Six Painting Series from Color Theory: Part 3

Pin It

Mid-Twentieth Century American Playground 3
Matthew D. Hughes
Gouache on Bristol
9 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches
2011

Of the six paintings in the series, this is the one that took the longest. The reason for the it taking the longest should be self evident: pointillism. 

Yes, the required style for this assignment was pointillism. Although I personally like the optical effects that are achieved through the use of pointillism, this style is so tedious, monotonous, and time consuming that I have to question if the outcome is worth the  cost. The only reason I can see that would drive me to visit pointillism again in my artistic journey is if I were to come up with some completely original fantastic twist on the style that warranted re-exploration. Until that time comes, pointillism will continue to gather dust on my shelf of stylistic tools.

Ok, enough about pointillism. Let's talk color. For this composition, complementary color contrast was required. Johannes Itten's complementary contrast is probably the easiest to employ. This ease of use comes from the ability to choose any hue and then merely pair it with the hue that is directly opposite it on the color wheel. Therefore, Yellow-Green is paired with Red-Violet, Yellow with Violet, and Orange with Blue. As is the case in this painting, complementary contrast is not limited to the use of only two  complementary hues; there can be multiple complements in action.