Introduction
This project seeks to explore the creation of an interactive multimedia tool for understanding basic color theory as part of an interior architecture/design curriculum. The software being used to create the project is Adobe Flash, chosen for its interactive programming capabilities. The project is meant to serve as a foundation for understanding basic color concepts and is the first in a series of presentations on more complex issues in color theory to come.
Color is an integral part of the interior design profession. Successful projects often make good use of color to enhance design intent (Pile, 1997). This project incorporates interior specific examples of color harmonies, to aid design students in the comprehension and understanding of basic color theory. By presenting the information in an interactive multimedia format, design students have control over the learning process and can progress through concepts at their own pace.
With the advent of computer technology, researchers are paying more attention to how students learn and retain information. For many years, printed or spoken verbal text was the dominant tool of education. However, modern students have access to information at unprecedented levels due to the Internet. This information is full of text, images, sound and motion graphics that provide a different mode of understanding information. These new students learn through discovery (DeGennaro, 2008). Multimedia learning tools allow the student to learn more deeply from various images, animations and text than from more traditional modes of communication involving words alone (Mayer, 2003). This multimedia-learning tool for color theory allows students some control over the presentation of information and involves a “discovery” element that will enrich understanding of color harmonies within an interior context.
Literature Review
Color Theory
Sir Isaac Newton developed the first color wheel. The spectrum he observed was red, orange, yellow, green, cyan and blue, violet and indigo. He then joined the two ends of the color spectrum together to show their natural progression. Johann Wolfgang Goethe studied the psychological effects of colors. Goethe divided all the colors into two groups, the positive (red, orange,yellow) and negative (green, blue and violet) (Sepper, 2003). These became known as warm and cool color groups. Warm colors typically produce excitement and cheerfulness and cool colors promote calm and relaxation.
Johannes Itten developed the modern color wheel. Itten's color wheel is based on red, yellow, and blue as the primary triad and includes twelve hues: red, red-orange, orange, orange-yellow, yellow, yellow-green, green, green-blue, blue, blue-violet, violet, violet-red (Itten, 1974). Itten (1974) defined the concept of color harmony. Color harmony is “the craft of developing themes from systematic color relationship” (p. 118). He labeled these color chords dyads, triads, tetrads and hexads. These chords selected colors from the color wheel based on the hues opposite a straight line, a triangle, a square or a hexagon (two triangles). Current basic color schemes follow this formula.
The twelve-color color wheel is made up of three primary colors (red, yellow and blue, three secondary colors (orange, green, purple) and six tertiary colors (red-orange, orange-yellow, yellow-green, green-blue, blue-violet, violet-red). The color wheel is only concerned with hue. It does not take into account tint or shade
Pile (1997) identifies five basic color schemes derived from the color wheel. A monochromatic scheme is made from one hue. An analogous scheme selects up to three or four colors side by side on the color wheel. Complementary schemes select colors from opposite positions on the color wheel. Triad schemes are based on three hues spaced equally around the color wheel. The primary colors make a common triad scheme. The last type of scheme, the tetrad, is the most difficult scheme to accomplish. The tetrad color scheme uses four hues spaced evenly around the color wheel.
Each color scheme can utilize various shades and tints of the chosen hues to add interest and complexity. Although shade and tint are out of the realm of this project, it is helpful to know that shade is the amount of black added to a hue and tint is the amount of white added to a hue. With tints and shades applied to each hue of the color wheel, the possibilities for color combinations becomes quite complex. The application of these color harmonies specific to interior design can be explained using multimedia tools.
Adobe Flash & Multimedia Learning
The advent of the Internet and the proliferation of technology have changed the face of education. Traditional methods of teaching, such as verbal lectures, no longer reach a new generation of students. Modern students are exposed to multitudes of images and graphics, coupled with text and sound. In order to meet the needs of new students, multimedia-learning tools provide a richer exploration of material (Mayer, 2003). Mayer (2003) outlines some general principles of successful multimedia learning. Students learn better from words and pictures together than from words alone. Students learn better when corresponding pictures and words are presented near rather than far from each other. Students learn better when corresponding pictures and words are shown simultaneously. And students learn better when extraneous pictures, sounds and words are eliminated.
The Flash interface is similar to other Adobe products such as Photoshop and Illustrator. In fact many of the tools work the same way and the communication between the programs allows for seamless transfer of objects and images. This compatibility makes creating complex motion graphics more user friendly. However, Flash is capable of creating and drawing graphic shapes directly in the workspace with ease.
The main difference between Flash and other Adobe products is the ability to create time-based graphics. The timeline is a crucial element that orders the sequence of graphics in Flash. The user creates animations by placing different images on different frames.
Methodology
The first step to creating this multimedia presentation on color theory was to research basic color theory. Basic to any understanding of color is the color wheel and its components. Once the color wheel is explained, color harmonies and relationships are easier to understand. These elemental concepts were chosen to present in the multimedia presentation. After identifying key points of color theory to address in the presentation, a script was developed. The script consisted of storyboards with general layout information and ideas on interactivity that would give the user/learner more control over the pace and order in which information was presented. The script, although fairly complete, was only a guideline.
The next step in the process was to implement the design into an interactive multimedia presentation. This involved selecting and learning an appropriate software program. Adobe Flash was chosen to create the presentation. With no previous experience using Adobe Flash, the researcher had to start with very basic concepts of animation and interactivity, slowly learning the skills to create the presentation. The script as guideline was helpful, allowing for changes in layout and graphic presentation as needed. After several practice animations, it was possible to assess what was and was not possible in the given period of time. Elements of the script were changed or eliminated according to the four-week time frame and the researcher’s skill level to complete the task.
Results
The final project is a fairly short multimedia presentation that resembles a web page. There is an initial homepage or introduction page that informs the user of the purpose of the presentation. The user navigates the presentation by using linked buttons. With each page, the user is presented with new information about the color wheel and color harmony. There are six pages that discuss the color wheel and its components, monochromatic color schemes, analogous color schemes, complementary color schemes, triad color schemes and tetrad color schemes. As the user rolls the mouse over links on each page, the main color wheel responds by enlarging the colors on the wheel that correspond. When clicked, these links go to more detailed examples that further illustrate the concept. For example, on the monochromatic page, when the mouse is rolled over red, the red hue on the color wheel and various tints and shades of red become enlarged. When the red button is clicked, the user sees an example of an interior scene that employs a red monochromatic scheme.
The user always has the choice to visit any page at anytime, due to the navigation buttons at the bottom of all the main pages. This simple technique allows the user to control the learning experience by selecting topics of interest and discovering the information at the user determined pace.
Conclusion
The final project presents only a small portion of color theory. This leaves much area for expansion of multimedia texts. Even the information in this presentation is presented dealing only with hue as an aspect of the color spectrum. Concepts of tint and shade make color schemes much more complex and could be woven into this presentation to provide an understanding of more subtle color combinations. Specific to this presentation, the colored interior scenes based on the color harmonies, could become more interactive. One option includes allowing the student to choose individual colors from a color palette and then apply the color to a blank interior image, creating their own color combinations. This would allow students to discover certain aspects of color placement on their own, rather than being shown a completed image of a selected color scheme.
Ultimately, the researcher found Adobe Flash to be an excellent tool for creating interactive texts. Time spent learning the program definitely took time away from the design process, but was necessary in order to know what was possible. With a finite amount of time to create the presentation, the researcher made very deliberate choices to keep the graphics simple. While this could be seen as a strength, the presentation becomes a bit monotonous as it continues through the color harmonies. It becomes difficult to visually tell the difference between the different pages without reading the title on the side of the page. A simple change in background hue or transparency could provide some visual variation.
Learning Action Script was another limitation that shaped the project. The researcher had no previous experience writing code. Action Script is a fairly complex programming language that requires in depth understanding of action phrases. The most recent version of Action Script, Action Script 3.0, is an object-based programming language that is a bit more complex than previous versions and more advanced than necessary for a first time user of Adobe Flash. For this reason, the researcher chose to use Action Script 2.0 for the fairly simple commands used in this project, such as Rollover, Rollout, on Press and transparency commands. A more extensive knowledge of Action Script could increase the interactivity of this project allowing for more user input and decision-making.
The project incorporates visual examples with minimum use of words and no use of sound. To make the learning tool more applicable to different types of learners, it will be necessary to include more variety in the way information is presented. Adding sound and more in-depth textual explanation could enhance the learning experience.
Given more time to learn more advanced features of the program, it is definitely possible to create interesting and engaging learning tools that address the needs of modern media savvy students. Ultimately the project was an advantageous step in learning how to create interactive learning tools. Adobe Flash, although complex, is capable of creating very interesting and innovative media for the delivery of instructional information. Using the lessons learned in this project, further progress in creating learning tools that challenge and stimulate the learner could occur. By building on the knowledge gained about the timeline and frames, and Action Script, the researcher feels confident in taking the next steps to develop a series of interactive learning tools that will guide students through more complex issues in color theory for interior design.
References
DeGennaro, D. (2008). Learning designs: an analysis of youth-Initiated technology use. Journal
for Research on Technology in Education, 41(1), 1-20.
Itten, J. (1974). The art of color: the subjective experience and objective rationale of color. New
York: John Wiley and sons.
Mayer, R.E. (2003). The promise of multimedia learning: using the same instructional design
methods across different media. Learning and Instruction, 13(2), 125-139.
Perkins, T., (2008). Adobe Flash CS3 professional: hands-on training. Berkeley, CA: Peachpit Press.
Pile, J.F. (1997). Color in interior design. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Sepper, D.L. (2003). Goethe contra Newton: Polemics and the project for a new science of
color. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.
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