|
PRIME: AN
INTRODUCTION 
|
 |
|
My
studies in formative years, began in England
in the late 1960s, when children were taught
to believe that (pillar
box) red, yellow,
and blue,
were the primary
colours of pigment. While I enjoyed using this
restricted palette, learning to manipulate and
control colour, I was unable to make, what was
for me, a "perfect" violet
or purple.
I believe it is time, to acknowledge that Art,
and Science, have moved on, in this area. While
certainly, we may not all see colour in the
same way, in our personal journey of its discovery;
a consensus notion of primary colour, is in
need of re-identification. This is my prime
beef.
| |
|
|
Colour
is capable of a number of definitions; for example, "a sensation
which arises in the mind of an observer when his visual apparatus
is stimulated by light of a suitable wavelength." (footnote 1.)
Such definitions alone however, tend to offer only a superficial
explanation of the phenomena. It could be said that light
may be projected to, reflected from, or absorbed by a variety
of surfaces. Artists through the ages have contrived to imitate
the resulting colours produced, with experimentation and the
application of various materials and/or available pigments.
Notably, it appears that a plethora of conflicting advice remains
for those committed to the journey. Ralph Mayer however, within
his detailed and comprehensive technical manual for the artist (footnote
2.) , provides reliable
guidance in regard to a choice of palette, as follows:
"The
choice of pigments is entirely a matter of the individual's
purpose and intentions. It may be guided by the requirements
of the school of painting to which the artist adheres, but it
must be controlled by an understanding of the properties and
potentialities of the pigments, each of which requires some
study and experience."
We
may not know where we may go on the journey, where such knowledge
and wisdom can be accrued. However, we should expect to be
continually surprised,
especially when observing new images, in terms of any chosen
medium. Whilst we may share a consensus of ideas, thought,
and experience, we also need to be prepared to comprehend colour
and light for ourselves, in lifelong pursuit, and personal journey
of its discovery. |
