Colour and energy
David Aspden Outer spice 1969
Robert Owen Cadence #1 (a short span of time) 2003
Deborah Dawes Complete? 2010
Nike Savvas Rally 2014
Click on one of the small images to start the slideshow
Questions and activities
- Consider the relationship between artworks and the architectural space they occupy, using specific examples from the Gallery’s collection. How can movement influence the way a work is viewed? How does the audience interact with the work? Discuss how specific associations, memories and experiences can affect the interpretation of an artwork for an individual viewer.
- Find out more about colour and art in art history through a case study of an artist and focus work, such as Camille Pissarro’s Peasants’ houses, Eragny 1887 or Grace Cossington Smith’s Reinforcements: troops marching c1917. Trace their art practice and influences. Describe characteristics from their work that can be identified in specific contemporary examples in the Gallery’s collection.
- Research op art. Find specific examples in the Gallery’s collection and outline how these works show the influence of this style.
- Create two artworks; one using only black and white and the other using two colours. Compare the optical effects, visual intensity and emotional impact. Which one do you prefer and why?
- Collect a range of colour samples from your local hardware store and use them to create a tessellated artwork. Consider how you would use colour, shape and pattern to create energy in your composition.