Grade by Grade
B. Drama / D. Visual Arts · Drama and Visual Arts

Visual Arts: Colour, Feelings and Value

D1.3 D2.1 D2.2About 45 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can sort colours into warm and cool and use them to show a feeling or mood.
  • I can mix warm and cool tints by adding colour to white.
  • I can mix a range of light and dark values of one colour.
  • I can share my feelings about how an artist used colour, and explain why.

Words to know

warm colours
Red, orange and yellow. They remind us of sun and fire, and can feel lively, cozy or excited.
cool colours
Green, blue and violet. They remind us of water, ice and shade, and can feel calm, quiet or sad.
tint
A colour mixed with white, so it is lighter.
shade
A colour mixed with a little black, so it is darker.
value
How light or dark a colour is.
mood
The feeling an art work gives you.

Remember from Grade 2

You mixed secondary colours (orange, green, violet) with a limited palette, made tints by adding white, and looked for light and dark.

This year you will use colour to show feelings, mix warm and cool tints, and make a whole range of light and dark values.

What colour is a feeling?

Close your eyes. Imagine sitting by a campfire at night. What colours do you see? Now imagine floating in a quiet lake on a hot day. What colours now?

The campfire is full of reds, oranges and yellows. The lake is full of blues and greens. Colours can make us feel things!

A campfire burning on a rocky shore beside a calm blue lake at dusk.
Warm and cool colours in one scene: the fire glows red, orange and yellow, while the lake and sky are cool blues and greens. How does each part make you feel? AI-generated image
Warm coloursred, orange, yellowCool coloursgreen, blue, violet
A colour wheel: warm colours (red, orange, yellow) are on one side, and cool colours (green, blue, violet) are on the other.

Warm and cool colours

  • Warm colours (red, orange, yellow) remind us of sun, fire and autumn leaves. They can feel cozy, happy, lively or excited. Sometimes they can even feel angry, like a red face!
  • Cool colours (green, blue, violet) remind us of water, ice, forests and shade. They can feel calm, peaceful, cold or sad.

Colours don't have the same meaning for everyone, and one colour can feel different in different pictures. But artists often use warm and cool colours to create a mood.

Warm and cool tints

Remember: a tint is a colour mixed with white. Start with white and add a tiny bit of colour.

  • Warm tints: red + white = pink; orange + white = peach; yellow + white = cream.
  • Cool tints: blue + white = sky blue; green + white = mint; violet + white = lavender.

Tints feel soft and gentle. A winter morning sky might be painted in cool tints; a spring blossom in warm tints.

A range of values: light to dark

Value is how light or dark a colour is. You can make many values of one colour:

  • Add white to make it lighter: a tint.
  • Add a tiny bit of black to make it darker: a shade. Black is very strong, so add it a little at a time!

Artists use light values for things in sunlight and dark values for shadows, night or things that feel heavy or mysterious.

greendarker shades(+ a little black)lighter tints(+ white)
A value scale of green: darker shades on the left, the pure colour in the middle, and lighter tints on the right.

Colour and feeling in famous art

  • Pablo Picasso went through a time of painting almost everything in blues. It is called his Blue Period. Many of those paintings, like The Old Guitarist, feel sad and lonely.
  • Ted Harrison painted the Yukon with bright, bold colours: pink and yellow skies, purple mountains and colourful houses. His paintings feel cheerful and full of energy, even in the cold North.
  • Daphne Odjig, an Odawa-Potawatomi artist from Wiikwemkoong on Manitoulin Island, painted people and animals in rich, glowing colours with flowing lines.
Worked example

Example: Choosing colours for a mood

Let's plan a painting: a cabin in the woods on a winter night. We want it to feel cozy.

  1. Snow and sky: cool colours. Dark blue shades for the night sky, and cool tints (pale blue, lavender) for snow.
  2. Cabin window: warm yellow and orange glowing light.
  3. Smoke from the chimney: a light grey tint, swirling.
  4. Why it works: the warm window looks cozy because it is surrounded by cool, cold colours. The difference makes it glow!

Cool colours show the cold night; warm colours show the cozy inside. Using both tells the story of the picture.

Just for fun

Joke: Why did the painter bring a scarf to art class?

She was using lots of cool colours!

Worked example

Example: Responding to colour in an art work

Imagine a painting of a quiet bay at dusk: dark blue water, violet hills and one small orange canoe. Let's share our thoughts and feelings.

  1. I notice: most of the painting is cool and dark. Only the canoe is warm.
  2. I feel: calm and a little lonely, because of all the dark blues.
  3. I think: the orange canoe is the most important thing, because it is the only warm colour and my eyes go straight to it.
  4. I wonder: who is in the canoe? Are they paddling home?

We used I notice, I feel, I think... because, I wonder, and explained how the artist's colour choices created a mood.

Hands-on activity

Two-feeling paintings and a value ladder

You need: washable paint (red, yellow, blue, white and black), a brush, water, paper, a paper plate for mixing, and an old shirt.

Part 1: value ladder

  1. Draw a row of 7 boxes.
  2. Paint the middle box with one colour (mix green from yellow and blue, or use any colour).
  3. To the right, add more white each time: lighter and lighter tints.
  4. To the left, add a tiny dot of black each time: darker and darker shades.

Part 2: two feelings

  1. Fold a paper in half.
  2. On one side, paint a happy, lively picture with warm colours.
  3. On the other side, paint a calm or sleepy picture with cool colours and tints.
  4. Show a family member. Can they guess the feeling of each side?

Safety: use washable, non-toxic paint and wash brushes and hands afterward.

Your turn

1

Name the three warm colours and the three cool colours.

2

How do you mix a tint?

3

How do you mix a shade?

4

Which colours would you use to paint a calm, snowy morning? Why?

5

Name one warm tint and one cool tint.

6

What does value mean?

7

Look around your room. Which colour do you see the most? How does it make you feel?

More practice: warm-up

1

Is orange warm or cool?

2

Is blue warm or cool?

3

Red + white = ___

4

Which is lighter: a tint or a shade?

5

Which painter is famous for a Blue Period?

More practice: on your own

1

Why should you add black a little at a time?

2

You are painting a fall maple tree on a sunny day. Which colours would you choose? What mood do they create?

3

Put these in order from lightest to darkest: navy blue, sky blue, blue.

4

Ted Harrison painted the Yukon with bright pinks, yellows and purples. How might his paintings make a viewer feel?

5

Why might an artist paint the shadow under a pine tree with a dark shade of green?

Challenge

1

An artist paints a lonely lighthouse at night all in dark blue shades, except a small yellow beam of light. Explain how colour and value help tell the story.

2

Plan a value ladder with red. Describe the colours from the darkest shade to the lightest tint.

3

A friend says, "Blue always means sad." Do you agree? Explain.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which group shows only warm colours?

2.

A colour mixed with white is a ___.

3.

A colour mixed with a little black is a ___.

4.

Which colours would best show a calm, quiet lake at dawn?

5.

Value means ___.

6.

Picasso's Blue Period paintings often feel ___.

7.

Which is a cool tint?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Grade 3 students use colour for expression, including warm and cool colours to show emotion, mix warm and cool tints with white, and mix a range of light and dark colours (value) to communicate ideas (D1.3). They express feelings and ideas about art (D2.1) and explain how artists use colour (D2.2).

How to help:

  • Look at picture books together and ask, "What colours did the illustrator use on this page? How does it make you feel?"
  • Paint a value ladder together. It's satisfying and teaches careful mixing.
  • Notice colour in nature: warm sunsets, cool winter shadows on snow.

Common difficulties:

  • Using up all the white: starting with colour and adding white takes a lot of white paint to make a light tint. Start with white, add colour.
  • Too much black: use the tip of a toothpick or brush to add black a dot at a time.
  • "Wrong" feelings: colour responses are personal. Accept any feeling with a reason.

Safety: use washable, non-toxic paints; protect clothes and surfaces.