Standard Color Harmonies Color Theory is a set of principles used to create harmonious color combinations. Color relationships can be visually represented with a color wheel

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Standard Color HarmoniesColor Theory
is a set of principles used to create harmonious
color combinations. Color relationships can be
visually represented with a color wheel the
color spectrum wrapped onto a circle.
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Monochromatic Color SchemeThe monochromatic
color scheme uses variations in lightness and
saturation of a single color. This scheme looks
clean and elegant. Monochromatic colors go well
together, producing a soothing effect.

• Marcel Duchamp
• Nude Descending a Staircase 2
• 24 X 14 ½
• Philadelphia Museum of Art
• New York

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Analogous Color SchemeThe analogous color scheme
uses colors that are adjacent to each other on
the color wheel. One color is used as a dominant
color while others are used to enrich the scheme.

• Paul Klee
• Viaducts Break Ranks
• 20 ¾ X 16 ¼
• Kunshalle,
• Hamburg

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Complementary Color SchemeThe complementary
color scheme consists of two colors that are
opposite each other on the color wheel. This
scheme looks best when you place a warm color
against a cool color, for example, red versus
green. This scheme is high-contrast.

• Pablo Picasso
• Lobster and Cat
• 20 1/8 X 25
• J.K. Thannhauser Collection
• New York

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Split Complementary Color SchemeThe split
complementary scheme is a variation of the
standard complementary scheme. It uses a color
and the two colors adjacent to its complementary.
This provides high contrast without the strong
tension of the complementary scheme.

• Claude Monet
• Tulips in Holland
• 19 X 24
• Louvre, Paris

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Triadic Color SchemeThe triadic color scheme
uses three colors equally spaced around the color
wheel. This scheme is popular among artists
because it offers strong visual contrast while
retaining harmony and color richness. The triadic
scheme is not as contrasting as the complementary
scheme, but it looks more balanced and harmonious.

• Stuart Davis
• Figure Five in Gold
• 25 X 20
• Metropolitan Museum of Art
• New York

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Double Complementary Color Scheme The double
complementary scheme is the most varied
because it uses two complementary color pairs.
This scheme is hard to harmonize if all four
hues are used in equal amounts, the scheme may
look unbalanced, so you should choose a color to
be dominant or subdue the colors.

• Marc Chagall
• I and the Village
• 24 ½ X 19
• Museum of Modern Art
• New York

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Accented Neutral Color schemes use neutral colors
(grays, beiges or whites) as main color and then
add a punch with a dark accent color to add
visual interest.

• Pippin Horace
• The Domino Players
• 15 ¾ X 27
• Phillips Collection
• Washington, DC

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Warm colors are vivid in nature. They are bold
and energetic. Warm colors are those that tend to
advance in space therefore, caution needs to be
taken so you do not overwhelm your content with
eye catching hues. If an element in your design
needs to pop out, consider using warm colors to
do that.Cool colors are soothing in nature. They
give an impression of calm and rarely overpower
the main content or message of a design. Cool
colors tend to recede therefore, if some element
of your design needs to be in the background,
give it cool tones.

• Warm colors are the reds, oranges,
• and yellows
• Cool colors are the blue, greens and violets
• Peter Max
• Better World 3
  24 X 28
• 1999

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Final Painting Assignment

• Choose a subject matter- it could be an animal, a
  portrait, a landscape, etc.
• You can bring in a photograph from home, a
  picture from a magazine or the internet.
• The image has to be able to be broken down into
  50 or more colors.
• The next step is to choose a color harmony.

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Make a list of colors and decide on a color
harmony.

• Yellow
• Yellow green
• Green
• Blue Green
• Analogous Color Harmony

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Student Painting