Light and dark colours — Art, 4–6
A colour can be made lighter or darker, and that changes what stands out in a picture. Art, 4–6 years.
Idea
The same colour can have many lightness levels. Pale blue feels different from deep blue, even though both are blue. Light and dark choices help you show a bright thing, a heavy thing, a near part or a far part.
Why
A picture with every colour equally bright can be hard to read: important parts may disappear together. Artists noticed that light falling on objects makes some areas brighter and others darker. Changing lightness gives the eye a clear path through the picture.
Worked example
Paint three small circles with the same blue. Leave the first blue, mix a little white into the second, and mix more white into the third. Now you have dark blue, medium blue and light blue. Put the lightest circle near a yellow sun so it looks bright.
Common trap
It is easy to think that a dark colour is simply a different colour. That makes sense because navy does not look like sky blue at first. Look for the family name: both belong to blue, but one has less lightness.
In real life
You see light and dark choices in clothes, rooms, signs, books and photographs. A dark letter on a light page is easier to read, while a bright mark on a dark poster can catch your eye. Artists and designers use this difference to make messages clear.
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