Portfolio: Beginning Color Mixing

Introduction

The first thing we notice when viewing a painting for the first time is its color. It draws in the viewer and grabs attention. I often think that if artists were playwrights, then color would be their actors. Taking the stage and acting out a well-designed scene. Playing off each other and leading the viewer through an act full of emotion and feeling.

What are the rules for using color? The rules happen to be more like guidelines—and guidelines tend to be more malleable. For every time that someone makes a statement that the rules of color theory are a certain way, I can point to an artist who has broken that rule—and with an impeccable piece of art.

However, understanding the basics and using these guidelines is imperative to creating ...