Today's post is a copy of a reply I gave to a comment question received on a past post. I decided to published it here as an opportunity for more feedback on this topic.
I received a great question on the post Preschool Art- Simple Color Wheel..."I saw that you use the word purple instead of violet. Is there a reason? Because I often fight the cause that artists use violet because there is not a color called red-purple or blue-purple."
My reply was this...
"I have never really thought much about purple verses violet. I have always used the labels interchangeably. Also I didn't know that there is no red-purple and blue-purple.
Tony Couch, the first artist I studied (outside of college) labels his color wheel with "purple", "purple/blue" and "red/purple".
The great art instructor Edgar Whitney labels his basic color wheel with the word purple.
When it comes to art labels and terminology the more I study the more I realize there is not nor ever has been absolute agreement among artists regarding the color wheel (or much of anything else).
There are also many different versions of the traditional color wheel. One I studied included purple and violet as two separate colors next to each other on the wheel with no red violet or blue violet at all and the only tertiary color being blue-green as a complement to red. Color theory is "theory" leaving room for interpretation.
The same is true for what is supposed to be "basic" art elements and principles of design. The terms and the numbers of terms vary among art teachers and artists.
As art teacher, with almost no scientific knowledge, I try to present commonly accepted concepts with correct terminology but I tell students that there are no absolutes in art. There are guidelines not rules."
What do you think?
While I feel that it is perfectly "okay" to exchange the hue violet with the term "purple," especially with young students, I remain loyal to the traditional color wheel. While some may find a different approach to the wheel, I think that the traditional wheel is the standard that all others should be measured by. My professional opinion. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Joanne,
ReplyDeletegreat to meet you at uaea!!
like what you are doing here have added you to my following list.
you can contact me at marenscott@blogspot.com
hugs!
My color wheel shows blue rather than cyan and red rather than magenta. When I am teaching color theory to 7th grade - Purple is the same as violet. I am not very technical about the terms.. HOWEVER, I was corrected my first year of teaching that tertiary colors are always stated with the primary first, never the secondary because it is the more dominant color. :)
ReplyDeleteThere's no doubt that red/purple and blue/purple are different colors. I can wear a blue/red but not a yellow/red. There IS a difference. I would imagine violet to be blue/purple and not the secondary color of equally mixed primary colors. But really, who cares as long as it looks pretty? :D
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