What does harmony mean in plane composition?

Contrast and harmony are also called change and unity. This is an important principle for obtaining beautiful color effects in painting. If the contrast of the colors in the picture is messy and loses the harmonious and unified relationship, it will create a sense of visual instability and make people irritated and unhappy; on the contrary, the lack of coordination of contrast factors will also make people feel monotonous and boring, and they will not be able to bring out the full potential of colors. Contagious. Contrast and harmony are very common and important principles in the use of color. To master the color rules of contrast and harmony, you should first understand the concepts and meanings of contrast and harmony, as well as the expression methods and rules of contrast or harmony.

1. Contrast

Contrast means the difference in color. The greater the difference, the stronger the contrast, and vice versa. Therefore, in terms of color relationship, there is a distinction between strong contrast and weak contrast. For example, the three complementary colors of red and green, blue and orange, and yellow and purple are the strongest contrasting colors. Gradually adding an equal amount of white among them will increase their brightness while weakening their purity, turning them into pinkish reds and greens, yellows and purples, and oranges and blues, forming a weak contrast. If you add the same amount of black, it will weaken its brightness and purity, forming a weak contrast. In contrast, the purity or brightness of a color is weakened, causing it to lose its original hue personality. The contrast between the two colors will weaken and even tend to be in a harmonious state. The contrast factors of color mainly include the following aspects.

Color phase comparison - Between the colors in the color wheel, there can be many relationships such as adjacent colors, similar colors, intermediate colors, contrasting colors, complementary colors, etc. 180 on the color wheel. The two colors of the angle are complementary colors and are the colors with the strongest contrast (greater than 120 in the color wheel. Both colors of the angle are contrasting colors). The color wheel is 90. The two colors of the horn are medium contrast colors (such as red and yellow, red and blue, orange and yellow-green, etc.). There are also similar colors (such as deep red, bright red, rose red, etc.) and adjacent colors (such as red and red-orange, red and red-purple, yellow and yellow-green, etc.). The similar pigments they contain are dominant, and the hue, color, and brightness are very similar. The contrast factors are not obvious and there are weak differences, which is a harmonious color relationship. If the similar pigments between two adjacent colors gradually decrease, contrasts of different strengths will be formed (such as red and yellow-green, red and cyan, yellow and green, etc.). Similar colors have stronger contrast than adjacent colors. They are located at about 600 angles in the color wheel. The red, yellow, and blue-cyan pigments are called similar colors.

The intensity and nature of color contrast can change the monotonous and dull color effect. Complementary color contrast, the color effect is bright and strong, the visual perception is also the strongest, and it is attractive. my country's folk New Year paintings and architectural paintings all use this contrasting method to achieve eye-catching and strong decorative art effects. Among the Impressionist painters of the late 19th century, Cézanne's paintings often used blue, green and red ocher to contrast, and combined with the dynamic brushstrokes to form a sense of melody in the picture, expressing his passion. Gauguin's bright, brilliant and touching colors are obtained from the contrasting colors of high-purity red, orange, yellow and blue-green. Together with the use of rough brushwork and lines, the works have the decorative beauty of oriental flavor. Fauvist paintings represented by Matisse in the 20th century used multiple groups of simple high-purity contrasting colors to interleave, juxtapose, contrast, echo, balance and other methods, combined with unrestrained brushstrokes and lines, to produce a very strong and stimulating artistic effect. In order to show the charm and decorative effect of color, they abandoned the three-dimensional representation of the body and even proposed that color is the basis of painting. In the development of color painting techniques and styles, this has opened up a new field of using strong contrasting colors as the main artistic language to show his artistic personality and style. It can be seen that the different techniques of color contrast and harmony used by each painter are important aspects of expressing his artistic personality.

Brightness contrast - that is, the contrast of the depth of the color, the relationship between the depth of the color is the sketch relationship. Every color we squeeze out from the paint tube already has its own brightness. There is a difference in brightness between colors. If you arrange them from dark to light, you can get the following order: black, blue, cyan, dark green, black brown, emerald green, deep red, scarlet, ocher, grass green, cobalt blue, vermilion , orange, earthy yellow, medium yellow, lemon yellow, white. If each pigment is mixed with black or white, the brightness difference of the same color will be produced; if other colors darker or lighter than this color are mixed, the brightness difference of different color characteristics will be produced. It can be seen that the brightness contrast of color contains quite rich and complex factors. It is easier to distinguish the lightness and lightness contrast of a single color, but it is not easy to correctly identify the lightness contrast that includes factors such as color purity, coldness and warmth. For example, when looking at a traffic light at an intersection, red and green are easy to distinguish, but the brightness of red and green cannot be distinguished for a while. Therefore, in color sketching, it requires training to correctly and timely grasp the transition, connection and contrast of color brightness of different personalities. According to the brightness changes of colors, various grades can be formed, which can be roughly divided into three categories: high brightness colors, medium brightness colors and low brightness colors. In painting, different levels of brightness can produce different categories of tones, namely bright tones, dark tones, and midtones. The hue effect is affected by the brightness contrast factor. In order to achieve the balance of the picture, you cannot concentrate the brighter and weak colors on a certain side or part of the picture. You need to alternate the tones so that the picture can achieve a balanced and unified effect through contrast and echo (Figure 2).

This painting "Peace, for Mothers and Children" is a black and white print. The contrast between black and white is very simple. The center of the painting is a large piece of dark tone, and dots and lines are used to depict the graceful and peaceful posture of the mother and her child lying down. . The bright white dots and lines in this black block alternate in tone with the bright tones around the black block, producing an echoing effect; the black dots and lines in the bright tones also have the same tonal alternation and effect as the large black block in the center. effect, this keeps the circle of white from feeling isolated and disconnected from the subject. The thick black border at the outermost edge of the painting is another repetition of tonal alternation and echo to achieve balance, creating a sense of rhythm and rhythm in the tonal contrast of the entire painting. There is also a direct relationship between brightness contrast and emotional expression. For example, the strong contrast between high-brightness and low-brightness colors is exciting and full of life. The brightness contrast is weak, there is no strong contrast, and there is a sense of harmony between the tones, which can reflect a stable, calm and elegant mood. For example, the tonal contrast is blurred, hazy and subtle, which can create a sense of mystery and mystery, etc. Even in sketches, different contrasts between light and dark can produce various emotional effects.

Purity contrast - the effect of colors is shown by contrast with each other. Purity contrast refers to the contrast between bright and turbid colors. Use non-bright low-purity colors as background colors to make bright colors appear more intense and eye-catching. If red and green contrasting colors of the same purity and similar color area are juxtaposed together, not only will they not be able to enhance their color effects, but they will weaken each other. If the green is mixed with gray to weaken the purity, the red will be more vivid against the gray-green contrast. We observe the colorful ponchos and umbrellas used by pedestrians on the streets on rainy days. The bright and pure colors are extremely eye-catching and beautiful. The reason is that they are contrasted by the dark and cold gray tones of the surrounding environment. High-purity colors have forward-protruding visual characteristics, while low-purity colors have the opposite effect. The same color can produce differences and contrasts in purity at different spatial distances. For example, if you observe three red flags at different distances: near, middle, and far, the near red flag is bright; the red flag in the middle shot appears grayish purple compared to the red flag in the close shot; the red flag in the distant shot appears in contrast. In comparison, it is less pure and appears gray. This is the change of color due to spatial relationship, which reflects the change of color purity and creates a sense of spatial distance. In a picture, the tones dominated by weak contrast of purity are elegant, and the emotional effect expressed is basically tranquil; on the contrary, the strong contrast of purity has an exciting and active emotional effect.

Contrast of warm and cold colors - the warm and cold feelings of colors come from people's physiological and psychological life experiences. Therefore, the contrast between warm and cold in color elements can especially exert the appeal of color. The tendency of warm and cool colors is relative and should be displayed when two colors are in relative contrast. In the process of color sketching, understanding the changes in contrast between cold and warm colors mainly relies on mutual comparison. Observe the sky on a sunny day. If it is purple-gray, the sky on the ground or in distant mountains will generally appear warmer, while the sky above will tend to be colder, with a slight difference between warm and cold. When an object is exposed to direct sunlight, the light-receiving surface will be warmer and the backlight surface will be warmer. Cold, the strong light part of the light-receiving part is colder, the part of the backlight that is reflected by the blue sky light appears colder, and the part of the backlight that is reflected by the sunlight from the ground is covered with a warm color. From the understanding of the natural laws of color and light, we can recognize the laws of contrast between warm and cold colors through observation, which is very important in color learning; if we cannot recognize and express this contrast between warm and cold colors, the color of the picture may tend to be monotonous.

The contrast between warm and cold can take various forms. For example, use a warm-toned background environment to set off a cold-toned subject; or use a cold-toned background environment to set off a warm-toned subject; or use an alternation of cold and warm tones to make the undulating colors of the picture rhythmic.

Area contrast - the area, shape, and position of color have been mentioned in the section on color elements. This is one of the factors associated with composition in art design or layout structure in painting. The so-called area of ??color is generally relatively clear in design or decorative painting, because most of them use flat color blocks with simple hues, combined with the shape of the color blocks, through arrangement and interspersion, to form strong, weak, and weak areas. Ups and downs rhythm effect. In realistic paintings, there is basically no simple flat color block. In a color area, there must be many color changes at the same time, but it still has the form factors of contrast such as color area, shape, and position. The size of the color area is related to the formation of hue. Its role in artistic expression is to obtain color effects through contrast. Considering the shape of the color block refers to the beauty of the appearance, and also includes the contrast between lines and shapes. The contrast between a square and a circle has an incongruous factor, which is different from the feeling of curved lines. For example, a patch of sky, a building, a field, and a tree in a landscape painting all have their color area, shape, and position. "A little red among all the green" not only has a complementary color contrast of hue, but also has a strong contrast effect of color area. "Clumps vs. Points" is a contrast between shape and area. For example, in the frame, the position of "a little red" should of course be in the center of vision.

The contrast of various color elements mentioned above all exerts its effect in serving the formal rules of composition. This aspect will also be discussed in the chapter on composition.

2. Harmony

Color harmony is the approximation of color properties. It refers to the relationship between different, contrasting, and even uncoordinated colors. Through coordination, combination, and arrangement, the overall harmony and stability in the picture are produced. and unity. The basic method of achieving harmony is to weaken the contrast intensity of various color elements, so that the color relationship tends to be similar, thereby producing a harmonious effect.

Contrast and harmony are two aspects that are interdependent and contradictory. They are both important means to obtain color beauty and express theme thoughts and feelings. In a picture, depending on the different requirements of the theme, the color tone can be mainly based on contrasting factors or based on harmonious factors. In terms of emotional reflection, generally positive, pleasant, stimulating, exciting, lively, brilliant, rich and other sentiments are expressed in contrasting tones. Emotions such as comfort, tranquility, subtlety, softness, simplicity, weakness, elegance, and silence should be expressed in harmonious tones.

The harmonization of the same hue refers to a series of hues that can produce a simple change in brightness by gradually adding any basic color to white or black. These different levels of colors, which tend to be bright or dark, can be called the same color or the same color, and have extremely harmonious properties. If a set of contrasting colors is mixed with white or black at the same time, the purity will be reduced, the hue personality will be weakened, and the sense of harmony will be strengthened.

The harmony of adjacent colors and similar colors means that the similar colors contained in the color are dominant. Color factors such as hue, purity, and brightness are very similar, and the contrasting characteristics are not obvious. It is a harmonious color relationship. Such as adjacent colors red and red-orange, red and red-purple, yellow and yellow-green; similar colors such as deep red, bright red, rose red, vermilion, etc. Color contrast of similar colors is slightly stronger than adjacent colors.

No matter what color, when paired with achromatic black, white, and gray, it can produce a harmonious effect.

When contrasting two colors, if the same complex color is mixed, that is, a gray color, then the contrasting colors will move closer to the mixed complex color, and the hue, brightness, purity, coldness and warmth will all tend to be close. The stimulation of contrast The factors thus weaken or disappear. The blending effect is enhanced in direct proportion to the amount of color mixed in.

Contrasting colors on both sides, if one side is mixed with the other's color, or both sides are mixed with the other's color, the difference can be narrowed, weakened, and tend to be harmonious.

Between two contrasting colors that are not harmonious, you can make the two contrasting colors harmonious by dealing with a color that is harmonious with both contrasting colors. For example, in the contrasting colors of red and green, if yellow is occasionally harmonious with red and green, the contrast intensity of red and green will weaken and tend to be harmonious. When arranging a still life sketch, if there are strong contrasting and uncoordinated colors in the main object, the appropriate interlining color should be considered according to the above rules when matching the interlining cloth, so that the still life has a contrasting and harmonious overall color effect.

The principle of contrast and harmony of colors is an important issue worthy of discussion and research in color practice. The knowledge in this area and some methods of color contrast and blending mentioned above can actually only serve as some inspiration. The contrast of various forms of color and the coordination of various methods are extremely complex, and the themes and emotions they express are also very wide-ranging.

Only when we truly have the basic ability of color, continue to draw inferences from one example in color practice, and gradually understand the contrast and harmonious rules of color can we fully exert the expressiveness and appeal of color