Jessica Crabtree

My series on the color spectrum is complete! Click on the links to view each post.

Red

Orange

Yellow

Green

Blue

Purple

Purple is the most mysterious and elusive color in the spectrum, and the rarest color found in nature. The expense of purple pigments is responsible for its association with royalty throughout history – a distinction for which it is best known. Garments dyed with the Tyrian purple manufactured from murex snails were a status symbol throughout Europe and Asia, and for many centuries were worn only by the wealthiest tier of society, including kings and queens, giving rise to the name “royal purple.” For the Phoenicians who originally produced this dye, the color became a national signature; their name comes from the Greek “phoinikes” meaning “purple.”

Elsewhere in the world, the indigo and purple shells of certain clams and whelks were ground into wampum beads by Native Americans of the eastern seaboard. These beads were woven into belts for record-keeping purposes and for legal and ceremonial contracts.

Purple combines characteristics of both cool and warm color groups, making it balanced and tranquil. It is easily incorporated as a secondary color anywhere black, blues, or browns are used, and is best balanced by accent colors with opposite characteristics, such as yellow or orange.

Q: What’s the difference between purple and violet?
A: Purple is a color, the combination of blue and red. Violet is a light signature or a range in the light spectrum. It marks the far end of the visible light spectrum and has the lowest wavelength and the highest frequency humans can see short of the ultraviolet range. True violet can’t be reproduced through the primary color scheme, so for all practical purposes, we use purple.

National Geographic Photo Gallery: Life in Color – Purple

This clever little Flash interactive profiles each of the colors of the spectrum and their functions in art and symbolism. Not much science, but features a fully-interactive color lab (see screenshot below). Very cute and enjoyable for young artists (or the young at heart). Also available in a Spanish version.

Color in Motion: Flash Presentation

(Click screenshots for larger view)

Birren’s color model is a useful extension of the color wheel, because it deals with color in terms we relate to pigments such as paint or chalk. More importantly, it includes a vocabulary for expressing different shades of meaning (no pun intended!) concerning the technical side of color. Most of these terms are used interchangeably on an everyday basis; but when used for their actual intended purpose they can be a valuable communication tool for the artist.

For instance:

• A hue is a particular wavelength of light on the spectrum (or color wheel); otherwise “color” – but more precise.
• A tint is a hue blended with white; if red is the hue in question, hot pink might be a resulting tint.
• A shade is a hue combined with black: i.e., crimson is a darker shade of red.
• A tone is a hue that has been desaturated, or diluted with both black and white (that is, gray), making the original color seem “muddied.”

Birren Color Triangle

It’s interesting to note that specific art eras, or even individual artists, can be classified by their signature range within the color triangle. Paintings in which tints predominate tend to be bright, airy, and imaginative. Tones are good at portraying gloomy, mysterious, or atmospheric subjects, while a tendency towards shades provides intensity and drama.

(Thanks to wetcanvas.com for the graphic.)