a question on Impressionist technique

[reme]

Hello i have a question that confuses me. As far as i know impressionists like Van gogh and Seurat places complimentary colors side by side to let it mix them in your mind.
Must i have the colors to be the same value as each other? What about the intensity? Must it be the same too?

Thanks!:geekg:

[Chris Bennett]

Van Gogh and Seurat were not impressionists.
The optical mixing they practiced was for different purposes:
Van Gogh in the service of expressionism.
Seurat in the service of luminosity.
Regarding the mechanics of the process it is something that is best learnt by trial and error.

[dbclemons]

"Broken color" is the term often used to describe this technique where the paint is roughly applied so that it appears to mix visually from a distance rather than to actually mixing the colors together. For example, instead of making an orange on your palette, you place different reds and yellows on the surface. What changes is the hue, not the value or saturation except when the shadow or form changes.

At least, that's the idea of it. If you look through many of Monet's paintings you'll see that the color changes are usually very subtle. It also tends to accentuate the brushstrokes and show texture in areas that would ordinarily have none, like skies. The pointillist technique of Seurat or Van Gogh's dashes became problematic when trying to show thin lines or smooth edges.