ICC-based color management workflows have become the norm for ensuring consistent color reproduction from screen to print. Many professional workflows center around the Adobe RGB (1998) ICC color profile, initially introduced in Adobe® Photoshop® 5.0 software and now integrated across the Adobe product range.
Each device used for capturing and reproducing graphics — whether it’s a scanner, digital camera, monitor, or printer — possesses distinct capabilities for reproducing color, leading to color discrepancies. In an ICC-based color management system, color profiles are established for each device so that the colors in an image can be adjusted throughout the workflow to compensate for the variations in each supported device. The objective is to maintain the visual integrity of the image as much as possible.
Efficient color management necessitates attaching a color profile to every image or graphic to indicate the „native“ color conditions — also known as the color space — under which the file was created. Adobe applications introduced the concept of a „working“ color space, one not necessarily linked to a specific device but representing the ideal conditions for image reproduction. The Adobe RGB (1998) profile has gained widespread adoption as a working space due to its expansive and balanced color gamut, easily adaptable for reproduction on various devices.
Adobe’s own ICC profile for the Adobe RGB (1998) color space is bundled with all Adobe color-managed software applications, including Adobe Acrobat 5.0 and later, Illustrator 9.0 and later, InDesign, GoLive 6.0 and later, Photoshop 5.0.2 and later, and Photoshop Elements software. With appropriate legal agreements, it is also available for distribution by third-party hardware and software vendors. Learn more about the Adobe RGB (1998) color space encoding used for the Adobe RGB (1998) color space.
Legal note concerning color space naming: Only the Adobe RGB (1998) ICC profile created by Adobe Systems Incorporated can accurately be referred to as „Adobe RGB (1998).“ ICC profiles created by other vendors, even if they adhere to the color image encoding described in the Adobe RGB (1998) color image encoding document, cannot be labeled as „Adobe RGB (1998).“ If vendors opt to create their own profile according to this specification and wish to indicate to their customers that this profile was developed in accordance with Adobe’s specification, an alternate phrasing is required, such as compatible with Adobe RGB (1998)“.
In technical jargon, the term „calibration target“ or „calibration goal“ is frequently used. This refers to the data towards which calibration is performed: white point, brightness, and brightness distribution (gamma). In better calibration software, users can choose these targets themselves; whereas cheaper solutions are fixed to common standards.
For brightness distribution, a gamma of 2.2 or alternatively the so-called sRGB curve (which is very similar to gamma 2.2) is generally recommended. Nothing else makes sense on computers today, even if one prefers to work with a gamma 1.8 color space.
When it comes to calibrated gamma, the primary concern is brightness compatibility with operating system graphics and software that operates without color management (e.g., Office programs). Once color management is in play, gamma is automatically adjusted. While calibrating to the gamma of the preferred working color space (if it deviates from 2.2) may offer minimal quality advantages in monitor display and is still occasionally practiced in professional settings, it generally has more disadvantages on normal computers that are not solely used for image editing.
Overall brightness should harmonize with ambient lighting; meaning, in a brightly lit room, the monitor should shine brighter than in a dimly lit back room, so the eye doesn’t have to adjust excessively when looking at the screen. A standard value for averagely lit rooms ranges from 100 to 140 cd/m², while in poorly lit rooms, 60 to 80 cd/m² may be appropriate, and in some very bright rooms, even 400 cd/m² (the maximum of most monitors) may still be insufficient.
Unfortunately, one often encounters „recommendations“ for a specific brightness level. These should be disregarded. There’s no technically justifiable reason why the monitor, for example, needs to be set brighter or darker for editing print images versus web images. The only thing the monitor brightness should be adjusted to is ambient light. Some calibration devices can measure ambient brightness beforehand, providing a good reference point—assuming this brightness remains relatively constant throughout the day (or at least during planned image editing times).
Ideally, the color temperature should also be matched to the color of the ambient light. However, this is often not possible due to changes in natural daylight and the switch to artificial light in the evenings. In such cases, relying on the adaptability of the eye is preferable. The color temperature of the monitor then becomes a matter of habit. Good calibration software allows users to specify any desired color temperature or maintain the monitor’s native color temperature (which is recommended for budget monitors and notebook displays to minimize losses through color conversions).
The most common standard is D65 (6500 Kelvin), which roughly corresponds to direct sunlight. Alternatively, the slightly warmer standard D50 (5000 K) is also suitable. 5800 K is also popular as a compromise; if no standard light is available, the white point doesn’t need to exactly match a standard. If the monitor has a relatively high native color temperature, one can even calibrate to D75 (7500 Kelvin); initially, it may seem cool, but ultimately, it’s just a matter of habit.
D65 (6500 K) is also the defined white point of sRGB and AdobeRGB—which is practically irrelevant, as the white point of the working color space is merely an invisible conversion intermediate. Therefore, there’s no need, nor particular advantage, to calibrate the monitor to D65 for using sRGB or AdobeRGB. Nevertheless, many calibration programs offer such presets and act as if there’s a sensible connection.
Calibration to the working color space? Another formulation occasionally encountered online is someone stating they have „calibrated their monitor to sRGB.“ This implies working without color management and instead fixing the monitor to a specific working color space. This is also referred to as „color space emulation.“
There are specialized programs that allow for the technical adjustment to fixed working color spaces. In practice, this method is mainly applied to projectors and televisions; further information can be found in home theater forums. The process requires a lot of time and specialized knowledge; moreover, only a few computer monitors have the necessary settings in their menus (e.g., a 6-axis correction).
The color space emulation remains a procedure for special cases (e.g., demanding video editing). Otherwise, calibrating to a predetermined working color space is usually not meaningful, and it’s not even provided for in ICC color management. Doing so would limit the monitor’s color space from the outset, rendering it unusable if a larger working or device color space is required.
Common calibration/profile programs that perform „software calibration“ via the graphics card’s LUT inherently do not support color space emulation; if at all possible, it can only be achieved through hardware calibration (or manually, albeit tediously).
A typical calibration according to ICC color management always focuses on white point, brightness, and brightness distribution/gamma as calibration targets. It leaves the monitor’s color space unchanged in size. Adjusting the monitor and working color space is always the responsibility of the application program and needs to be done repeatedly. Therefore, even after calibration, the monitor cannot inherently display the colors of a file „correctly“; it still requires an ICC monitor profile and an application program with color management function.
In the preceding sections, we delved into the principles of color theory and psychology, universally applicable across various applications and fields. In this final segment, let’s take a closer look at specific examples and proven approaches in the fashion industry.
If you’re involved in this industry, you’re likely familiar with curating a suitable color palette for outfits and fashion. Different fashion design schools have distinct approaches, preferences, guidelines, and focal points. Colors and their combinations often align with seasons, occasions, and cultural preferences.
To master the interplay of colors in fashion, a solid understanding of the foundational principles of color theory and knowledge of the color wheel are indispensable. This foundation allows for adept experimentation and the creation of new designs beyond well-trodden fashion and trend paths.
If you prefer sticking to tried-and-true combinations, the following color pairings will keep you on solid ground:
Gray and Red Tones: Red tones and berry purples complement all shades of gray, creating an elegant and balanced color mix. Typically, grays serve as the background or primary color, while red tones accentuate and highlight specific elements. This combination blends a neutral and understated color (gray) as the base with a vibrant color (red or purple) for special moments in a fashion piece. The result is a certain luminosity without being overly assertive.
Yellow and Green: The combination of green and yellow tones is one of the liveliest ways to make your wardrobe stand out, especially in spring or summer. However, it can also serve as a colorful highlight in winter and darker seasons. This combination tends to look good on most skin tones. Pairing a yellow blazer with a green skirt, especially with jeans, creates a standout look. Enhance this look with gold and/or green accessories.
Red and Blue: Take your favorite jeans and pair them with a red top, and you can be sure to have a successful outfit. Combining blue denim with red clothing is extremely popular, and vibrant reds create an eye-catching effect, complementing the subdued blue of denim. This combination exudes confidence, vitality, and strength, often encountered in the summer months. If introducing a third color, consider neutral, light tones such as white, gray, or light creams.
(Light) Brown Tones and Chestnut or Burgundy: For a less vibrant but earthy and harmonious color scheme in your wardrobe, brown tones, especially paired with slightly reddish „chestnut,“ work exceptionally well. This combination effortlessly creates a successful autumn outfit. Lighter browns like beige, sand tones, ochre, or cognac blend seamlessly with the slightly darker chestnut. As a possible third color, you can opt for white, light yellows, or soft pink. Exercise some discretion to avoid overloading the outfit. In place of chestnut, burgundy, Bordeaux red, or wine red also pairs wonderfully with soft brown tones.
Pink and White: Another classic combo in the fashion world is the pairing of pink and white. Especially popular among young women and teens, this combination exudes a charming effect, emphasizing femininity in a playful manner. Large white portions have a calming effect on the human eye, radiating a touch of innocence and purity. To soften the strong contrast of these colors, consider gray tones, soft pink, or ivory as alternatives to white. If pink seems too vibrant, explore related colors such as purple, lilac, or violet.
Colors evoke moods and emotions, a recognition that dates back to Goethe, as mentioned earlier. Surrounding this realization, an entire profession has emerged, and color psychology has become an integral part of design and marketing.
Colors have the power to elicit various reactions and associations in people, often independent of individual experiences. Emotions wield more influence than rational thoughts based on facts and figures. Therefore, the impact of colors is extensively harnessed in everyday economic activities.
Several universally accepted insights and rules have been established regarding the psychological effects of colors:
Yellow: Yellow is a bright, luminous color that radiates optimism, enlightenment, and joy. Shades of golden yellow promise a positive future. Yellow stands out from surrounding colors and draws the viewer’s attention. This color provides energy and fosters positive thoughts. Additionally, it stimulates mental processes, activates the nervous system, enhances memory, and has an invigorating effect on communication.
Green: Green, omnipresent in nature, is perhaps the most widespread color in our lives. Found abundantly in nature, it is one of the most favored colors among people, making it ideal for background and interior design. Green has calming and soothing effects on the mind and body, supporting mental and physical relaxation. It is effective against depression, anxiety, and nervousness, conveying a sense of renewal, self-control, and harmony. Green also promotes self-esteem, dignity, stability, endurance, a sense of duty, authority, and autonomy.
Blue: Blue symbolizes trustworthiness, reliability, and commitment. As the color of the sky and seas, it is perceived as a constant force in our lives. Blue is known for its calming effect and can even lower the viewer’s pulse. It has a tranquil and cool effect, strengthens intuition, and promotes calmness, contentment, equilibrium, thoughtfulness, and a sense of connection.
Violet: Violet or purple embodies the interplay of stimulating red and calming blue. It carries a touch of mystique, mystery, and spirituality. Simultaneously, violet exudes a sense of royalty and regality. This color is particularly popular among creative individuals, eccentric personalities, and young girls. It has an activating and stimulating effect, soothing both the body and mind, evoking a sensual, spiritual touch, and enhancing creativity.
Pink: Pink is vibrant, lively, youthful, cheeky, and reflects great joy. Bright pink can generate the same energy as red tones, appearing sensual and passionate without the aggressiveness of bright red. By adding more white, the color becomes softer while retaining its sensuality. These shades are excellent for romantic occasions, stimulating and energizing, potentially increasing blood pressure and accelerating heartbeat and breathing. Pink encourages empathy, sensitivity, fascination, charm, and devotion.
Red: No other color is as laden with emotions and personal associations as red. It is highly activating, stimulating, and generates a considerable amount of energy in the viewer. The strategic use of red is effective in capturing attention. Red is unequivocally a signaling color and symbolizes love and passion. It is highly activating, exudes a high level of strength and energy, can increase blood pressure, accelerate heartbeat and breathing, and fosters confidence, strength, vitality, passion, activity, dynamism, competition, and eroticism. Red imparts a sense of protection against fears and uncertainties.
Orange: Orange, a close relative of red, elicits a wide range of thoughts and feelings in the viewer, either strong fondness or distinct aversion. It is less commonly met with indifference compared to other colors. Bright orange exudes joy and fun, radiating warm energy. It inspires activity, stimulates appetite, and encourages sociability.
White: White symbolizes purity, innocence, and neutrality. White doves, for instance, represent peace. Doctors consciously wear white coats, and the classic wedding dress is white. White clears the mind, encourages order, has a soothing and peace-inducing effect, and aids in new beginnings.
Gray: Gray is the color of intellect, wisdom, and knowledge. It is perceived as stable, classic, smooth, dignified, and cultivated. Gray is associated with conservative power, conveying authority, and serves as a neutral background color in designs. It can, however, lead to uncertainty, raise expectations, and promote neutrality, detachment, indifference, ambiguity, and seclusion.
Black: Black carries a strong impact and primarily symbolizes authority. Excessive use of black can overwhelm the viewer. Black is the absolute absence of light, representing emptiness and darkness. When used in conjunction with other colors, black can enhance their brilliance, making it a preferred choice in small doses. In fashion, black holds a special place, signifying classic elegance. It makes the wearer appear slimmer, more refined, and sophisticated, making it highly popular in clothing choices. Black imparts elegance to the wearer and a sense of inconspicuousness, symbolizes emptiness and infinity, creates a mysterious atmosphere, nurtures hope for new possibilities, and fosters determination and/or rebellion.
Understanding the fundamentals of color theory prompts the practical application of these principles. Design initiatives and artistic projects commonly commence with the assembly or curation of a harmonious color combination, termed a color scheme.
In scenarios where one or two colors are predetermined based on brand or product considerations, the objective becomes the creation of a 3-5 color palette that resonates seamlessly. This process necessitates a systematic approach, considering that certain color combinations inherently appear more harmonious than others, irrespective of individual preferences.
Several methodologies can be employed:
Contextual Consideration: Always factor in the context of color perception, acknowledging that colors manifest differently in contrast to various backgrounds. The pairing of green with white differs significantly from its pairing with dark blue or black.
Analogous Color Selection: Begin with a primary color and select two additional colors positioned adjacently on the color wheel. Extending the palette to include more colors involves stepping outward to the next neighbors of the two outer colors. Analogous palettes are characterized by subdued contrasts and are generally suited for softer, pastel, and low-contrast compositions.
Complementary Color Selection: Select colors positioned diametrically opposite each other on the color wheel. Adjusting the intensity of these complementary colors can mitigate the high-contrast effect. Exercise caution with this method, as it tends to produce pronounced contrasts. It is often advisable to emphasize one color in the design, utilizing the complementary color as a subtle accent to prevent overwhelming visuals.
Monochromatic Color Scheme: Utilize various shades or variations of a single hue, incorporating black and/or white. Despite lacking stark color contrasts, monochromatic schemes project cleanliness, uniformity, and harmony. This approach is apt for designs where subtlety and supportiveness take precedence over grabbing attention.
Triadic Color Scheme: Opt for three colors evenly distributed on the color wheel. These colors are equidistant from each other and can be identified by drawing rays from the center of the circle. Refinement involves considering the ratio during application, such as using a light color for backgrounds and a dark one for prominent elements.
Split-Complementary Contrast: Choose a dominant color and select two directly adjacent complementary colors. While this scheme offers a nuanced palette compared to the traditional complementary selection, it maintains a rich contrast and may require careful coordination for optimal results. Use this approach judiciously, especially after gaining experience in creating color palettes.
Personal Approach – Beyond Guidelines: With experience, explore unconventional approaches. While pre-existing color palettes based on established principles are available, don’t hesitate to forge new paths. Initiate with a color of choice and experiment with combinations. Allow time for reflection, fine-tune as necessary, and observe the resonance of palettes. Over time, individuals familiar with this domain develop an intuition for harmonious color selections.
The Natural Color System (NCS) is a color system that originated from the Hering-Johansson theory and was realized in the form of a color atlas by Hesselgren in 1953. Subsequently, in 1972, Hård, Sivik, and Tonnquist further developed the NCS, which became a Swedish standard in 1979.
The foundational concept of the NCS revolves around Hering’s idea of six elementary color perceptions: white (W), black (S), yellow (Y), red (R), blue (B), and green (G), with all other color perceptions having varying degrees of relation to these six. In the NCS, each color is defined by its similarity to these six elementary colors [4].
Notably, a color cannot be similar to more than two hues simultaneously. For instance, yellow and blue, as well as red and green, are mutually exclusive. The NCS chromaticness (c) is determined by the sum of color variables, while its hue (F) is determined by their ratio.
Colors in the NCS are denoted as sc-F, where s represents blackness, c represents chromaticness (linked to saturation), and F represents the hue of the color. The s and c values, both comprising two digits, are written without space and are separated from F by a hyphen. For example, in the notation 2040-G40Y, the hue is intermediary between green (G) and yellow (Y) in a ratio of 40 to 60.
The geometric representation of the NCS is a symmetric double cone with white and black at the vertices. The other four primary hues are positioned on the circle of full colors, forming corners of a square that touches this circle (refer to Figs. 4, 5, and 6). This geometric configuration mirrors that of the Ostwald system.
Coloroid System
The Coloroid System, developed at Budapest Polytechnical University by Nemcsics and first published in 1975, is a color system that focuses on surface colors illuminated by daylight and perceived by individuals with normal color vision. It is built upon harmonic color differences that aim to approximate aesthetic uniformity. Recognized as a Hungarian standard since 2002, Coloroid has semipolar coordinates representing color points in a linear circular cylinder. These coordinates include the angular coordinate denoting hue (A), radial coordinate representing saturation (T), and vertical axial coordinate indicating luminosity (V).
In the Coloroid system, absolute white (W) and absolute black (S) are positioned at the upper and lower limits of the color space, respectively. White corresponds to the color of a surface illuminated by CIE D65 beam distribution, while black represents a surface perfectly absorbing light. Coloroid limit colors, forming a closed curve within the color space, are the most saturated colors on the Coloroid cylinder. The system also includes 48 Coloroid basic colors, characterized by integer numbers and evenly distributed on the CIE 1931 diagram.
Coloroid color planes are defined by the achromatic axis, with each plane having the same hue and dominant wavelength. Delimited by the neutral axis and Coloroid delimiting curves, these planes determine the shape of surfaces for each hue. Coloroid basic hues, corresponding to basic colors, are organized into 48 sections. Saturation (T), lightness (V), and hue (A) values define the color in the Coloroid system, with notation expressed as hue–saturation–lightness (A–T–V), such as 13-22-56.
Notably, Coloroid saturation quantifies a surface color’s saturation, measured on a scale close to aesthetic uniformity. Lightness denotes the distance from absolute black on a graduated scale, while hue indicates the color’s position within 48 sections based on dominant wavelength. The system’s geometric representation is a regular symmetric double cone, providing a comprehensive framework for defining and categorizing surface colors.
Küppers’ Atlas and Rhombohedric Color System
The German engineer Harald Küppers has introduced an atlas designed specifically for the graphic arts and printing industry, encompassing more than 5,500 nuances. The color samples in this atlas are generated through the four-color printing technique, blending transparent dyes—yellow, magenta, cyan, and black—alongside the white background of the paper.
The gradations of these mixtures are quantified in percentages, directly corresponding to the proportion of surface covered by each dye. This notation serves not only to distinguish different nuances but also functions as a formula for color reproduction. The variations are denoted by 10% differences between individual samples and between consecutive color charts.
The published color charts are categorized into five series, with three being characterized as achromatic mixtures due to the inclusion of black, and the remaining two designated as chromatic mixtures with exclusive interventions of yellow, magenta, and cyan. In the initial three series, black is incrementally added to a mixture of two chromatic dyes, maintained at a consistent 10% variation throughout the entire series and from one chart to another. In the fourth series, yellow is successively introduced to a fixed mixture of two chromatic dyes (magenta and cyan). Series 1–4 consist of 11 charts, representing 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, and 99% of the dye added to the fixed binary mixture. The fifth series includes two additional charts: one featuring yellow-cyan mixtures and 99% magenta, and the other with yellow-magenta mixtures and 99% cyan.
Küppers also represents his system in a three-dimensional space, visualized either as a cube or with a rhombohedric shape, comprising an upper tetrahedron, a central octahedron, and a lower tetrahedron. In the rhombohedric model, white is positioned at the upper vertex of the upper tetrahedron, housing the three subtractive primaries—yellow, magenta, and cyan—in its base. This base also serves as one of the faces of the central octahedron. The lower triangular face of the octahedron features the three colors resulting from the mixture of subtractive primaries in pairs: green (yellow with cyan), red (yellow with magenta), and blue (cyan with magenta). This face is, in turn, shared with the lower tetrahedron, where black is situated at the lower vertex.
Sources: Nemcsics, A. & Caivano, J. L. (2015). Color order systems. In Springer eBooks (S. 1–16). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27851-8_232-7
The Lüscher Color Test, developed by Swiss psychologist Max Lüscher in 1947, assesses the mental and physical state of an individual, determining their performance, resilience, and communicative tendencies through color choices. It claims to contribute to genuine well-being and can influence preferences, including fashion choices.
Here are the key points about the test:
Online Availability: The test is available online, but users should note that browser displays may not precisely replicate the original colors due to fine shading differences.
Psychological Insights: By selecting colors, individuals can uncover personal conflicts, revealing 34 partly unconscious personality aspects. Color choices offer honest insights, avoiding potential distortions present in questionnaire responses.
Test Evaluation: The test results provide indications of personality assessment and comprehensive recommendations for avoiding future stressors.
Max Lüscher: Max Lüscher, currently residing in Lucerne, is a philosopher and psychologist who integrated his passion for colors into his work. His color test finds applications in clinical diagnostics and various industries.
Color Psychology: Lüscher associates basic orientations with colors, such as Blue for contentment and connection, Green for self-esteem and inner control, Red for confidence and drive, and Yellow for unfolding potential and future expectations.
Test Administration: Depending on the context, the test may involve eight to 73 color cards. It’s crucial to interpret results as reflections of the current emotional state, not as fixed personality traits.
Procedure: Test-takers view colors under good lighting, and the browser should ideally provide accurate color representation. Participants should neutrally accept colors without imagining more vibrant shades.
Card Arrangement: The participant arranges cards in a sequence based on personal preference, ranking from the favorite card on the left to the least favorite on the outer right. After flipping the cards, the numbers on the back are noted.
Interpretation: The resulting number combinations correspond to a brief evaluative text, available in associated literature or supplementary online materials.
The Lüscher Color Test is valuable for decisions involving color, offering insights into one’s emotional state and preferences.
„Hard Edge“ is an art movement closely related to Concrete Art, primarily developed in North America. It represents an evolution of color field painting, distinguishing itself by sharply defined edges between color fields, eliminating transitional areas. In essence, it emerged as an offshoot of color field painting, with the critical distinction lying in the clear separation of colors without any gradients. To illustrate, consider a Hard Edge work by Ellsworth Kelly and a color field painting by Mark Rothko.
Originating in the late 1940s, the movement’s roots can be traced to artists like Barnett Newman, Ad Reinhardt, Mark Rothko, and Clyfford Still, who laid the foundation for color field painting. Departing from the gestural and expressive brushstrokes of action painters, they arranged monochromatic color fields on the canvas. In the 1950s, Hard Edge developed as a direct successor to color field painting.
The term „Hard Edge,“ coined by art critic Jules Langsner in the late 1950s, emphasizes the defining feature of this style—sharply delineated contour lines between color fields. Within these fields, one often observes simple geometric shapes, highlighting the affinity with geometric and Concrete Art. Similar to color field painting, Hard Edge emphasizes the flatness of executed color fields, with a noticeable absence of visible brushstrokes. Consequently, the artist’s personal touch is rarely discernible.
Notable figures in the Hard Edge movement during its zenith in the late 1950s and the 1960s include American painters Al Held, Ellsworth Kelly, Kenneth Noland, and Frank Stella. Many of these artists were featured in the influential exhibition „Post Painterly Abstraction,“ curated by Clement Greenberg in 1964 at the Los Angeles County Museum. This association often leads to the classification of Hard Edge as a variant of Post Painterly Abstraction.
Color Field Painting
Color Field Painting emerged in the United States around 1948 and is characterized by paintings featuring monochromatic color fields arranged within the picture space. Key figures in this art movement include Barnett Newman, Mark Rothko, Ad Reinhardt, and Clyfford Still. The central mechanism of these paintings is often associated with the concept of the sublime, aiming to evoke feelings of meditation and transcendence. Artists, particularly Barnett Newman, designed their works to be viewed from a close standpoint, encouraging contemplative immersion in the artwork. Newman, in his essay „The Sublime is now“ (1948), also reflected on the theoretical aspects of the sublime.
Considered part of Abstract Expressionism, Color Field Painting, like Action Painting, is regarded as an expression of the New York School. Despite apparent differences, such as the absence of defined backgrounds and the use of large formats, both styles share features like the principle of hierarchical „All over.“
Within Color Field Painting, artists approached their work differently. For instance, Mark Rothko placed softly delineated color fields on monochromatic backgrounds, creating an inherent sense of movement. In contrast, Barnett Newman used clearly defined color fields in his paintings. Newman’s series „Who’s Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue I-IV“ (1966-70) became iconic in the Color Field genre. Ad Reinhardt’s „Black Paintings,“ created between 1954 and 1967, pushed the boundaries of perceptibility of color and form values.
Two significant exhibitions played a role in positioning Color Field Painting: Clement Greenberg’s curated exhibition „Post Painterly Abstraction“ in 1964 and the 1965 exhibition that brought together painters like Gene Davis, Thomas (Tom) Downing, Morris Louis, Howard Mehring, Kenneth Noland, and Paul Reed, collectively known as the „Washington Color Painters.“
Color Field Painting flourished in the 1950s and 1960s, exerting a significant influence on subsequent art movements, including Hard Edge, Signalism, and Minimal Art.
Itten was a Swiss painter and art educator associated with the Zurich School of Concrete Art. In addition to considering the physical-chemical aspects, Itten emphasized psycho-physical perception in his work.
One notable contribution by Itten is his construction of the color wheel:
He starts with an equilateral triangle featuring primary colors (Yellow at the top, Blue bottom left, Red bottom right), with their mixtures (Yellow with Blue = Green, Blue with Red = Violet, Red with Yellow = Orange) forming the vertices of a hexagon.
Outside this hexagon, he draws a circle with twelve equal sectors. Each sector is filled with the colors located at the vertices of the hexagon.
The resulting empty sectors are then filled with tertiary colors, created by mixing a primary color with a secondary color.
Yellow and Orange = Yellow-Orange
Red and Orange = Red-Orange
Red and Violet = Red-Violet
Blue and Violet = Blue-Violet
Blue and Green = Blue-Green
Yellow and Green = Yellow-Green
Johannes Itten’s color wheel represents a systematic and harmonious organization of colors based on both physical and psycho-physical principles.
According to Johannes Itten’s teachings, there are seven different colour contrasts in the world of colour:
Color-in-Itself Contrast
The „Color-in-Itself Contrast“ refers to the impact of pure, highly intense colors of the first order such as Yellow, Red, Blue, White, and Black. Itten emphasizes that the use of mixed colors diminishes the clarity and effectiveness of this type of contrast.
The more mixed colors are involved, the weaker the distinctiveness of the contrast. However, when employed strategically, this type of contrast can achieve strong visual impact and long-range visibility. Specific color intensity can convey signaling or indicative meaning.
Itten states, „The effect occurs when pure colors are used in a colorful composition. White and black can enhance the lively effect.“
For example, a carmine-red spot on a Prussian-blue background and a vermilion-red spot on a yellow background will both be perceived as „Red.“ Initially, we perceive the color itself without differentiating between the specific shades of red.
Franz Marc: Horse in landscape, 1910
Light-Dark Contrast
The „Light-Dark Contrast“ is a technique used to evaluate color, encompassing hue, brightness, and saturation. The specific brightness value of a color allows for certain color statements, achieving a spatial effect, or shifting and balancing visual weights. This effect is particularly significant in achieving aerial perspective (sfumato) or in the impact of architectural elements in a landscape.
Compositions built on the Light-Dark Contrast exhibit a noticeable use of a limited color palette with strong tonal variations. Bright tones of objects are embedded in a dark environment, creating a highly sculptural effect. The three-dimensionality is achieved by anchoring the brighter tones and highlights to the foreground, while the darker shadows are tied to the background.
Temperature sensation
The concept of temperature sensation in color may seem absurd at first, but it underscores the interconnectedness of various sensory perceptions. Research indicates that the color tone of workspaces, particularly in the blue-green range, can result in a perceived temperature difference of up to 4 degrees Celsius compared to rooms with a red-orange tint. Participants felt the blue-green room, with an interior temperature of 15 degrees Celsius, as cold, while the same individuals found an orange-red room cold only at 11-12 degrees.
Scientifically, this phenomenon suggests that the color blue-green dampens the impulse of organic circulation, while its counterpart, red-orange, stimulates this activity. In the Western cultural context, it is generally accepted that blue appears cold, while the adjacent group of yellow-orange-red appears warm. However, these classifications are relative, and there can be warm blues and cold reds within their respective color families.
The most significant contrast is achieved with the colors red-orange (warm) and blue-green (cold). Itten notes that all other colors can appear warm or cold depending on their contrast with warmer or colder tones. The Cold-Warm contrast denotes a temperature difference, where a pink spot on an orange or Prussian blue background may appear „cool“ or „warm“ depending on the context.
Complementary Contrast:
Itten emphasizes in his color wheel that complementary colors stand opposite each other. When placed side by side, complementary colors enhance each other’s brightness, while when mixed together, they neutralize to create gray-black.
For Itten, the complementary contrast forms the basis of harmonious design because it establishes a perfect balance in the eye.
Each complementary color pair also possesses its unique characteristic:
Yellow – Violet
shows an extreme light-dark contrast
Red-orange – blue-green
shows the strongest cold-warm contrast
Red – green
of equal brightness and equal light values.
Complementary contrast
Its effect is based on the complementary contrast, where each pure color physiologically demands its complementary color. If this color is not present, the eye simultaneously generates the complementary color. This fact demonstrates that the fundamental law of colorful harmony inherently includes the fulfillment of the complementary law.
The simultaneously generated color thus arises as a color sensation in the viewer’s eye and is not physically present. Simultaneous effect occurs not only between gray and a pure color but also between pure colors that are not precisely complementary.
„The reality of a color is not always identical to its effect.“
Goethe commented on simultaneous contrast as follows: „The simultaneous contrast makes the color suitable for aesthetic use.“ A significant exception in the realm of simultaneous contrast is the „Bezold Effect,“ according to Matthaei.
Georges Seurat: „Un dimanche apra’s-midi a’ l’Ile de la Grande Jatte”, (1884-1886)
Color quality
The term „color quality“ in Itten’s view refers to the purity and saturation of color. He describes the quality contrast as the opposition between saturated, vibrant colors and dull, muted colors. Prismatic colors, created through the refraction of white light, exhibit the highest saturation and brilliance. Colors can be muted in four different ways: brightened by white, darkened by black, neutralized by gray, and broken into a dark gray-black by adding the corresponding complementary color.
Color – Non-color Contrast = Intensity Contrast
„It consists of the contrast between vibrant and dull colors. Dimming can occur with black, white, gray, or complementary colors.“ A subdued red appears „brown“ against vermilion red, but on a gray background, it appears „red.“ This contrast occurs as the color purity decreases from a vibrant color to a non-color. A pure red is more intense than a pure green. Mixed colors lose intensity. The addition of black (dark) and white (light) produces light and dark-muted colors.
August Macke: Fribourg Cathedral in Switzerland, 1914
Quantity Contrast
The Quantity Contrast refers to the size ratio of two or more differently sized color areas, in relation to light value and area size. Goethe has established the following approximate values for light values:
Yellow: Orange: Red: Violet: Blue: Green
behave like: 9: 8: 6: 3: 4: 6 The values for complementary color pairs are: Yellow: Violet = 9: 3 = 3: 1 Orange: Blue = 8: 4 = 2: 1 Red: Green = 6: 6 = 1: 1
If these light values are transformed into harmonious area sizes, the light value numbers must be used reciprocally. The three times stronger yellow must therefore occupy an area three times smaller than the complementary violet.
The Harmonic Area Sizes of primary and secondary colors are as follows: Yellow: Orange: Red: Violet: Blue: Green
behave like: 3: 4: 6: 9: 8: 6
or: Yellow: Orange = 3: 4 Yellow: Red = 3: 6 Yellow: Violet = 3: 9 Yellow: Blue = 3: 8 Yellow: Red: Blue = 3: 6: 8 Orange: Violet: Green = 3: 9: 6
breaking with white makes the color character colder breaking with black loses the radiant character, colors appear pale and paralyzed breaking with gray neutralizes and dulls the colors. They become lighter or darker, but in any case, dimmer adding the complementary color, the tonal values then lie between the two colors.
Chemist and Nobel laureate Wilhelm Ostwald addressed the „Normalfarbenfrage“ (normal color question) by developing a color order system. This system took the form of a double cone, capturing all body colors as colorful phenomena regardless of their material composition. Ostwald colored this order representatively with 2400 colors in the large version and 680 colors in the small version. Each color, given its specific place in Ostwald’s system, is referred to as a „color norm.“
Ostwald utilized vibrant, though often not lightfast, coal-tar dyes for his system, particularly deeming them suitable for school use. The Munich Academy professor Max Doerner and his group expressed concerns about the quality of painting materials, striving to set quality standards for pigments and dyes. However, this endeavor did not lead to a definitive solution.
Heinrich Trillich’s „Deutsche Farbenbuch,“ published from 1923 onwards, attempted to establish quality standards. In its second volume in 1925, it dedicated a section specifically to artist colors, expressing reservations about Ostwald’s advocacy for initially lightfast coal-tar dyes and the abstract color norm labeling that obscured the material character of the color.
Ostwald actively promoted his color theory through publications, lectures, workshops, and his Unesma publishing house, which distributed books, color atlases, and educational materials. Industries, including Günther Wagner with an official license from Ostwald, adopted his ideas, producing school paint sets. Winsor & Newton and Reeves in England also created school paint sets based on Ostwald’s principles.
Ostwald’s color theory introduced a new color theory, influenced by Ewald Hering, featuring four „primordial colors“: Yellow, Red, Green, and Blue. Hering defined these as psychologically neutral colors, and Ostwald incorporated them into his color circle, though deviations existed from Hering’s psychological primordial colors.
Ostwald actively promoted his color theory in schools, publishing a specially tailored „Farbschule“ (color school) in 1920. The „Kleinchen“ paint set, aligned with his color system, was central to this educational initiative. The set included 12 color pills, with 8 considered „main colors.“ Ostwald, aware of compromises in his color choices, emphasized the need for corrections to achieve the correct Ostwald color circle. Despite his disregard for lightfastness, Ostwald highlighted the distinction between dye and color.
Ostwald’s push into schools had a significant impact, generating extensive public discussions about his color theory in the early 1920s. Both critics and advocates, especially among art educators like R. Dorias, H. Hensinger, Martin Schaller, and Max Bühler, engaged in debates, presentations, and publications promoting or questioning Ostwald’s ideas.
The industry joined the trend, offering numerous school paint sets labeled with Ostwald’s name. Günther Wagner, the authorized distributor, explicitly emphasized the authenticity of its products, facing competition from unauthorized sets with Ostwald labels.
With Ostwald’s influence, the schools transitioned from the traditional three-color theory (Yellow, Red, Blue) to the four-color theory (Yellow, Red, Blue, Green). Ostwald’s compromises in pigment choices to achieve extensive color mixing capabilities required corrections for specific color areas.
Ostwald’s venture into schools left a lasting impact, leading to a shift in color theory education and influencing the production of art supplies in the early 1920s.
Josef Albers‘ book, „Interaction of Color,“ delves into the nuances of black and white, exploring them not just in terms of value but also in hue. The text challenges the simplistic view of white being just white and black being merely black, emphasizing that their specificity emerges when juxtaposed with similar forms or other colors.
Albers intricately addresses the conditionality of color, highlighting how it exists in our imagination and can be subject to interpretation. The book questions whether color’s meaning is relative to specific situations and underscores the interactive nature of color. Albers emphasizes that color is not passive; instead, it requires active engagement and purposeful activation through group reasoning.
Transparency emerges as a crucial concept in „Interaction of Color.“ When two colors mix transparently, the result is a new color, distinct from the blend of the original two. Albers stresses the importance of considering color for both its value and saturation, particularly in the context of a specific place. Group perception, according to Albers, can activate colors and imbue them with purpose within a given space.
In the context of societal issues, such as the tragic murder of George Floyd by the Minneapolis Police, Albers’s insights resonate. The book’s emphasis on avoiding negative judgments of color aligns with the call to recognize and confront biases. Albers encourages us to challenge notions of „taste“ and reject the labeling of any color as distasteful or „ugly.“ The overarching goal is to understand that color gains clarity in context, standing next to another color to reveal its value. This understanding extends beyond individual perceptions, fostering collaboration and trust in establishing a consensus that transcends personal limits.
Munsell aimed to systematically account for each attribute of color through organized visual steps. He introduced 100 steps for hue, based on five primary and five intermediate colors. Munsell structured his system with ten units of value and an open-scale named „Chroma,“ resembling saturation. The resulting three-dimensional system can be visualized as a color tree. Among various attempts to construct color systems, Munsell’s approach, founded on „perceptual equidistance,“ achieved widespread success.
Initially proposing a subtle color sphere influenced by N. O. Rood’s „Modern Chromatics,“ Munsell later realized its geometric symmetry inadequacy for representing perceived color relationships. His efforts culminated in the 1915 publication of the „Color Atlas,“ presenting a naturally grown order organized around a central vertical gray axis, also known as the „color tree.“
Munsell built his system on a ten-part circle, arranging colors at equal intervals and selecting opposites that mix to produce neutral gray (the Principle of Compensativity). The color tones of hand-painted chips were aligned based on three variables in Munsell’s unique nomenclature: „Hue“ (color tone), „Value“ (brightness index), and „Chroma“ (saturation levels). Each color was characterized by the symbolic H/V/C triplet. Munsell developed the entire system through color wheel mixtures, trusting his eyes‘ judgment.
The vertical Value scale divided the range between Black and White into ten steps, determined using a self-constructed photometer. Munsell calibrated the steps by considering the square root of the measured reflected intensity, deviating from linear changes in reflection. Munsell selected samples of Red (R), Yellow (Y), Green (G), Blue (B), and Purple (P) that appeared equidistant from each other and from a gray of the same value. These became the fundamental hues of his system, supplemented by five mixtures, arranged in a circle around a neutral gray. Chroma values were arbitrarily assigned to all ten main colors and their mixtures, with an open-ended scale reaching values up to 12 or 14, depending on color intensity.
Munsell’s color wheel featured a total of 40 hues, resulting from subdividing the original five hue intervals into 10, 20, and 40 segments, ensuring perceptual equidistance. The unconventional color names are also listed.
A new edition of the „Color Atlas,“ titled „Munsell Book of Color,“ emerged in 1929 after Munsell’s death, and it is the version still in use today. In 1942, the „American Standards“ organization recommended its application for specifying surface colors. The Munsell notation was refined in connection with the „Optical Society of America,“ known as „renotation.“
This material standardization was crucial, allowing the translation of all other color systems into Munsell’s framework using standard physical methods. Modern color researchers express the desire for Munsell to reconstruct his system with contemporary color measurement tools, potentially combining his sensitive color evaluation with valence metrics, a uniquely German term referring to the contribution of a color stimulus to the effect of a mixture. Munsell’s reliance on color wheel mixtures was adjusted to minimize systematic deviations from modern valence metrics.
In the 15th century, during the Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci attempted to systematize the variety of colors. He based his approach on an arrangement of four „primary colors“: Yellow, Green, Blue, and Red. Da Vinci’s notes on art and painting, exploring color harmony, position him as one of the founders of color theory.
Isaac Newton furthered da Vinci’s theories in the early 18th century. Newton passed white light through a glass prism, discovering that it broke down into colors, similar to a rainbow. These colors, known as spectral colors, formed the basis of his color circle. According to Newton, Red, Green, and Blue are the primary colors, combining to create White. In Newton’s color theory, Black represents the absence of light.
Goethe’s color theory 1800
Goethe’s color theory is based on an elemental, polar opposition of light and dark. He explains colors as boundary phenomena between light and darkness. Yellow lies at the boundary of brightness („first at light“), and blue at the boundary of darkness („first at darkness“). The blue of the sky arises from the ancient Greek concept of turbidity, as atmosphere, through a transparent medium, the air, against the darkness of space. According to Goethe, colors arise from the mixture of light and darkness, in the semi-darkness. However, consistently implementing this idea means that the addition of spectral colors could never result in white light, leading to Goethe’s disagreement with Newton.
Goethe’s color theory starts with only two pure colors. He emphasizes that purple cannot be mixed from other colors. Therefore, he takes yellow, blue, and red as pure paint colors. After observing a color, our eye produces the complementary color (successive contrast), prompting Goethe to represent these color pairs diametrically opposite each other in a circle. He also assumes a progression of colors towards purple, placing purple at the top of the circle. Consequently, green, as the complementary color and counterpart, is at the bottom. Blue is to the left of green, and yellow to the right, which, when mixed, produce green. Yellow-red is between yellow and purple, and blue-red is between blue and purple.
The part of his color circle transitioning from yellow to red is seen by Goethe as the positive side, while the other half towards blue is the negative side. He associates yellow with effect, light, brightness, power, warmth, proximity, and repulsion, and blue with deprivation, shadow, darkness, weakness, cold, distance, and attraction. Goethe’s main intention was to determine the „sensory-moral effect“ of each color „on the sense of sight (…) and through its mediation on the soul.“ He sees color „as conscious contents of sensory qualities,“ emphasizing the psychological impact of colors:
Colors on the positive side „are lively, vibrant, and aspiring.“
Yellow appears „magnificent and noble, creating a warm and comfortable impression.“
Colors on the negative side „contribute to a restless, soft, and yearning sensation,“ and
blue „gives us a feeling of cold.“
Goethe’s work had a lasting impact on color theory, although it faced rejection at times, mainly due to the physical aspects that align with a holistic classical-natural scientific worldview, contrasting with Newton’s mathematical-scientific approach. The historical overview of color theory and especially Goethe’s texts on the psychological effects of colors continue to influence thought today. From a contemporary perspective, Goethe’s and Newton’s color theories arise from two incompatible worldviews and must be considered side by side and in historical context.
Chevreul constructed a 72-part color circle, featuring three primary colors—Red, Yellow, and Blue—along with three primary mixtures—Orange, Green, and Violet, and six additional secondary mixtures. The resulting sectors are divided into five zones, and each radius is segmented into 20 sections, representing various brightness levels. Here, for the first time, we encounter the active role of the brain in color perception, suggesting that colors are, in a sense, actions of the world within our minds.
During Chevreul’s search for a practical color organization for textile production, he delved into the laws of color contrasts. His 72-part color circle defines shades through changes in a color’s intensity towards white (higher intensity) or black (weaker intensity), with ten possible steps according to Chevreul.
Within Chevreul’s color circle, you find three subtractive primary colors (Red, Yellow, and Blue), three secondary colors (primary mixtures Orange, Green, and Violet), and six secondary mixtures. The resulting sectors are grouped into five zones, and each radius is divided into 20 sections, indicating different brightness levels. The notation reflects the proportions of colors; for instance, 9B/1C means 9/10 Black and 1/10 of the corresponding color.
With the hemisphere, Chevreul attempts a physical representation of colors in space. The axis of Black serves as a ray exploring various intensity levels.
Chevreul believed that the multitude of color tones and their harmony could be defined through numerical relationships. His aim was to provide artists using colored materials with a comprehensive tool. Despite the influence of harmony theories, such as „Harmonie d’analogues“ (Harmony of Analogy) and „Harmonie de contraste“ (Harmony of Contrast), Chevreul could not identify a law of color harmony. It simply does not exist.
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