Colored artworks

The work of color is central in any artistic work. It is even one of the first tools of the artist. It is difficult to imagine a work that would exist without the working of color - even if it is the absence of color that the artist chooses to present. 

Through the ages and artistic movements, the use and meaning attributed to color evolves, but the essence of color remains the same. Every artist must master the properties of color in order to control his composition. In the restoration of paintings, color even becomes a science, because it is necessary to know the different molecules to find the colors and mixtures originally used by the artist. 

In the history of art, the importance of color fluctuates according to periods and geographical areas. During the Italian Renaissance, for example, there was a debate (called Paragone) between the authority of color versus drawing: according to the schools, it is the color, and not the line, that creates the emotion and visual power of a work of art. The colors thus take on an immense importance, and assume certain meanings: white symbolizes purity for example, and blue (systematically used to clothe the Virgin Mary) is associated with divinity. These symbols are not thought of randomly: the purple for example, is used since the Byzantine era to signify the highest rank of royalty. Unlike ochre, the purple pigment came from a specific shell, and was extremely difficult - and therefore rare, and expensive - to obtain.

More generally, colors can be divided into three categories: warm, cool, and neutral. As their name implies, these classes of colors give off an atmosphere that the painter can use to influence the emotion of his work. Baroque art, for example, manipulates the contrasts between warm and cold colors to capture the power of bodies. The play of light is exalted by the effects of color. For a long time, the traditional Western school of painting required painters to reproduce the colors of the environment around them. It was the Impressionists, in the 19th century, who explored other ways of seeing - and therefore of transcribing on canvas - their chromatic environment. By avoiding complex mixtures and painting spontaneously, in the open air, the Impressionists reinvented the use of color to reproduce reality.

It was not until abstract and subjective painting that art devoted itself to color as a subject. Mark Rothko, precursor of the Colorfield Painting movement and of abstract expressionism, sees in his paintings a living organism whose color is human and whose format is transcendent. Piet Mondrian, on the other hand, sought in his paintings to approach the very essence of nature through the purity of primary colors, to achieve abstraction. The founder of the Russian avant-garde movement of Suprematism, Kasimir Malevich, will disturb the senses of everyone with his work "White square on white background", in which the color is painted only for itself. Contemporary art, photography, collage, or pop art also use in their respective ways the resources of color, exploring indefinitely all its pluralities. As Picasso said, "When I have no blue, I use red." 

Artsper writes art in color: discover below a great selection of works that honor color and its properties. What better way to brighten up an interior? 

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Painting, Reflets, Patrick Briere

Reflets

Patrick Briere

Painting - 90 x 30 x 2 cm Painting - 35.4 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch

$954

Painting, Eyes with, Franck Lobbé

Eyes with

Franck Lobbé

Painting - 80 x 80 x 3 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 1.2 inch

$596

Sculpture, Tête pop, Mp Chery

Tête pop

Mp Chery

Sculpture - 30 x 16 x 22 cm Sculpture - 11.8 x 6.3 x 8.7 inch

$298

Painting, Les amis, Ossip Zadkine

Les amis

Ossip Zadkine

Painting - 68 x 46 x 1 cm Painting - 26.8 x 18.1 x 0.4 inch

$92,986

Design, BopBop 1, Loha

BopBop 1

Loha

Design - 15 x 15 x 3 cm Design - 5.9 x 5.9 x 1.2 inch

$83

Photography, Big B'Oom, RicO

Big B'Oom

RicO

Photography - 55 x 55 x 1.5 cm Photography - 21.7 x 21.7 x 0.6 inch

$2,146

Painting, Empire, Winnie Seifert

Empire

Winnie Seifert

Painting - 130 x 100 x 5 cm Painting - 51.2 x 39.4 x 2 inch

$7,153

Painting, Elsa, Françoise Augustine

Elsa

Françoise Augustine

Painting - 65 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 25.6 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch

$2,146

Painting, Untitled, Anselm Reyle

Untitled

Anselm Reyle

Painting - 224 x 189 x 3 cm Painting - 88.2 x 74.4 x 1.2 inch

$95,370

Painting, Niza I, Coco Capuzzi

Niza I

Coco Capuzzi

Painting - 24 x 18 x 1 cm Painting - 9.4 x 7.1 x 0.4 inch

$477

Photography, Platonic Moon, Franz West

Platonic Moon

Franz West

Photography - 30 x 42.7 x 1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 16.8 x 0.4 inch

$1,788

Painting, Vulcano, Diane Bellier

Vulcano

Diane Bellier

Painting - 29 x 21 x 2 cm Painting - 11.4 x 8.3 x 0.8 inch

$596

Painting, River style, Kaser

River style

Kaser

Painting - 60 x 40 x 2 cm Painting - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

$826

Print, Shiny People, Kev Munday

Shiny People

Kev Munday

Print - 42 x 52 x 0.3 cm Print - 16.5 x 20.5 x 0.1 inch

$477

Painting, Pepper, Asya Feoktistova

Pepper

Asya Feoktistova

Painting - 120 x 100 x 2 cm Painting - 47.2 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch

$5,365

Painting, Le Monde XXX, Caroline Vis

Le Monde XXX

Caroline Vis

Painting - 200 x 200 x 3 cm Painting - 78.7 x 78.7 x 1.2 inch

$16,690

Painting, Emporté, A. Brandy

Emporté

A. Brandy

Painting - 40 x 40 x 2 cm Painting - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

$358

Print, Love - Blue, Nacks

Love - Blue

Nacks

Print - 20 x 20 x 1 cm Print - 7.9 x 7.9 x 0.4 inch

$298

Painting, Neverland, Odette Muller

Neverland

Odette Muller

Painting - 60 x 30 x 4 cm Painting - 23.6 x 11.8 x 1.6 inch

$596

Fine Art Drawings, Poüèt King, Poüèt

Poüèt King

Poüèt

Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 21 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 8.3 x 0.4 inch

$83

Photography, Banyuls, Claude Billès

Banyuls

Claude Billès

Photography - 60 x 110 x 2 cm Photography - 23.6 x 43.3 x 0.8 inch

$2,265

Painting, N° 21.04 Horizon, Isa-L

N° 21.04 Horizon

Isa-L

Painting - 50 x 50 x 3 cm Painting - 19.7 x 19.7 x 1.2 inch

$2,146 $1,717

Painting, Fractal #008, Lek

Fractal #008

Lek

Painting - 50 x 50 x 4 cm Painting - 19.7 x 19.7 x 1.6 inch

$1,311

Painting, Drisme-6, Aero 82

Drisme-6

Aero 82

Painting - 20 x 40 x 2 cm Painting - 7.9 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

$593

Sculpture, Origami, Glenn Varez

Origami

Glenn Varez

Sculpture - 39 x 25 x 10 cm Sculpture - 15.4 x 9.8 x 3.9 inch

$1,431

Painting, Nice, Romain Ozanon

Nice

Romain Ozanon

Painting - 21 x 14.8 cm Painting - 8.3 x 5.8 inch

$119

Painting, Muriel, Lu Mourelle

Muriel

Lu Mourelle

Painting - 120 x 100 x 4 cm Painting - 47.2 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch

$6,676

Photography, Bite, Cynthia K Cortes

Bite

Cynthia K Cortes

Photography - 120 x 100 x 1 cm Photography - 47.2 x 39.4 x 0.4 inch

$11,325

Painting, Blue steps, Arthur Cronier

Blue steps

Arthur Cronier

Painting - 80 x 80 x 1.8 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.7 inch

$1,252

Photography, #IR_3459, Paolo Salmaso

#IR_3459

Paolo Salmaso

Photography - 50 x 75 x 0.4 cm Photography - 19.7 x 29.5 x 0.2 inch

$775

Painting, September, Sergeï Inkatov

September

Sergeï Inkatov

Painting - 50 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 19.7 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch

$1,729

Painting, Sepso, Levoy Exil

Sepso

Levoy Exil

Painting - 152 x 96 x 1 cm Painting - 59.8 x 37.8 x 0.4 inch

$4,641

Print, Lady Di, Lilly

Lady Di

Lilly

Print - 65 x 50 x 0.01 cm Print - 25.6 x 19.7 x 0 inch

$715

Painting, Paradise, Cho HuiYeon

Paradise

Cho HuiYeon

Painting - 40.9 x 53 x 3 cm Painting - 16.1 x 20.9 x 1.2 inch

$1,788

Photography, Pas, Hervé Pezzini

Pas

Hervé Pezzini

Photography - 50 x 75 x 1 cm Photography - 19.7 x 29.5 x 0.4 inch

$530

Painting, Yves 2, Florence Pinel

Yves 2

Florence Pinel

Painting - 97 x 68 x 0.2 cm Painting - 38.2 x 26.8 x 0.1 inch

$546

Painting, Night dance, KY23

Night dance

KY23

Painting - 92 x 72.5 x 3 cm Painting - 36.2 x 28.5 x 1.2 inch

$2,742

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