One of the most asked questions in all of my workshops is about my use of color. Students want to know how I choose my color palette...what inspires my color choices...and how I work with color in my paintings. So I thought I'd share a little about my color inspirations and give you a few tips on how to incorporate COLOR PLAY into your artwork, sketchbooks or art journals.
My color choices are very intuitive. I've always had a strong sense for color since I was younger. I love mixing colors and can see a swatch of color and can mix it just from looking at it. It's something I've been able to do since I was in high school, where I learned how to mix the color wheel using Prismacolor pencils. It has always come easy and very naturally for me. Some people can belt out beautiful songs, I have a talent with paint and color. :)
"Many of my color choices are inspired by nature..a fallen leaf, a peacock feather, the inside of a shell, a bouquet of flowers and even sometimes by the clothing I wear."
I take a lot of photos on my walks with Indie everyday. I always have my iPhone ready to snap photos. I love to thumb through magazines for color trend research, to see what colors are influencing fashion, home and interior design. I studied color theory in college, as part of my design curriculum, but to tell you the truth I don't remember many of the lessons. Studying color really helped me become a stronger graphic designer.
I usually don't start a project with a color palette in mind, unless there is a specific theme or brief I am working from. For most of my art journaling and painted canvas work, I choose colors as I paint...sometimes it's based on a mood or feeling, other times it might be inspiration I pull from photos that I take on my daily walk.I love doing "trending" trips to see what colors and styles are happening in home, fashion and interiors. While at stores I'll take photos of things that I love. Sometimes I print the pictures and put them up on an inspiration board.
My color palette is usually bold, bright and pops off the page. Lately, I've been experimenting adding a few muted colors in my palette, with hints of greys, gun metal but with bursts of bright/bold colors. I'm really loving the matte look I'm creating with my new paint/pigment/clay mixes. In much of my work, there are hints of turquoise and pink/magenta..two of my fave colors.
"There is no color combination I avoid, I just let whatever happens happen and let it unfold as I paint the canvas."
Here's a few suggestions on working with color and developing your own color palette.
- practice painting with only the THREE primary colors with black and white. experiment mixing colors and create a color wheel. avoid mixing ALL three primary colors together to avoid "muddy" paintings. work with 1-2 colors first, let the layers dry then add a third color.
- start a Pinterest board with images of things that inspire you for their use of color. also, pin your own photos..you should start to see a trend in what you are drawn to.
- take photos of things that are appealing and create an inspiration board, pin the photos to your wall or on a piece of foam core.
- create a *flair tray...a collection of your favorite findings...add snippets and swatches of paper, fabric, fibers and laces in your color palette to your inspiration board.
- take a weeks worth of photos and create a color palette from your photos. upload the photos into an app like ColourSchemers to create digital palettes. keep a record of the palettes on your blog or in your art journal/sketch book.
- create color tags using magazines. cut pieces of color swatches then collage them onto a shipping tag. use your color palettes to inspire your paint choices in your journal.
- go to your favorite stores and do color research, take photos of patterns and color combinations that intrigue you.
- keep a color journal. tape color cards or paint swatches to the page. use this journal strictly for recording color and color combinations.
- make a color sampler of your favorite paints and markers in your journal or sketchbook using your favorite color combinations.
- study your favorite artists and their use of color. why do you like it? what does it say?
- spend time each week working in new color palettes to help you develop your own color language.
- register for a color theory class at a design college. {I'm developing and teaching a online workshop all about COLOR/color mixing that will launch in my new art.journal.PLAY membership + creative commuity}
- look through and read magazines/books other than art related ones..fashion, home, interior design, nature, business, children's to see if anything inspires you.
- grab paint swatches from the hardware store and mix and match them to create your own color palettes. tape them to the wall or in your journal. experiment mixing the colors with paint or colored pencils
- pull color palettes from your stash of printed backgrounds, create your own paint swatch cards from the paintings and tape them into your journal.
- follow me on Instagram @treicdesigns for a daily dose of COLOR and art journaling inspiration
"The more you experiment and explore color and PLAY, the more comfortable you will be with working with color intuitively."
Hope this gives you some fun ideas on how to explore color. Have fun creating your own signature color palette! Thanks for being part of our creative community!
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If you want to take a deep dive into color with me..come PLAY and paint at one of my upcoming studio workshops.
colorCRUSH. colourLOVE studio workshop
Learn all about using Golden Artist Colors paints and mediums to create color palettes, experiment with color mixing, create *flair trays and color inspiration boards and more in my studio workshop. details + register
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always be inspired...PLAY. dream. be FREE! xo~Traci
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