaceful Comfortable Dramatic Vibrant Cheerful Lively Soothing Formal Regal Safe Stylish Aggressive Energetic Fresh Reliable Dangerous

Choosing a colour scheme As a simple rule, use only two or three main colours. Colours may be tints or shades of your primary, secondary and tertiary colours found on the colour wheel. Any colours near each other (within any third of the colour wheel) will always work together to create a harmonious colour scheme Any two colours which are opposite each other on the colour wheel look good together and make a bold statement Any three colours which are equally spaced on the colour wheel work together to make an exciting scheme

Color Scheme Examples bbc.com fox.com Fox: complementary | BBC: analogous Both look busy because of the number of colors, but do not look terrible because they rest pretty firmly on ‘safe’ color schemes, and use contrasting, readable font colors. fox.com

Caress Moisturising Body Wash Product Samples Caress Moisturising Body Wash The moisturising lather and wonderful fragrance pamper your senses and leave your skin feeling silky soft. Irish Spring Original Helps keep you feeling clean and fresh. Great invigorating scent Dial Antibacterial Soap Over 10x more effective at killing disease-causing germs than ordinary liquid hand soaps.

Colour Schemes - Task Suggest an appropriate colour scheme for a kitchen and justify. Suggest an appropriate colour scheme to be used when promoting a new energy drink and justify.

Homework Select a large colour advertisement from a magazine. Write a brief report about the advertisement which: Identifies the target market (who the poster is aimed at) States why the colour have been chosen (what mood has been created) Identifies where contrast and harmony have been used