Product Description

Mastering color is a tough hurdle for artists in any medium to tackle. In this concise guide, Margaret Kessler cuts through all the confusion with a friendly and encouraging approach to the basic principles of color harmony.

The book is divided into two main sections that focus on theory and practice. Readers will learn how proper color can help them create expressive moods, unity, rhythm and eye-catching design. Then they'll find a wealth of exercises and demonstrations to quickly put to use what they've learned.

With lots of colorful charts and eye-catching examples, Color Harmony in Your Paintings is highly accessible for artists of all levels. There's an engaging question-and-answer format in parts of the book, and simple color sketches throughout to give an immediate understanding of every color concept.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #166817 in Books
• Published on: 2004-05
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 127 pages

About the Author
Award-winning artist Margaret Kessler has been teaching painting for more than 25 years. She's the author of Painting Better Landscapes and the co-author of Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Oil. Margaret lives in Hilltop Lakes, Texas.

Customer Reviews

Excellent primer on harmony in paintings
This book is an excellent intro to creating harmonious paintings. She explains some of the very difficult concepts of color harmony in a way that's very easy to understand. I've been a pro painter for almost 20 years now and I found this book to be very, very helpful. She has a great explanation of the Munsell Color Wheel that alone is worth the price of the book!

A valuable book for me
I had checked a number of painting books out of the library and was so impressed with this one that I purchased it. I didn't rate it 5 stars because I could imagine there being a more complete and sophisticated book. However, she appears to be a solid painter and she deals with more than just a couple of color wheels. She also offers up her manner of mixing colors. It's always nice to know how someone else approaches these matters.

Color It From The Heart
Color and composition are the most important tools an artist can use to elicit a response from a viewer. But it is color we see first. Color either grabs the viewer with its expression of a mood or emotion or it does not. In "Color Harmony," artist and teacher, Margaret Kessler has given a great gift to those of us seeking help with this important subject.

Kessler's well illustrated book shows how to use color to establish depth and form, create eye-pleasing contrasts, convey different times of the day and specific atmospheric conditions, and heighten the expressiveness and impact of a painting. She also emphasizes the importance of using the color wheel as we paint. It surprises her that many artists do not have the color wheel close at hand while painting. Color is just that important!

"Color Harmony" is organized into six sections:

1. The Basics of Color (properties, mixing, matching)
2. Choosing a Color Scheme
3. Discovering the Munsell Color Wheel
4. Mastering the Contrasts of Color (varying value, temperature, and intensity)
5. How Light and Atmosphere Affect Color (depth; variations with time of day and weather)
6. Designing With Color (a full demonstration that ties all the principles together)

This book can serve as a good guide for the new artist... and a refresher guide for those who are not so new.