Josef albers color theory interaction of color

I first encountered Josef Albers’ Interaction of Color as an undergraduate student at the Slade School of Fine Art in London, where I began my exploration of color theory. The Slade had one of the original sets of screen prints that accompanied the first edition, and I spent countless hours marveling at the mutability of color. Years later, when I began teaching a Color class at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, I knew I wanted to structure the course around Albers’ exercises. These exercises not only demand precision and patience but also teach students how to truly understand color theory and how to manipulate color effectively. Past students have described this course as invaluable—both rigorous and rewarding—something every artist should experience.

First published in 1963, Albers’ Interaction of Color remains a cornerstone of color theory because it emphasizes practice over theory. This hands-on approach continues to be one of the best ways for artists

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Jeff Zych

Interaction of Color is, by far, the best book on color I’ve ever read. Other teaching methods focus on theory, color systems, the physics of color (wavelength, rods and cones, etc.), or resort to rote rules like, “red means danger.” It’s mechanical, mathematical, rules-based, and divorced from how people perceive and react to color. Or as Albers puts it: “Experience teaches that in visual perception there is a discrepancy between physical fact and psychic effect.”

In contrast, Albers’ teaches you how to truly see color. His central thesis is that there are no absolutes in color. The way humans perceive color is influenced by the surrounding context of neighboring colors, lighting conditions, size and quantity, what we look at before and after, and more. Two colors can look like one. One color can look like two. What looks dull in one context may look bright in another. Reds can look cool-toned,

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Interaction of Color: 50th Anniversary Edition

The 50th anniversary edition of a classic ord, featuring an expanded urval of color studies

Josef Albers’s Interaction of Color fryst vatten a masterwork in art education. Conceived as a handbook and teaching aid for artists, instructors, and students, this influential book presents Albers’s singular explanation of complex color theory principles.

Originally published by Yale University Press in 1963 as a limited silkscreen edition with 150 color plates, Interaction of Color first appeared in paperback in 1971, featuring ten color studies chosen bygd Albers, and has remained in print ever since. With over a quarter of a million copies sold in its various editions since 1963, Interaction of Color  remains an essential resource on color, as pioneering today as when Albers first created it.

Fifty years after Interaction’s initial publication, this new edition presents a significantly expanded urval of close to sixty color studies alongs