Fascination with Color

I think I mentioned in my last post that I've got a thing for colors. I don't think I mentioned my massive folder of color palettes...

I'd say that I add to it constantly, but I haven't actually saved anything new in...a while. This is probably the result of me spending way too many afternoons perusing colourlovers. Another interesting site is colorschemedesigner.com, which allows you to create color palettes based on a variety of different things.

When I was younger I insisted upon having colors I loved and hated, but sometimes I grew frustrated when I saw a color that I didn't like by itself looking good with a combination of other colors, or a color that I did like looking awful next to something else. Now that I've looked into the subject a bit more, I understand that ANY color can look good when paired with the right set of hues(though I'm still not a huge fan of pink, not that you can tell by looking at my folder).

A tutorial that I recommend to anyone trying to learn a thing or two about color is this one by user purplekecleon on deviantart. They're an outstanding digital artist with an excellent eye for color and lighting. This tutorial explains the basics of working with colors, as well as some things that most beginning artists struggle with; such as using colors that aren't necessarily "true" to express different moods and settings.

Some other things to consider when creating anything are rhythm, emphasis and unity. This website explains all of them rather well. To summarize; rhythm is the creation of a pattern within your art(whether it be by color or shape); emphasis is the breaking of rhythm to draw attention to a certain point; and unity is the means by which the whole is perceived as harmonious. Here is another site that discusses rhythm, which they refer to as alternation.

I'm sure that a lot of this is taught in college art courses, but for those of you who (like me!) have no way to pay for college, I hope this will be of some use.

Cheers! Have a kitten.