Home education resource: Blue

Explore the colour blue, inspired by works in the Hatton collection

Historic Event

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A painting of a blue seascape by the artist Wiliam Henry Charlton

Dates

Until 21 June 2021 (historic event)

Blue

Seascape by William Henry Charlton

Look at all of the different shades of blue in this painting. The artist has mixed blue with white, purple and red to make all of these different colours. If it was all painted one shade of blue there would be no movement or reflections in the water.

Blue is a cool, calm colour and in a painting it often looks like it is in the distance.

Can you think of all of the different meanings the colour blue has? How does it make you feel?

Activity

You will need: thick paper, paints & palette to mix colours – this could be a plate.

For this activity you have to use quite thick paper as the paint will be wet.

Firstly, mix up some blue paint with water in a palette or on a plate and leave it to one side.

Now paint your whole paper using just water and a big brush.

Now at the top edge of your paper paint a big band of your blue colour, pick your paper up and let the paint run down your sheet of paper. Mix up different shades of blue and keep painting like this all over the sheet.

It could be the sky? The sea? A river?

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