Re: Misc., lozenge

Charles Hart (hartc@spot.colorado.edu)
Mon, 11 Dec 1995 12:08:35 -0700

>>
>>to continue a thread:
>>
>-snips-
>>
>> The idea behind the odd combination of colors found in lozenge
>>camouflage is rooted in color theory that was being developed during the
>>latter part of the 19th century. Look at paintings by the French painter
>>Seurat. He painted in what was called a "pointilist" style, that is he
>>used no brush strokes but applied thousands of dots of color on his
>>canvases. When the viewer stood several feet away from his work the
>>disparate colors of dots blended to make the image/scene that he was
>>painting.
>>
>> The colors found in lozenge fabrics work in a similar way. When
>>viewed from a distance, these varied colors are intended to meld together
>>and have the appearance of a non-descript color that will blend in with the
>>background against which the aircraft is flying. Too frequently, our
>>experience, particularly as modelers is to look at these machines at close
>>range and not in the setting, or distance, in which the camouflage was
>>designed to be the most effective.
>>
>>Charles
>
Bill Shatzer wroteL
>

>Well, this is the first time I've ever heard it expressed in terms
>of 'pointilism' and Georges Suerat (which is -way- too intellectual
>for this list!) but Charles has got it absolutely correct.
>
>As to the 'gaudy' colors, keep in mind how 'scale effect' works
>in one to one scale. With distance, colors tend to become muted
>and 'blue out' and colors which appear quite vivid up close appear
>much more subdued through a couple thousand feet of atmosphere.
>
>
>
One thing that I had intended to add to the above is that another
example of combining color points is found on the very monitor screens
everyone is reading these words from. Color monitors and televisions use
varying intensities of additive primary colors, red blue and green, to make
the millions of colors possible with modern CRT displays. This belongs to
the same pricipal, viewed from far enough away red blue and green dots
become browns, yellows, mauves etc.

I'm not sure that I agree with the use of "scale" colors on models of
any scale. In the case of lozenge, the polygons are reduced in size, hence
the visual effect is retained, though Bill is correct in noting that there
would be shifts involved with viewing these colors from considerable
distance. So what do we build models for ? Should it be for accurate
viewing from close up or for the "scaled" effect of views from a distance?
Answers from the list ?

Charles

hartc@spot.colorado.edu