Color Theory

The basics of color theory for most of us, are learned from a young age.  We are told what the primary colors are, what the secondary colors are, and sometimes we might even learn the tertiary colors.  Basically, we learn how the color wheel is structured.  Once we reach high school we learn so much more, and even more in college.

When teaching color theory to students below the college level, there are many things that they probably won't understand.  But, to keep things moving in the classroom, the students can use their teachings to create a work of art that teaches them how to properly mix colors.  They can make their own color wheel using the primary colors, red, green, and blue.

Once they have completed their color wheel, they can then move on to the project.

The Project

Using a camera and Photoshop, the teacher will take portraits of each student, change them to black and white, and then use posterize to minimize the tone range.  Using a grid, the students will map out the shapes of color and enlarge them onto a larger piece of paper.  They will then use tempera or acrylic paint to blend a single color, of their choice, with white to create a monochromatic self portrait.

(work in progress)

The students will also have the option to use more than one color.  They can use complimentary colors, tertiary colors, or even polychromatic for those who are more advanced.  To achieve this the students must understand how to properly place color into the highlights and shadows.  Placement of warm and cool colors is an option.  The warm colors for the highlights, and the cool for the shadows.

Andy Warhol

This is a great artist to talk about when teaching this lesson.  He used the silkscreen printing process to achieve beautiful color combinations.  He's most famous for his portraits of celebrities, especially Marilyn Monroe.