Compliments of the House, Inside and Out

Compliments of the House Inside and Out

Thinking about systems of opposites..which is exactly what complimentary colors are..colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel.

Sets of compliments are created from the combination of one of the three primary colors (those which cannot be mixed from any other colors: Red, Yellow, Blue), and one of the secondary colors (a color created from a combination of two of the primaries: Green, Orange, and Purple).

Red and Green, Blue and Orange, and Yellow and Purple are the complimentary sets.  These powerful pairs play together in any number of ways. Like the relationship of black to white, they set each other off when placed next to each other, and “neutralize” each other when mixed together, creating potentially gorgeous  hues of gray.

Pairs of compliments can be used to great effect, and are big fun to design with. They can be used as accents, as a background and an accent, to create a sense of drama, or just to wake up our senses.  They can be found in nature…think of a field of red poppies amidst green grasses, a glowing orange sun sinking past a midnight blue horizon, a creamy yellow moon rising against a velvety purple sky.

Green leaves outside and green window shades  inside set off the red and cream hand-painted design atop a Northern California Benihana Restaurant.

We can almost taste the predominant apple green in this San Francisco Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt, and its intensity is heightened by the streaks of red framing the counter.

“Pale” red…or, pink…sets off the strong, brilliant, almost fluorescent looking green. Because this pink is softer and paler than red, the intensity of putting the two together is mitigated, and gives the sense of Springtime holidays, rather than those of Winter!

Here it is the green that is softer than the red…a minty, slightly earthy hue that relieves the strong pinky red, but also allows it to remain dominant.

Copper, a form of orange, frames the mottled blue of this entryway and makes it pop.

The strong orange accent brings the weathered blue into focus, and is framed by it, the whole softened by white.

Copper against blue, mottled with a rusty hue illustrates the opposite effects of complimentary pairs: The orangey copper stands out against its blue compliment, which is  toned down by the addition of orangey red sponged over it.

Orange and blue, the colors of fire and water (themselves opposites), work together to create a sense of drama in this otherworldly setting. or is it a film set?

The new Dunn Edwards Paints Store in Marina Del Rey, CA uses the tension of opposites between orange and multiple blues to great effect!

Turquoise and brick red, another version of the blue and orange complimentary pair play well together on this house in the foggy Sunset District of San Francisco.

Gold and purple, a version of the compliments yellow and purple, are both associated with royalty, which add to their sense of drama, intensity, and just plain awesomeness when paired.

The yellow ceiling gradates to orange, and provides sharp contrast to the purply-wine walls. Those who live here would have to love strong color!

Creamy yellow both accents and relieves the dominant  periwinkle hue making it easier for our eye to rest upon it, and also more visually arresting. A beautiful combination!

The yellow/purple compliments of ochre and wine, relieved and softened by white, accent the multitudinous ornament of this Victorian in glorious detail.  Without the white though,  the intensity might be tiring to our eyes. The white soothes and frames the punch that the complimentary relationship packs.

How have You used compliments, and the complimentary relationship in your creative endeavors? Architecture, design, color consulting…personal art and craft pieces?  Please share and enjoy, compliments of the house!

Coming to Terms: Colorfulness & Chroma

Coming to Terms: Colorfulness & Chroma

Many of us love to “geek out’ on color…whether it be with tools, materials or terms.  There isn’t always agreement about what each term actually means, and some of them seem to overlap.  Maybe some color terms cannot be neatly tied up in even a colorful bow of one definition.

Let’s perceive this post as an exploration, an investigation, and a drilling down into some of the color terms we use every day.   Well, the color terms we may use often, without truly thinking about it, or considering what they mean.  Perception…that’s the ticket!  We’re going to take this slowly, step-by-step, working (and playing) through the terms, like Noah’s Ark, two by two. We started at the beginning, with Color &  Hue.  Now let’s work our way through, and look at the inter-related terms Colorfulness and Chroma.

Colorfulness:  The definition that made the most sense to me is: ‘”the degree of difference between a color and gray. “–https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorfulness   In essence, Colorfulness is the level, or amount of color in a color! Not to be confused with “Hue“, or the “color of a color”. IE-the question,  “What color is it?” Relates to Hue, while “How full of Color is it?” relates to Colorfulness.

Gray is a mixture of black and white, “Grey or gray is an intermediate color between black and white, a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally a color “without color.” To drill down a bit on “Gray”, and its components, Black and White: “Black…. is the darkest color, the result of the absence of or complete absorption of light. It is the opposite of white. ….the color the human eye sees when it looks at light which contains all the wavelengths of the visible spectrum, at full brightness and without absorption. White does not have any hue.”

Chroma may be described as “the colorfulness relative to the brightness of another color that appears white under similar viewing conditions.”  According to this definition, Chroma is a type, or aspect of Colorfulness, which relates to Brightness (which relates to Light, and  Lightness.)  This exploration  is becoming quite a tongue-twister as well as a brain-teaser!

Thus, according to the above definitions, Chroma, means how far a color is from achromatic gray (Colorfulness),  as compared to the brightness of another color that appears white under similar viewing conditions.  Spoiler alert: “Saturation is the colorfulness of a color relative to its own brightness.“     (We will get into Saturation, Brightness, Purity and Intensity in subsequent posts!)

Thus the term Chroma is associated with Brightness, or the perception of luminance.  I am repeating here, but sometime repetition helps us to drill down into, dissect and finally understand meaning.

Well, that is about all the drilling down we have time for at the moment, so I  will leave You with my heartfelt wish that your Life be filled with as much Colorfulness, and the highest level of Chroma that you desire, with the Achromatic moments far and few between.  Unless you love shades of Gray, of course!

Color: A Balancing Act 2

Color: A Balancing Act 2

What is the “emotional loading of a space”?

Says Helen Gurura,  an internationally accredited colour design consultant,  and executive vice-president of the International Association of Color Consultants (IACC). “Feelings can be evoked through colour at even an unconscious level and this gives rise to the term “colour emotion”, defined as “an associated feeling or emotion induced in the brain during the colour perception process”. In architectural psychology terminology this is called “the emotional loading of a space”.  Achieving balance in colour design clearly remains a challenge though.”

French Cafe..anyone?

In last week’s post, we looked at a variety of exterior architectural color schemes through the lens of visual “unity” and “complexity”, exploring what creates both over and under-stimulation,  and ways of creating balance between these extremes.  The goal is to  avoid both extreme unity/monotony/sensory deprivation which results in under-stimulation, and extreme complexity/variety which can over-stimulate the senses.  As Ms. Gurura states, “The balance between unity and complexity is the first and most important rule in the design of user-supportive architectural environments.”

Essentially, we expect, and I extrapolate from  this want and need  our senses to be moderately stimulated at all times.  I must assume that  dreaming accomplishes this when sleeping…even when mediating, we are often instructed to concentrate on the breath, a sensory experience.

The built environment is a place where we may posit our dreams, our imaginations, even our breath.  When we have been “doing battle”, even if that means fighting the good fight, out there in the world, we may need our homes to return to, relax, recharge, regroup  and  catch our breath in.

Let’s relax now, take a deep breath, and enjoy looking at some interiors that were designed through placement of color, pattern, texture, and more, to not only meet the functional needs and wants of those who live and breath there, but also to express their innermost hopes, dreams, wishes and desires…and perhaps even fantasies about themselves and their lives.

The owner of a charming home in  Berkeley, Ca, wanted to transform his son’s old bedroom into a guest room, that his fiance would claim as her own special space in the house. His love of strong color, bold artwork, rich, layered patterns and textures  is mitigated to accommodate  her taste for beige by the choice of a neutral wall color and creamy trim.

The wall color is taken to the bookcases, which frame not only scores of colorful books, but also his son’s powerful painting. By keeping the bookcases “color neutral”, what is contained within and between them is kept front and center, and the multitude of colors and patterns do not overwhelm.

Warmth, richness, depth,and elegance reign in this master bedroom, where the deep earthy golden-brown-with hints of persimmon wall color compliments the multi-hued wood floor, the heavy dark wood furniture, and fresh white trim.  The trim is needed to relieve the strength of the other colors, and because the room is spacious, filled with strong lines and architectural details, and  large pieces.

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Although this room doesn’t have the plethora of  color, pattern and texture in its details like the Berkeley guest room above, the complexity of its space, containing recesses, alcoves and a window seat, the variance in the texture and light reflectance of its surfaces, and the expanse of textiles on bed and chair, give it just as much visual variety and interest. The room is beautifully balanced and filled with light, comfort and calm, with enough accent to engage the senses.

Here again pale “neutral” (read, “beige” ) walls and tile, and white ceiling contain,  frame and unify strong color and bursts of pattern,  just as the streamlined silver frames contain but do not restrain the beautiful, bright  watercolor paintings created by the owners’ children. The effect of the paintings and blue-patterned vase is amplified by their reflection in the mirror, which adds a sense of space to a smaller room. The varying colors and patterns are also on different planes: the paintings on the wall parallel to our line of sight, the counter top perpendicular to it,  the vase parallel, but below the paintings, creating a layered effect, adding complexity and variety to the space.

The serenity of this bedroom is achieved not only with soothing neutrals on wall and ceiling, but carrying that over into large swathes of textiles such as the bedspread, pillows and throw. Layers of texture and intricacy are created  through the “distressed” mirror frame which adds a painted and reflected scene to the visual mix, and intricately detailed and tasseled window treatment which adds sheen, pattern, and a whole other level of visual interest, as well as framing the window.  Who couldn’t relax in this room?  R & R is exactly what it is for…and as unbroken as possible. As opposed to…

the “boudoir”, in the same unit!  This room will keep you awake, though it does share the element of faux fur pillows with the bedroom. Needless to say, the owners are style Franophiles, at least with this space, which is a second dwelling for them, an urban “get-away” from their home in Napa County, CA. In this alcove, they had big  fun “papering’ the walls with a  fabulous, French-feeling fabric, placing a gold “sunburst” above the divan ( covered in the same pattern), and “peppering” it with black fur pillows.  Isn’t it wonderful to have a room where you can just go wild with the design and decor? Shouldn’t we all have that?  This room is just a little jewel box of color and pattern, and we found exactly the right paint color for the ceiling, to pull out the rich cream hue  in the fabric, and soften the pinky-red surrounding it.  Because the fabric is so all-encompassing, the walls, curtain, divan and pillows covered in it merge into one, and the complexity and visual variety is contained in that one pattern. The room is small, the room is warm, the room is happy, and the room sings…a totally different song then the bedroom,  and  another example of “securing unity in the midst of variety….”, and achieving balance, as Helen Gurura would say!