Blending the art and science of color

Jean Bourges

doi:10.1117/12.320135

17 July 1998 Blending the art and science of color

Jean Bourges

Proceedings Volume 3299, Human Vision and Electronic Imaging III; (1998) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.320135
Event: Photonics West '98 Electronic Imaging, 1998, San Jose, CA, United States

Abstract

An often neglected factor of cognition is the color, the natural and created hues that are an integral part of the image. This happens because the information is divided in two basically very different languages and they do not relate well to each other. One is for science that deals in facts and uses numbers to transmit the message. The other relates to intangibles and is used for the Arts. One speaks to reality and the other to emotions. Both are valid and correctly address the needs of their profession. Not very long ago the digital world was born. The computer came and put it all together in one little box, that probably sits on your desk and is accessible to most everyone else. Now there is the need to communicate and because the box only understands numbers, the artists have to shift and identify the colors by a simple numerical code. Conversely science can learn a lot from the arts, where for centuries painters have been studying the mysteries of creating light on canvas. While color needs a responsive set of eyes, it has always been here. Let us start now by using the same words to identify a particular color, its tint and shade, how the artists use it, the essential structure that lets one move from one color to another and the colorimetric measurements that make the exact color match a practical reality.

Citation Download Citation

Jean Bourges "Blending the art and science of color", Proc. SPIE 3299, Human Vision and Electronic Imaging III, (17 July 1998); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.320135

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