Colour

Class schedule

Introduction

Colour is the property of an object that produces a sensation in the eye through the way it reflects or emits light. It shapes our perceptions, emotions and well-being, and it sets the ambience of a space. By choosing and combining colours deliberately, designers can evoke emotions, create focal points and improve the look of a room.

Colours also fall into useful categories: neutrals (beige, taupe, grey, cream, brown, black, white), brights (yellow, orange, red), whites (cream, eggshell, ivory, Navajo white, vanilla) and darks (black, grey, navy blue, burgundy). Even if you want to work only in neutrals, or only in white, colour is unavoidable, so learn to respect it alongside all the other elements and principles of design.

Colour relations

Always look at colour relative to elevations and perspective drawings, and start with a complete colour plan for every surface.

Colour and light

Colour is transmitted directly through light. A rainbow shows the full visible spectrum refracted by rain. Midday clear daylight contains the whole spectrum. In most other conditions light does not reflect the entire spectrum, and the colour your eye perceives is the part of the spectrum the opaque object reflects.

• Reddish-gold light, such as a sunset, lacks blue and violet. It emphasises warm colours and neutralises blue and violet.
• Bluish light, such as fluorescent, lacks red and yellow. A red or yellow cushion under blue light seems to lose its colour.
• Light reflected off a coloured wall does not contain the whole spectrum. A large coloured object in an enclosed room can tint the light in that room.
• Bluish or greenish colours make a shady room seem shadier. Red, yellow or orange colours balance shady, cool light.
• A glary, sunny, overly warm room can be balanced and cooled with blue, violet or green on walls and furniture.

Colour and pigment

Colour can be described in terms of hue, lightness and saturation. A pigment is the substance that gives an item a particular colour. The pigmentation of an opaque surface decides which wavelengths are absorbed and which are reflected. For a surface to look red it must absorb most of the blue and green light and reflect the red. A black object absorbs the entire spectrum and a white one reflects it all. When pigments are mixed, their absorption combines and the remaining colours decide how the pigment is seen. Three inseparable, interrelated factors affect colour perception: hue, value and intensity.

Hue

Hue is colour in its original form: how much red, yellow or blue an object appears to have, or really how much of each it reflects.

• Primary colours tend to look good together. So do secondaries, and so do tertiaries.
• Adjacent colours, next to each other on the wheel (red to red-orange to orange, or blue to blue-violet to violet), often look balanced and harmonious.
• A complementary colour is directly opposite on the wheel. A complement absorbs all the colours the primary lacks, so red and green mixed should appear black. Side by side, complements heighten each other’s characteristics. Mixed, the opposite happens.
• Simultaneous contrast. Complements emphasise each other’s hue though there is no real change. This is most apparent when the two are close in value. When their values differ a lot, the hue effect is weaker, but the colours separate further in value: the lighter looks clearer and lighter, and the darker looks richer and darker.

Value

Value is how much dark or light a colour reflects in relation to black and white, often expressed from 1 (black) to 10 (white). Add white to raise value and black to lower it.

Each primary has its own essential lightness. Yellow is lighter than red, so there is more scope to darken yellow than lighten it, and so more shades of yellow than tints. Red has a mid-range value, with many tints and many deeper shades. Blue has the darkest natural value, so more tints than the other primaries and fewer shades. Changing a colour’s lightness or darkness affects all three of its properties.

Simultaneous contrast also heightens perceived value. Black mixed into a hue lowers its intensity, but placed next to a colour it raises its intensity. White lightens a colour when mixed, but a hue next to white tends to look darker.

Chroma

Chroma, also called intensity or saturation, is the brilliance or dullness of a colour. It depends on how much pure hue is in it.

• Complements of the same value heighten each other’s intensity, and so does proximity to black.
• Mixing white or black into the complement of a colour lowers intensity.
• Yellow has the highest chroma, red the next highest and blue the least.
• A pure hue has the highest chroma. Pastels, tints with a lot of white, have less chroma but a high value. Dark colours, shades of a hue, have less chroma and a low value.
• Strengthen intensity by adding more of the predominant hue. Lower it by mixing in grey or the complementary hue. Hues dulled this way are called tones.

Colour schemes

Creating a palette is a crucial step. A well-considered palette gives visual harmony and communicates the mood you want. Consider the purpose of the room: a bedroom may need calming colours and a living room more vibrant tones, but there should be a visual link and flow across the whole building. Identify the atmosphere you want, then aim for harmony using colours that are analogous, complementary or in the same family. There are seven colour schemes to guide you.

Steps to create a colour palette

1. Choose your whitesNeutrals matter in every palette. Choose a white and a dominant neutral. Match the white’s undertone to your fixed elements, or complement it. Test several whites on the wall next to each other, because they all look white in the shop. This white becomes the default for trim, cabinetry, furniture and ceilings. For warm undertones choose a white with a slight yellow tint.
2. Choose your neutralThis is the go-to neutral for connected areas such as open spaces, hallways and lofts, and it is great for closets and bathrooms. Option A, a warm neutral (warm white with a yellow or pink undertone, through beige to brown), coordinates with warm undertones and complements cool ones. Option B, a cool neutral (cool white with a blue or green undertone, through grey to black), coordinates with cool undertones and complements warm ones.
3. Choose one bold colourBold is relative: this is the darkest or most saturated colour in the palette, a version of the client’s favourite that matches or complements the undertone of the fixed elements. A favourite is the colour they will not tire of and are most comfortable taking a risk with.
4. Choose a complement for your bold colourThis is the best friend of the bold colour. For a monochromatic or complementary scheme, choose a tint of the bold colour. For an analogous scheme, choose the colour next to it on the wheel. If the bold colour is purple, choose red or blue.
5. Choose an accent colourUsed sparingly or for dramatic impact. Choose a neutral that contrasts with the default. In a monochromatic palette, use a tint or shade of the bold colour. In an analogous palette, use a tint of the second colour or another analogous colour: if the bold colour is purple and the second is blue, the third could be a lighter blue or a green.

Practical application

• Balance. Balance warm and cool colours. Neutral tones bridge contrasting colours.
• Room function. Use calming colours in bedrooms and meditation areas, and vibrant, stimulating ones in active spaces such as offices and playrooms.
• Accents. A well-chosen accent draws attention to focal points such as artwork or architecture.
• Culture and personal taste. Cultural associations change a colour’s meaning, and personal preferences and experience matter, so consider the occupants’ individual tastes.
• Lighting. Natural and artificial light dramatically change how a colour looks. Always consider the light sources.
• Combinations. Complementary colours create dynamism and analogous colours offer harmony.
• Trends versus timelessness. Trends are tempting, but timeless designs will not feel outdated quickly.
• Function and maintenance. Some colours show dirt, scratches and wear more easily. Choose forgiving colours for high-traffic areas.
• Psychological safety. In spaces such as healthcare facilities, calming, non-stimulating colours support well-being. You can add pastel accents so the atmosphere is interesting rather than overwhelmingly boring.

Colour and mood

• Closely related values. A closely matched scheme creates a subdued mood. It is harmonious and safe but can be boring, lacking depth and creativity. More contrast gives a more energised space with bursts of colour.
• Undertones. Check that the undertones of each colour complement each other. Warm undertones in a beige base pair well with warm accents. A colour made by mixing others shows its undertone through the proportion of colours used. Only the primaries are not made by mixing. Your eye quickly identifies the masstone, the main aspect (“that’s blue”). The undertone is the subtle influence of another colour beneath it, and it may only show next to other colours or under certain light.
• Balance boldness with neutrals. Neutrals ground bold colours so they stand out without clashing.
• High-contrast spaces. When hue, value and intensity contrast for 40% or more of your colour choices in a space, the room appears high contrast.

Colour psychology

Colour psychology explains how colours influence behaviour, mood, perception and interaction in a space, whether it is for relaxation, stimulation, productivity or comfort. Use it together with the occupant’s personality and preferences and the practical demands of the space, so the interior is emotionally resonant as well as attractive.

The space factor

• In a large area of white, a contrasting colour tends to brighten.
• A thin area of white around a hue looks larger than it is and tints nearby colours, making them look lighter.
• Reds, oranges and yellows are warm and appear to come forward. Blues, greens and violets are cool and tend to recede.
• Greys, blacks, whites and neutrals can be warm or cool, depending on the tints or shades they contain. Value and intensity also affect whether a colour advances or recedes.
• Adjusting values so they are more alike blurs the edge between two forms.
• Deep, cool colours appear to contract and make an object or space look smaller.
• Warm, light colours appear to expand, so you can use them to make a room seem fuller or more intimate.

Communicating about colour

A paint system can be a reference for painters, furniture finishers and tradespeople discussing the colour of other finishes. Use the swatches of a good paint system to express the colours you want in different media. There are high-tech and low-tech ways of working, but be wary of computers. They match paints in shops and CAD programs, but can only take you about 80% of the way to accurate colour. A colour on your monitor may differ enormously when printed. Learn to look at a colour and see the tertiary tints and undertones that show through the dominant tint. Above all, use your eyes. If a colour looks right it usually is, and if it looks wrong, pay attention and fix it.

1. Develop really large paint-outs on big sheets of paper or drywall. Stick them to the wall or surface where you plan to use them and leave them for a day or two. Watch how the colour looks in different levels of daylight and artificial light.
2. When you are sure, develop a colour schedule that sets out every colour you specify in a space or in adjoining spaces. See how they relate when adjacent and make sure you have the mood and rhythm you want.
3. Use plans and elevations to review the placement of colours. This is your chance to adjust before samples go on the walls.
4. If you can, use sample pots and paint out part of a wall to be absolutely sure. Colours on adjoining walls reflect onto each other and look stronger than they do in a small swatch.
5. Take your time and let your client take theirs. It is better to be careful with samples than to make expensive mistakes with painters on site, and better to be bold with samples than lazy and settle for a safe, ordinary choice.

How to specify colour accurately

• Use your eyes. Trust your emotional response to a colour combination.
• Colour schedules. Set out all the colours on a project and make sure they relate to each other.
• Colour samples. Use sample pots and chips, and make big paint samples on drawing paper. Leave them in the space and watch how each colour feels at different times of day.
• Paint-outs. Have a professional painter paint a small part of a wall as a last check of the shade or tint.
• Observe for a long time and watch how a sample changes with the light before deciding on a wall colour or adding a piece of furniture to a scheme.

Colour is a dialect of its own within the visual language of design. Learn it well and you will move towards a fluency that lets you be poetic.