The combination of the warm shade of sand and the cold shade of the sky or water is one of the most obvious manifestations of the contrast of warm and cold in nature.
(photo: Nadezhda Azarova)

Warm or cold?
A chain of simple associations allows any unprepared person to instantly select from the whole spectrum the warmest and most cold color.

• warm - fire, sun - red, orange;
• cold - ice, water, snow - blue, blue.

Blue, cyan, purple are called cold colors, and red, orange and yellow are called warm colors.
(picture: Nadezhda Azarova)

In this article, we will understand in detail what affects the warmth of a color and why a color becomes warm or cold. And let's start from the very beginning. When children are taught in drawing lessons to divide colors into warm and cold, they usually say that blue, cyan, turquoise, purple are cold colors, and yellow, brown, orange, red are warm. To consolidate this connection, an associative example is given: winter and ice are cold, and summer and fire are warm. This is certainly correct.

On this, as a rule, the training of the "warm-cold" dichotomy ends. By and large, the associative series for warm and cold also ends somewhere here, as a result of which different authors have different points of view in the division of other colors into warm and cold.

Simplified division of the color wheel into warm and cold halves. To the left of the vertical - cold "blue" colors, to the right - warm "red".
(picture: Nadezhda Azarova)

Let's take the next step towards a deeper understanding of color temperature. In my opinion, the main problem with assigning colors to warm or cold is associated with an unsystematized idea of ​​\u200b\u200bcolor. In addition, the words "colder-warmer" are somewhat subjective in our language. What the heat is unbearable for a Muscovite, the coolness is desirable for a South African. As a result, there is also subjectivity in the assessments of colors. Some people think that yellow is a warm color, while others think that it is cold.

However, the concept of "temperature" in relation to color is a very, very objective parameter. Every physicist knows this from the student's bench and, with the availability of equipment, can even measure it. In ordinary life, the only equipment that we have for color evaluation and that is always with us is our eyes. To help them, we have a memory and a body. Having before our eyes an ordered set of colors in the form of a spectrum or in the form of a color wheel, it will be much easier for us to understand and comprehend such an unusual color characteristic as "temperature".

All colors have a relative "temperature". When a color moves from a cold pole to a warm one, its "temperature" increases (red arrows). Conversely, when moving from warm to cold (blue arrows), the "temperature" of the color drops. Here you can clearly see that yellow-orange is warmer than light green, and purple is colder than purple.
(picture: Nadezhda Azarova)

At the same time, the farther a color is from the heat/cold pole, the more its perception as "warm" or "cold" becomes relative, that is, dependent on neighboring colors. Therefore, it is not surprising that disagreements arise with the assessment of intermediate colors. Often, only when comparing two colors can we say that one of them is warmer and the other is colder. For example, crimson is cooler than red, but warmer than purple.

A useful corollary follows from this. Each color has a warm and cold undertone. I already mentioned yellow above. Compare - warm golden yellow and cold lemon yellow. Both the one and the other color in itself in everyday life, most people will simply call "yellow". However, on the color wheel, lemon yellow lies to the left, closer to green tones. And golden yellow lies to the right, closer to orange tones. Therefore, we can definitely say that the lemon color is colder than golden. Together they represent the warm and cold nuances of yellow.

On the the following diagrams shows the movement of color to a cold and warm hue using yellow, blue, green and red as an example.

Any color can be divided into warm and cold shades. These diagrams show the development of yellow, green, blue and red towards warmth and towards cold. Between two close patches of color, the difference is very subtle, nuanced. But the more the shade becomes warm or cold, the more visible the difference with the original color.
(picture: Nadezhda Azarova)

Paint exercise. For those who want to do this exercise with paints, I have prepared. It can be downloaded and printed on an A4 sheet of watercolor paper. Gradually mixing warm orange-red to the original color, paint over the cells of the "warmer" line. Then, mixing cold blue-blue to the original color, paint over the cells of the next row "colder". So you can clearly see how the color takes on a warm character and how it becomes colder. This is a wonderful exercise both for developing your own nuanced sense of color and for developing artistic taste in children.

Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. The same photograph in different colors produces a different impression! The warm tone of the photograph on the left makes the bell tower more soulful and soft. It seems to us that it is a warm evening outside. The cold tone of the photo on the right gives the bell tower some detachment, formalism. It's more like a cold day outside than a warm evening, right?
(photo: Nadezhda Azarova)

The same picture, painted in warm or cold colors, will produce a different impression on the viewer.

Photographers also take into account the warmth and coldness of the picture. Balancing between heat and cold, they select color filters to "warm" the winter landscape or, on the contrary, "cool" the night composition.

The warmth of achromatic colors
Separately, I want to highlight the group of achromatic tones. Let me remind you that achromatic colors are black, white and gray in all their variants. Some authors a priori consider these colors to be cold. Some believe that it is generally impossible to talk about warmth or coldness here, since the only color quality that black and white tones have is lightness.

Despite the fact that the colors of the achromatic scale differ from each other mainly in lightness, we can still talk about warm and cold shades of white, black and gray.
(photo: Nadezhda Azarova)

Similarly, with white fabrics and flowers. One white fabric may have a milky tint, the other - snowy. This is especially evident when choosing white fabrics for Wedding Dress. You can go to a dozen stores looking for the same shade of white for lace as the satin of the dress has.

It just seems like all whites are the same! In fact, matching two white fabrics of the same warmth is not an easy task. When comparing shades, it will always be clear that one white color is more milky, and the other is colder, snow-white.
(photo: Nadezhda Azarova)

On a scale from white to black, gray is the most neutral color in terms of warmth. However, both the undertone and the texture of the fabric will affect its perception of warmth. Important aspect: shiny fabrics always colder than matte.
(photo: Nadezhda Azarova)

Ivan Shishkin "Winter", fragment. The original is on the left, the filter processing is on the right. See how much colder the snow is in the picture on the right! Its cold bluish undertone is especially noticeable in contrast to the warm tint of snow in Shishkin's original painting on the left. Also, this wonderful picture allows you to see that black (tree trunks) is really warmer than white (snow).

My associations in support of this idea are as follows. White is snow, and even snow warmed by the rays of the sun remains a chilly substance. Black is soot, coal, a combustion product, so it always seems warmer than white.

In early spring, comparing melting snow and thawed black-brown earth, we definitely feel that the earth is warm and the snow is cold. Thus, blacks will always be warmer than whites if their color nuances support this rule. Only if the black color has a cold undertone can it become colder than the warm shades of white. Compare with each other: a warm milky shade and a cold blue-black.

At the end of this paragraph, I would like to reiterate important point. The warmth and coldness of a shade of any color depends on its undertone. The addition of warm impurities - warms the shades, the addition of cold impurities - on the contrary, creates cold shades. In addition, glitter always cools the color. Especially in contrast with the matte version of the same shade.

Meaning of warm and cold
Speaking about warm and cold colors, one cannot ignore the associations and additional meanings associated with them. You have probably heard more than once that warm colors bring you closer, and cold colors move them away? This statement is the basis for recommendations for obese women give preference to cold and dark tones in clothes. Why is it considered so?

First of all, our reaction to any color is related to the physiology of vision and the nervous system. Colors in the color spectrum differ from each other by their wavelength. On one side of the spectrum - blue-violet - the wavelength is short (400-500 nm, nanometers), the other side of the spectrum - red-orange - is characterized by a longer wavelength (600-800 nm). Colors with a long wavelength - red, orange - seem warm to us. Colors with short length waves - purple, blue, blue - look cold to us.

From the point of view of physiology, warm and cold colors differ for us only in wavelength. The longer the wavelength, the warmer the color. The shorter the wavelength, the colder it is.
(picture: Nadezhda Azarova)

In addition, we are used to the fact that the blue sky is far away, and the distant mountains are always shrouded in a bluish cool haze. Therefore, we consider cold blue tones to be more distant, airy, receding in depth. On the contrary, we perceive warm red tones as close, protruding, dense.

Arkhip Kuindzhi "Elbrus in the evening". Even without knowing that this is the evening Elbrus, we could understand the time of day by the cold moonlight on the water. The general cold coloring of the picture emphasizes the remoteness and cold grandeur of these mountains.

Jan van Goyen "Landscape with Dunes". Warm colors are very typical for hot sand, ripe wheat, sunny days. These colors and objects are closer to us and warmer than the beautiful but distant Elbrus mountains in the previous photo.

Human emotions are closely related to any physiological changes in the body. The effect of blue resembles the effect of cold with its decrease in motor activity, while the influx of blood under the influence of red certainly increases the degree of emotions. It is this circumstance that makes color therapy so effective. Moreover, it is these connections that create strong associative series between color - emotion - the physiological state of the body.

Maximilian de Moiron "View of the Great Eger". In this picture, we clearly see that the cold bluish mountains are farther from us, and the gorge with cows, written in the warm colors of the earth, is closer to us. Also note how natural it is that the color is light and cold at the top of the picture, and warm and heavy at the bottom.

Such associative series are the basis for choosing color palette a painting, a TV movie frame, or a figurative photograph taken in a studio. A bright, effective, memorable image is obtained only when it is built on human physiology, that is, it activates the necessary connections in nervous system and evokes specific emotions.

Imagine how unconvincing a refreshing shower in red tones or hot sex in blue and green looks. Therefore, a shower gel with a sensual fragrance will always be served in warm or even hot colors, and a shower gel with a refreshing scent in a cold palette of colors. Otherwise, there is a risk that you will not have the necessary associations and you will not buy this product. And who needs losses now?

Contrast of warm and cold
A separate story is a combination of warm and cold tones in one composition. A composition is a costume, a photograph, a painting, a frame in a film, a room setting. No matter. The main thing is that it is something that is perceived by the eye at the same time.

From the previous text, you already understood well about the diametricality of feelings that warm and cold colors separately evoke. What emotions does cold and hot shower from warm and cold at the same time? Imagine how inviting a misted bottle of cold water looks on a hot afternoon. Or how cold words about breaking up relationships enter the soul of a lover with a sharp knife. Or how a warm light in a hut in the middle of a snow-covered forest touches the soul. A cocktail of conflicting feelings usually leaves no one indifferent!

It should be noted that all the most vivid experiences and vivid emotions of a person are always built on the contrast of feelings. We are used to mixing pain and joy, happiness and sorrow, intimacy and separation, love and hate. Perhaps opposing emotions balance each other, and one cannot do without the other. Or maybe, on the contrary, life seems too gray without these polar emotional swings...

Konstantin Vasiliev "Marshal Zhukov". Looking at this picture, I hear the powerful sounds of the march. They call to get in line and go for victory. The unbending will of the marshal, national pride, a step forward in spite of the pain experienced. The bright contrast of warm and cold allows the artist to convey the power of these emotions. Against the background of cold gray-blue tones, the orange piping of the overcoat and orders blaze with the same fire as the orange flame behind the marshal. We feel the tension of the war, we know the price of victory.

At the same time, the contrast of warm and cold is not only a hard opposition. On the border of a sun glare and a snow cap in the mountains, a soft iridescent movement is born. We can say that this contrast gives rise to a special vibration, movement, spiritualized beginning. Itten considers this contrast "the most resonant among other color contrasts. Thanks to it, the possibility opens up with the help of color to convey the highest music of the celestial spheres."

Most often, in painting, blue and purple tones are contrasted with golden and ocher shades. In the stained glass windows of temples and biblical scenes, a combination of warm red and cold blue is used. Itten writes that "Grunewald turned to this contrast when he wanted to convey a sense of the divine principle."

Philippe de Champaigne "Annunciation", fragment. The contrast of the cold attire of the angel who brought the message to the Virgin Mary and the warm glow around him emphasizes his divine nature.

In general, I want to note that the contrast of warm and cold looks most expressive with equal lightness of the shades used. If one of the shades is lightened and the other darkened, the contrast of light and dark begins to play an important role in the composition, reducing the vibrating temperature play of colors.

Examples of using the contrast of warm and cold in clothes. I took the extreme colors from the exercise above, which showed how the color changes towards warm and cold shades.
(picture: Nadezhda Azarova)

The collage uses photos from the catwalk by Marcio Madeira, drawings by Nadezhda Azarova, paintings by Claude Monet "Parliament, London", Boris Kustodiev "Children in carnival costumes", Michelangelo "Sibyl", Ivan Aivazovsky "The Ninth Wave", William Turner "Coliseum".

Article taken from the site

Everyone knows that black visually makes the figure slimmer, and white makes it fatter. But your color scheme in clothes is not limited to these colors. Other colors also have visual deception properties. Let's analyze by what laws and principles we see something that is not actually there, in order to make this effect work for ourselves.

1 Light appears larger than dark.

The apogee of this statement, just the same, is black and white. This visual trick is related to the ability of a colored object to reflect or absorb light rays.

Things white color reflect the maximum number of light waves that diverge in different directions. As a result, the boundary between white and another color is blurred, making objects appear larger than they actually are.

Black color absorbs light rays, so its borders appear clearer than a white object, and, therefore, it will look smaller than it really is.

Gray color reflects light rays half as much as white, and the same number of times more than black. Its borders are not as pronounced as in black, not as blurred as in white, but at the same time it loses contrast with environment. Therefore, this color will slim during the day (not like black, but still) and full in the late evening or at night.

Each color has dark, light and medium shades. They, too, obey the laws of greater or lesser reflection. Light shades of any color will increase dimensions in relation to dark shades.

The expanding and contracting effect is useful for masking figure flaws.

Women who seem to be fuller than they would like, it is better to use dark or medium colors.

For thin people, light and medium are more suitable.

In addition, you can mask slightly plump parts of the figure and unnecessarily thin ones by combining dark and light, while remaining in the same range.

2 Shiny fabrics, even dark ones, are full

It is logical to assume that the mirror surface reflects light much more than a white canvas. A halo of light draws a couple of centimeters for you.

Therefore, if you want to look slimmer, then do not choose a black sparkly dress. Black, in this case, does not compensate for its brilliance. If you fundamentally like glitter, use it in accessories.
But for thin, shiny fabrics are a great help for correction.
And if you have a figure resembling a pear, then a shiny top will suit you.

3 Cold shades slim more than warm ones

Yellow, red, orange. They selectively reflect waves in their short range. You can’t say about them as about white - it reflects light waves of all sizes ( see the physics of color) But these colors are also able to expand objects.

Blue green, blue, purple. Besides the fact that these colors are darker at their highest brightness than the brightest warm colors, even when diluted with white, they give less expansion effect than warm colors. This means that a light blue color will be less full than a light warm pink.


So, if you have a choice between warm dark and cold dark, with the main requirement of hiding excess weight, then choose a cold shade.

4 The brighter the color, the more it fills.

Intense shades blind the eye, and this effect causes blurring of the boundaries. Even bright blue: cold and not light, will make you wider than gray-blue of the same lightness.

Let's summarize

According to the given data, it turns out that for overweight people, dark, not bright, cold colors will be ideal. It's like in food: everything that is not tasty is healthy. But I don't think we should go to such extremes.
It is worth knowing that vertical stripes, whatever the color, are slimming, even if it is a peeking blouse from under a cardigan.
And dark things should always be diluted with bright accessories.

I suggest the following combinations for your consideration:

Color combination for overweight people

black blue color

Alternative to black: deep black-blue color. This color is already different from achromatic: it is more fresh, rich, piquant. Suitable for both office and banquet. Combine it with light juicy colors.
Such as purple, burgundy, gold, green, calm azure, brown, lilac, medium beige.

Malachite color

Rich, luxurious, exotic color - the perfect solution for full figure. Your forms in it will become appetizing and attractive. Malachite universal: everyday and festive color, combined with the color of pink orchid, raspberry, sand, pale green, aqua, coffee with milk, light lilac, and light beige.

Cherry color

Feminine and erotic. Soft and exciting. He will not leave anyone indifferent. Conquer hearts, showing all your feminine nature. Your round shapes in this color will become a virtue.
Cherry color is combined with lilac, raspberry, camel, green blue, gray blue, royal blue, lilac, light brown.

Let's not forget about slender girls who could add a couple of kilograms. Fortunately, they have a choice.
First: these are light warm shades, combine them with bright accessories, add shine.
Second: use shiny fabrics: patent leather, materials with sequins, satin, fabrics with lurix.
Third: bright light clothes.

Color combination for thin people

Silver peony or beige pink.

This color is proposed by Panton as one of the fashion leaders for the spring-summer 2011 season. Delicate, mysterious, filled with the inner strength of a blooming flower. It is more intended for leisure than for the office, although it will not be against everyday wear.
Beige pink is combined with warm pink, orange red, orange sorbet, fresh green, aquamarine, denim blue, coffee with milk, bright lilac, light gray colors.

light gray green color

Restrained, sophisticated. Looks good on satin fabrics. It is designed for the office, as well as for a holiday or recreation. Combine it with glitter, you will look like a rare tropical fish that accidentally got into a gray city.
Grey-green combines with megento pink, red, yellow-orange, olive, blue-green, old gold, pink purple, pale gold.

fuchsia color

Bright, fast, bold. He is always distinguished from the crowd. Fuchsia does not irritate the eyes, and is perfect for working days, but at the holiday it will be a special pearl.
Combine fuchsia with soft pink, hot pink, light yellow, light green, light blue, blue, coffee with milk, bright lilac, gray flowers.

Illusion of clothes pattern.

In the article " which color is fattening and which is slimming» we got acquainted with the optical illusion of color. But this is only the simplest of its manifestations. More complex, varied, bizarre, giving a huge amount of material for experimentation and figure correction - this is a drawing. And what is a drawing if not a combination of colors in different forms? The combinations are bright, contrasting, gradient, barely noticeable in a certain sequence. Some can make even light shades slim, while others can make dark ones, but they deceive in a big way. There are so many drawings that it seems impossible to sort through their illusory effects. But we will try anyway.

First, I want you to look at the girl in different clothes. She loves patterned dresses. By European standards, she cannot be called thin, so the optical illusion of the fabric pattern on her is more noticeable.

Drawings on fabric

Striped dresses

1) horizontal stripe

The fashion for horizontal stripes is quite stable, perhaps because the ideal skinny women never left the pedestal, although this causes indignation among the sane part of the population.

Horizontal stripe - plump. It looks perfect on a slim figure. It can visually expand parts of the body that you think are thin or disproportionately small. For example, not big shoulders or small breasts, etc.

We have to give credit: the horizontal stripe is attractive. Her charm is that she contrasts with the vertical features of the body: arms, legs, due to this, stripes, legs, and graceful hands attract attention.

The more contrast the stripes, the more expression the effect, so black and white stripes equal to each other will be extreme in their kind - they expand to the maximum.

The thinner the stripes, the more the visual illusion of the wide colors appears. If they are white stripes, then the expansion effect will remain. If they are dark, and thin ones are not contrasts, then the picture will be slimmer.

Slightly contrasting, different in width stripes on a cold, not bright shade may not manifest themselves in any way.

2) vertical stripe

This drawing is slimming. The lines follow the structure of the body. The amount of its border, in the form of a line, becomes larger. The eye fixes the borders that are convenient for it, which are closer to each other than they actually are. It's like looking at eye level. Therefore, any presence of such lines, even a scarf, makes you slimmer.

Even if you have a light dress with beige vertical stripes, this effect will work.

If the stripes are bright, against the same background, then deception can be reduced to zero.

A vertically organized pattern, even on light-colored fabrics, will help you look slimmer.

Another of the interesting properties of a vertical strip is that fabric wrinkling is not visible against this background.

3) oblique lines

They bring dynamism to clothing, taking the eye away from the edges of the figure. This is not to say that oblique lines are slimming, we can say that they are distracting. Therefore, they are suitable for girls with any figure.

Be careful: oblique stripes that are too contrasting can distract attention to themselves so much that people do not remember your face.

Soft contrasting light oblique stripes will fit well into any wardrobe.

4) Cell drawing

This drawing is complete. And the larger the cell, the warmer the shade and the richer the color, the more the space moves apart. But how attractive it is, how beautifully colors can intertwine in it!

To negate this effect, you should stick to dark shades of fabric with barely visible stripes, preferably thin ones.

You can also choose a pattern with pronounced vertical lines and thinner horizontal ones.

The presence of a hanging scarf, an unbuttoned coat or sweater will also visually limit the expansion.

But for slender and thin - this is a great way out.

Floral drawing

5) Medium sized flowers

Beautiful, bright, colorful dresses. What can decorate a woman better than spring. However, they are also visually full. Another plus for the wardrobe of slender girls.

But if you look closely, then light dresses with a very frequent light pattern make you fat more than dark ones with a rare pattern. And the presence of an unbuttoned blouse, coat, scarf will add those same vertical stripes that work wonders.

I note that a medium-sized drawing should not be worn by fragile girls, against its background they will be emphasized small.

6) Big flowers

Usually bright spots - large flowers "push forward" and, of course, make them fat, but at the same time they also distort the proportions of the figure. Distortion can be very skillful when flaws become virtues. And it can ruin the whole image.

This color is suitable for big women if they have disproportionately small places in the figure (chest, shoulders, hips, etc.) It is desirable that the flower lays down there. If the drawing is in full place, then it will bulge grotesquely.

A special effect is obtained in combination bright flower and dark fabric.

7) Small flower

A small flower expands, but in this case, much will depend on the overall shade of the material. Light and bright will fill you up considerably. The same will happen if the picture is strongly contrasting. Dark, cold shades of fabric with a soft pattern will not make significant changes to your figure.

For large and full girls, this pattern is not desirable, as it will emphasize massiveness.

Illusion of clothes pattern. Part two

This article is a continuation first part, where we have already examined some of the patterns on the fabric and their features. I repeat: there are a lot of drawings and they all distort your figure in one way or another. The question is how to make each effect work for itself. So that he, in no case, spoils the figure, but on the contrary, makes it even more attractive. And all this is really possible, knowing the features and laws of the optical illusion of the picture.

Starting to study the pattern of clothes, you should familiarize yourself with more simple action of color, which plays a huge role in the distortion of forms, and in the article we will resort to this knowledge more than once.

Remember, beauty is knowledge and its practical application. And increasing them with each new “drop”, you strive for perfect, inimitable femininity, which has been worshiped for many centuries by both men and women.

Clothes drawings

This pattern stands at a distance from seasonal fashion, its changeability does not affect its popularity. Polka dot pattern is as classic as black, white or gray colors. Dresses with polka dots can always be found on sale at any time of the year.

The variety of colors in polka dots is also amazing: some visually expand very much, others, on the contrary, slim, there are even those that practically do not distort the figure. What does it depend on?

Visually increase:

1) Dark peas on a white background.

2) Frequent small peas on a light background

3) Very large peas

4) White polka dots on a bright warm fabric (for example, white polka dots on red, yellow or orange fabric)

5) Shiny peas

Slightly change the figure:

1) Dark polka dots on light fabric arranged vertically

2) Frequent white peas on a black background

3) Medium infrequent peas on a medium-light color of a cold shade (for example, white peas against a background of aquamarine)

4) Dark peas on a color of medium lightness.

Visually narrow:

1) Vertically organized light small peas on a dark background

2) Rare, closer to small, white peas on a black background

3) Rare medium peas of light shades, but not white (it is important that there is less contrast) on a non-bright background of a medium or dark shade, preferably a cold color (for example, yellow-orange peas on a denim background)

4) Dark peas, on a dark background

When a hue fades into a lighter, brighter or completely different color. This is how volume, richness of colors, and ... modeling of the figure is achieved.

Soft, cold, darker colors visually reduce the volume. Bright, light, warm shades - expand. Make sure that narrowing shades fall into places that are fuller than you would like, and filling colors into thin areas.

So, for example, for women with a wide top and a narrow bottom, dresses with a gradient from a light top to a dark bottom are contraindicated.

A corner is nothing more than two oblique lines converging at one point. How do you remember from first part, oblique lines do not distort the figure, but distract from it. It's all thanks to the introduction of dynamics. And since the two lines tend to reunite, reducing the distance between them, their priority will be the narrowing effect. They do not just slim, but make the eye constantly run from the beginning of the triangle to its end, which can distract from studying the figure.

The sharper and longer the angle, the more it slims.

For the visual illusion of reduction, the horizontal or vertical location of the corner does not matter. They do not form new borders (like, for example, a vertical strip), but hide the volume of the figure.

A large obtuse angle, throws off the dynamics and can even fill you up.

A frequent, obtuse, contrasting or colorful angle can also give volume, rather than reduce it.

A classic leopard dress with a small, oblong, dark brown spot on a light brown background. The specks are arranged vertically, and there are lighter and darker vertical stripes on the background. Most often, the contrast between the spots and the background is not great.

We can say with confidence: the leopard color of the dress is slimming.

The pronounced effect will vary with the size of the spots and their contrast with the background. A larger or contrasting pattern will slim you less.

Tiger dresses also have the effect of reducing the volume, since the stripes of the tiger are more like a long sharp corner, and we examined it above.

Contrasting large pattern

By contrast, we mean a big difference between the properties of a color. So the highest contrast between light and dark is black and white. This is a very bright and restrained combination, but very dangerous in the distortion of the figure.

First, don't large quantity white or dark on the opposite background attracts attention, so both successful and unsuccessful correction will be visible.

It is worth knowing that white lace or a frequent ornament on a dark background greatly expands the space. If the white pattern is placed horizontally along the edge of the dress, its hem appears to be wider than it actually is. For women with wide hips or legs, this will betray an even greater increase in volume.

A vertically positioned white pattern, framed by a black background, makes the figure slimmer.

The location of the openwork pattern on the sides - increases the volume.

Black lace on white expands less than white on black, but it makes it look fat compared to plain black.

Abstract dress pattern

Drawing limited spots

Small spots limited in area with a clear contour, organized vertically - slim.

If the background is light, the picture is warm and large enough, then an expansion effect is observed.

Fills and very contrasting closer to the large pattern of spots.

But in any case, this drawing has more to do with the narrowing of the figure than the blurry one, since clearly defined spots, in turn, make it possible to more clearly draw the contours of the figure.

Blurry spots pattern

Such coloring makes the image foggy, and the contours of the figure are blurry. In light and even medium colors, it makes you look fat.

Not bright blurry spots, on a dark background tend to have a narrowing effect, due to the predominance of a slimming color, but, nevertheless, this pattern will narrow less solid dark, cold fabrics.

Large blurry spots will act as a gradient.

Color in painting is a very important and complex concept. This follows from the physical nature of light and from the structure of the human system of vision, from the process of color perception. It has long been known that there are no two people who see the same objects and landscapes in the same way, but with all the richness of colors in the color sensations of artists, there are common principles.

The division of the pictorial palette into warm colors and cold colors is one of such concepts.

Spectrum separation

The great physicist Isaac Newton (1643-1727) was the first to figure out the color composition of sunlight. The beam, passing through a glass prism, decomposed into seven basic shades. Further scientific developments led to the creation of a color wheel of twelve primary colors, from which, by mixing, you can get that color variety that surrounds us, that richness of shades that has long inspired painters. This color wheel is named after the Swiss painter and scientist Johannes Itten (1888-1967).

The color spectrum and the color wheel are usually divided into two parts - from green to red are warm, from blue to purple - cold. Green is considered by some to be a cold color, while others give it a special concept - neutral.

Such a division is clear to everyone, everyone agrees with it, but the objectivity of the reasons for such a division has long been argued, putting forward their own versions.

The main criterion is temperature associations

Of course, the first thing that can be accepted when discussing the origin of the division into warm colors and cold colors is natural associations. Yellow, red, orange are the colors of the sun, fire. No wonder there is a phrase in Russian that explains the heating of the metal: red-hot. Such temperature changes in color can be seen in a fire or in a fireplace, although some gases during combustion can turn into seemingly cold colors: how not to recall the bluish combustion of household gas fuel. And yet, bluish and bluish colors evoke a logical feeling of coolness: this is the color of the sky, water, ice, snow.

Day-night, summer-winter

The “temperature” of color is clearly related to the time of day: the rising sun, warming the world, paints the sky in a blazing range: red, pink, orange shades, and the night coolness is more clearly felt in the bluish moonlight, which gives the natural environment a muted and soft color, although the evening dawn - sunset - can also flare up with a hot range.

It is interesting that before the onset of cold weather, in the pre-winter period, the warm colors of summer flash brightly in the fiery colors of autumn to give way to the bluish and bluish color of snow, ice and cold sky.

Bottom line: the defining meaning of the concept of color "temperature" has an emotional component, which makes it more subjective, although agreement with the generally accepted division into warm colors and cold colors among all objects dealing with color characteristics is global.

close - far

Since the Renaissance, a well-established theory of aerial perspective has emerged, which is based on yet another emotional and psychological characteristics warm and cool colors: an object painted in a cold color seems to be located farther than yellow, red, orange or their shades. Not even a landscape, but simply a table containing warm and cold colors can give an idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthis.

It is clearly seen how one of the titans of the Renaissance Titian Vecellio (1488-1576) uses this property of color in the painting “Bacchus and Ariadne”.

The master clearly divides the color space diagonally into two parts in full accordance with the Itten color wheel, which will appear four and a half centuries later. Cold and warm shades of colors are used to build a huge picture space. Warm colors dominate in the foreground, the bluish whitened colors of the sky, the sea and the land receding into the distance dominate in the background, and the greenery of the trees, which is considered neutral according to all theories, is on the border, and the drapery is cold in color. main character and the warm color of the cloak of the central character make the color scheme refined and harmonious.

Everything is relative

It is necessary to understand that the "warm-coldness" of colors in painting is not an absolute concept, that is, it cannot be measured, and this property can be correctly assessed only in comparison with another color.

The use of spectral, unequivocally warm or definitely cold colors is an exotic thing in painting, paintings from planes that are significant in area, painted with one color, are more of a conceptual thing, for example, the abstract painting of Mark Rothko.

In more traditional painting, the relationship of colors of different “temperatures” occurs at the level of a combination of small strokes, due to optical mixing, making neighboring colors warmer or colder. It is impossible to understand which colors are warm and which are cold, considering the areas of the pictorial space containing them separately from the environment.

Hue is more valuable than color

One of the most obvious qualities of high pictorial skill is the ability to see and apply to the canvas those millions of shades that are contained in every element of the nature around us. The ability to distinguish warm notes in cold colors and vice versa gives a special expressiveness to the image. Here it is important to mention the principle of color modeling of the volume: if light, colored with a warm color, falls on an object, the shadow should be cold and vice versa. Not all painters agree with him, but this law is applied very widely.

Some researchers talk about the incorrectness of the expression "warm and cold colors". The table shows colors that are very rarely used without mixing with other shades, and for a more accurate definition of colors, one should say “warmer” or “colder”. For example, Prussian blue and ultramarine are shades of the blue sector from the cold part of the color wheel, and each of these colors will be clearly colder than any shade of red, but even a novice artist will say that blue is warmer than ultramarine.

The use of complex color combinations and shades obtained by mixing allows you to enrich the palette, even if it contains predominantly neutral colors. So, you can make the desired "temperature" green - warm or cold - by adding the desired paint from blue or red to it.

Saturation and purity

In the process of creating paintings, artists take into account some more properties of sensations of warmth or coolness in color. So, in order to "raise the temperature" in the desired area of ​​​​the picture space, an experienced painter uses less pure and less saturated shades that will approach achromatic white or gray. Accordingly, the purest and most saturated shades are colder.

Such a definition goes back to questions of psychology: we consider colder everything that looks stricter, more correct, more concise, more symmetrical, more logical, etc. More soulful and warm always contains some kind of irregularity, reticence, incompleteness. This can be used to characterize not only painting, but also architecture, design, printing and other similar branches of art.

Theory is just a help

The historical experience of those masters of the past who used warm and cold colors in painting shows the importance of this aspect of color perception. Knowledge about him, but only in combination with experience and talent, helps modern artists in their work.

After you have determined your color type of appearance and have mastered the theoretical knowledge about color schemes that suit you, you should learn to separate the shades into warm and cold.

Many of us do not have an art education and at first glance are not ready to determine whether it is a warm shade or a cold one.

There are many illustrations on the Internet that show the separation of colors by temperature.

But most of them show only pure colors, which are not so abundant in nature.

Too rough separation of colors can only confuse you. And such pictures will generally form an erroneous idea of ​​​​colors, because it is wrong to assume that the red-orange gamut is warm colors, and the blue-green gamut is cold.

How to learn to determine the color temperature?

First, you must understand that colors are constantly flowing into one another. That, for example, red can have both warm and cold shades.

Pure colors can only be found in pictures. In clothing, they are much more often used. mixed colors more complex and deeper.

Compare these two shades of blue:

In the first picture, the blue is deeper and more saturated and does not have white pigment, in contrast to the second picture, which is directly cold.

About any color, for example, purple cold, you can say "this shade is colder than the other." Look at these two outfits. In the first photo, there is more white pigment and the fabric itself gives the image a colder shade.

Take a look at the red colors:

In these examples, you can clearly see where the color is cold and where it is warm.

Basically, a warm or cold undertone is given by such shades:

Warm color is made: red, canary yellow or orange.

Cold: white, gray, blue, blue, black or lemon yellow.

When you have an outfit in front of you, for example, green, you should not immediately remember which scale it belongs to. Try to see other shades in it. The first is cold, the second is warm.

The second example of green images:

The first is clearly warmer than the second. We hope you are already able to determine the color temperature.

But don't worry if it gets hard right away. All comes with experience.

Violet example:

As you can see, in the first photo, the purple is diluted with a red tint, which immediately filled the color with warmth.

So do not roughly separate the colors and think that, for example, a warm color type, the blue color does not suit you. Just choose shades of blue with warm undertones. For cold color types it is still easier, you just need to whiten the warm color with white or darken it with black.

Also, the material can impart temperature to the color. Matte, suede finishes add warmth, while lustrous fabrics cool colors.

Separation of shades into warm and cold for many beginners
studying color is one of the most difficult subjects. In this
article we will thoroughly understand the temperature characteristics of the color
and learn how to define colors in the "cold" group and in the
"warm", based on a simple and understandable scheme.

First of all, for a preliminary acquaintance with the topic, I recommend
two of his articles: "Color
circle according to Itten" and "Contrast
warm and cold ". In these articles, you will receive a basic
understanding of the composition of the color wheel and the perception of temperature
colors. Here we focus on the practical and utilitarian approach.
to the theme of warm-cold.

In the picture you see simplified color wheel of 6 colors.
The three colors in it - yellow, red and blue - are the primary colors.
The other three colors - orange, purple and green - are derivatives
from them, the so-called colors of the second order. All diversity
we sort of packed the shades of each of the colors into a single sector of the circle,
smoothly filled with an average local color.

We accept three postulates:

1. Orange is the warm pole of the circle. Orange combines
   in itself the solar warmth of yellow and the hot fire of red, therefore
   is the warmest of all possible colors.
2. The blue color is the cold pole of the circle. He is on
   the other end of the diameter from orange.
3. All colors of the circle have a neutral temperature. Each
   the color in the circle is the local pure color without any admixture,
   having a neutral temperature (not warm - not cold). Name
   "local color" was introduced by Leonardo da Vinci
   to designate pure colors, devoid of shades and impurities. Deviation
   from the local color gives us the nuances of the color - its warm and cold
   shades.

Now imagine yourself as a person who can walk on this
circle in any direction. This image will help us formulate
rule to determine the warm and cold shade of any color
in a circle.

Let's discuss this rule with examples for each of the colors of the circle.

Green. Approaching the green from the side of the warm pole, we will see
combinations of yellow and green - fresh greens, light green, olive,
marsh. it warm nuances green. In each of them is guessed
warm yellow note. Approaching the green from the side of the cold pole
we get cold nuances of green - bluish green, mint, jade,
malachite, emerald. These colors are chilled with a touch of blue.

Yellow. Approaching the yellow from the side of the orange pole, we
we will see the warm nuances of yellow: honey, golden, corn, amber.
These colors appear to be filled with sunlight. Coming up to yellow
sector from the side of the blue pole, we get the main cold nuance
yellow: lemon yellow. There are few cold nuances of yellow, because
this color loses its clear yellow nature very quickly when added
impurities of a different color and turns either into a green gamut or into a grayish-yellow
shades (which we also consider cold, because the solar pigment
muffled in them).

Red. The nuances of red from the side of the orange pole are worn
obvious warm character. This is coral, tomato, brick, fiery red,
orange-red, the color of red fish (salmon, salmon). In each of these
shades, an additive of yellow-orange color is felt. Coming up to red
from the side of the cold pole we get cold nuances - fuchsia, raspberry,
cherry, burgundy. In these shades, the presence of blue pigment is noticeable.

Violet. Warm and cold shades of purple are very easy
confuse with each other without such a scheme, because purple itself
the color is a priori cold, especially compared to orange-red. But
if we consider purple as a local color of neutral temperature,
then, as it were, tonal shades are formed to the right and left of it: a little
more bluish and slightly more reddish. The first we call cold,
and the second - warm. Looking at purple from the side of the warm pole,
we see warm shades of purple - red-violet, red grapes,
pinkish violet. From the side of blue color we find in purple
cold nuances - lilac, lavender, lilac, amethyst.

Orange. Orange is a special color. As follows from
the main postulate is an absolutely warm color. Cold nuances of orange
no, because there is no way to approach it from the side of the blue pole
- on one side orange is protected by red, and on the other side
it is protected by yellow. Both red and yellow are fundamental
the colors of the circle, so the entire area between them on the short side consists
only from their mixtures. Blue pigment is only found in flowers located
between yellow and red along the long side of the circle. These colors influence
blue in the color wheel is actually limited. Therefore, warm nuances
orange has as much as you like - copper, brick, rusty, copper, brown-honey,
and no cold ones at all.

Blue. Blue, unlike orange, is not as protected,
so it has warm and cold nuances. Cold shades of blue
come from the side of the blue-violet range. This is cornflower blue, cobalt,
bright electric blue, indigo, sky blue. If you go to blue
from the side of the warm pole, we get conditionally warm shades of blue.
This is a sea wave, turquoise, azure blue. Unlike cold blue
with a purple tint, the range of conditionally warm shades of blue is warmed
a dash of yellow. Turquoise can be easily mistaken for a cold shade.
green because it has more blue than yellow. But for some
conventions between stylists, it is customary to attribute it to a warm range.

Generally speaking, turquoise group tones often cause a lot
discrepancies in the assessment of heat. Turquoise shades are located between
blue and green, because they are also called simply blue-green shades.
On the one hand, they can be interpreted as cold nuances of green (see
on the green sector of the circle from the side of the cold pole), and on the other hand,
like warm nuances of blue (look at the blue sector of the circle from the side
warm pole). The line between when the shade still retains a clear
green nature, and when it has already turned into blue-blue shades
- very thin. The following illustration will help us to see all its conventionality.

In the diagram above, you see a fragment of the color wheel from green to blue,
drawn out in one line. As blue drops are added to the green,
the color becomes more and more nautical until it is completely blue,
going through all the shades of turquoise. Dividing this zone conditionally into part
"still green" and part "already blue", we get
cold shades of green and warm shades of blue.

In general, we can say that all cold shades are distinguished
the presence of a blue undertone (ebb), and all shades of the warm group - the presence
yellow undertone. Why do we add yellow and not orange?
The fact is that orange, although it is the warmest color, is
after all, a derived color, a second-order color formed by a mixture
yellow and red. All colors of the circle are made up of primary colors.
- red, yellow and blue. Therefore, analyzing the color composition on
eyes, we determine how much yellow is in it, not orange.

exception of this rule are the shades of the violet group.
How is orange protected from blue by other primaries?
colors (red and yellow), and purple is protected from exposure
yellow pair of red-blue. So purple gets
warm nuances when it shows a reddish undertone rather than yellow.

The brightest rule of blue and yellow undertones is manifested in flowers.
neutral group: gray, white, brown and beige. These shades
are not represented on the color wheel, so you can mix them with
both a cooling blue tint and a warming yellow tint.

Anytime you need to define a warm or cool shade
in front of you, immediately imagine mentally a diagram of a circle of 6
colors and try to determine the position of your shade relative to
local color. It is most likely located on the side of the warm pole
Or from the cold side? When in doubt, match the shade
with a reference nuance of a given color, which can be remembered by name.
Comparing two colors is always easier to make a decision in a difficult case.

If you need to determine the warmth-coldness on fabrics with a pattern
from different colors, focus on the dominant color (background) or general
the feeling of a print if the background is lost under an exuberant pattern. small
the admixture of shades with a different temperature does not change the overall color
the sound of matter and even vice versa, often gives it great beauty
and attraction.