Map Color Schemes Blogpost

Finally! We have started our drawing unit. Our first assignment for this unit was to complete three map designs using water soluble colored pencils which design is inspired by map collages using color schemes. 

We had three different options for color schemes to use when coloring in our map designs. Our first option was triadic design. As seen in the picture below the triadic color scheme involves picking three colors from the colour wheel which form a triangle. An example of a triadic color scheme would be using the colors yellow, blue, and red also known as our primary colors. Another example could also be purple, orange, and green. All these types of color schemes have one thing on comment, they contradict each other perfectly. 

Our second option for a color scheme was tetrad. Tetrad means 'four' which is why a tetrad color scheme involves picking colours that (on the color wheel) create a rectangle. An example of a classic tetrad color scheme would be red-orange, yellow, purple and blue green. 

Our third and final color scheme is the split-compliment color scheme. This one is a bit hard to explain, but if you look at the photo it will be easier to understand. Basically, what a split-compliment color scheme looks like on a color wheel is it starts off with your starting point color, then once you reach the middle of the wheel you branch out creating a 'Y' shape where the ends of the Y cover 3 side-to-side colours. The first and last colours on the 3 side-to-side colours will be the colours you choose, along with the starting point (base) color. An example of a split complement colour scheme is blue-violet, red-violet, and yellow as the base colour. 

Overall, some challenges I faced was figuring out where to keep my colours in my map design in a way where all colours of the colour scheme chosen were balanced and not overpowering.  However, a success I faced was I was able to apply all of the colour schemes onto my 3 map designs. For example, my second square below follows the traidic color scheme has on the color wheel the primary colors red, yellow, and blue create a triangle. As you can see my background is blue, and the different lines are either yellow or red. I applied the split complement color scheme in the first square below by using the color red as my base color and yellow green and blue green as my two adjaent colors in the same compliment category. My middle square  focused on the tetrad colour scheme since I had to pick two pairs of compliemenaty colours which forms a retctangle on the basic color wheel; I choose the 4 colours which are yellow-green, yellow-orange, blue-violet, and red-violet.