Chromosphere: The Color Theory Podcast
Ed Charbonneau
This podcast centers on my research and understanding of color, color usage, and optics as they relate to theories of human color perception in the making of visual art and design. By Ed Charbonneau, an artist (drawing & painting focus), and an adjunct faculty member in the Foundation, Fine Arts, and Creative Entrepreneurship Departments at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. (Content expressed does not reflect the views of the Minneapolis College of Art & Design)
Episodes
Mentioned books
Dec 14, 2021 • 37min
Color Theory Wars 2: The Philosopher (Schopenhauer) vs the Poet (Goethe) and the Physicist (Newton)
Discussion of Arthur Schopenhauer and Phillip Otto Runge's ideas about color vision and color harmonies, and how they may have impacted the teaching of color theory at the Bauhaus art school, in Germany in the early 20th Century. Send us a text
Dec 7, 2021 • 20min
The Birefringent Michelangelo
Discussion of the speed of light, polarization, glare, mirages, and what any of that has to do with Michelangelo. (See cangiantismo and shot silk.)Send us a text
Nov 30, 2021 • 22min
The Purkinje Shift
Discussion of how our perception of blues and greens remain strong in low light, and how that may have impacted the use of lapis lazuli (and other blue pigments) prior to the invention of the electric light bulb.Send us a text
Nov 23, 2021 • 18min
Homer and the Wine-Dark Sea
Why did Homer repeatedly describe the color of the ocean as wine-dark in the Iliad and the Odyssey? Could the sky have been purple or violet in the days when Helen and Achilles lived in mythological Ancient Greece? Discussion will focus on the possible ways in which the ocean could have been similar in color to that of a nice Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir wine.Send us a text
Nov 16, 2021 • 31min
Color Theory Wars 1: The Poet (Goethe) vs the Physicist (Newton)
In Zur Farbenlehre (A Theory of Colours, or, A Doctrine of Colours) of 1810, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe worked to dismiss Newton’s findings of the nature of spectral light and sought a return to Aristotelian views of color. Why no love for Newton? This episode reviews Goethe's theories and how he introduced psychology to the understanding of human color perception.“A great mathematician [Newton] was possessed with an entirely false notion on the physical origin of colour….” - Excerpt from A Theory of Colours.Send us a text
Nov 9, 2021 • 28min
Chromostereopsis: Color Depth Perception & Focal Points
Also known as vibrating colors or scintillating colors. Discussion of the chromostereopsis effect will explore how colors are perceived in 3-dimensional space, even when located on a 2-dimensional picture plane; how reds advance and blues recede. Send us a text
Nov 2, 2021 • 31min
Value Contrast & Focal Points!
Given the properties of color (hue, value & chroma), do value contrasts work to form the most effective focal points? This question is addressed in relation to color vision's adaptability to view contrasts in hue and chroma over those of value and brightness. Also, could our vision as babies affect how we perceive value contrasts today? Send us a text
Oct 26, 2021 • 21min
Unique Yellow: How Perception Shifts the Color of Sunlight with the Changing of the Seasons
Have you ever noticed that the color of sunlight changes throughout the year? It is thought that this is due to our shifting perception of a color known as Unique Yellow. Discussion will center on how this phenomenon occurs.Send us a text
Oct 19, 2021 • 32min
Is Indigo the Pluto of Hues? - Sir Isaac Newton and the Visible Spectrum
Send us a text
Oct 12, 2021 • 27min
Black Plastic
Is black plastic recyclable? Check out the World Economic Forum for more information on how it is recyclable, but rarely recycled. This episode focuses on a potential color theory explanation as to why it is that black plastic is used frequently as food packaging.Send us a text
