THE CONTRAST OF COLORS
Ellen Marx
[Color Theory] Ellen Marx: THE CONTRAST OF COLORS. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1973. First English-language edition. [French Edition Printed in Belgium]. Octavo. Laminated printed boards. Matching dust jacket over Plasti-Coil binding. Unpaginated [208 pp]. Elaborate design, printing and production techniques throughout. Spine tips gently pushed. Inner boards lightly dusted. A nearly fine copy in a nearly fine dust jacket. Rare in this condition.
8.25 x 7.75 softcover book with white Plasti-Coil binding. Unpaginated with elaborate design and production techniques including die cutting and acetate overlays for a fully interactive experience. This book by a noted color theorist demonstrates the subtractive process (the pigmentary blend of colors) for observing color contrasts, using color acetate overlays and cutouts which let the reader see immediately the most subtle of contrasts.
Contents:
- Foreword
- Color contrast
- Contrast of complementaries
- Simultaneous contrast
- Contrast of brightness
- Contrast of saturation
- Hot/cold contrast
- Contrast of quantity
This spiral-bound book presents a fine collection of full page visuals that demonstrate color relativity and the interaction of colors through examples of relative contrast of complements, simultaneous effects, brightness, saturation, quantity, and hot and cold color associations. Some pages are designed with die-cut openings or transparent overlays that enable the reader to observe and manipulate color relationships. The explanatory notes are minimal, so the book requires a fundamental understanding of color theory to follow the examples. The excellent quality of the illustrations makes this a fine supplement to more general books.