The Measurement of Color. The Tristimulus Theory of Color

What it is to be a Substance? and What it is to Exist? We need to establish knowledge about the man and the world on a firm basis and the information it provides must be tested for its accuracy and consistency with an external reality. We have to make the fundamental distinction between the living and the non-living matter. The scientific advances of the 19th and 20th centuries reinforced the materialistic position concerning the basic similarity of organic living and inorganic physical matter. The man is viewed as a product of natural evolution and is thought to be subject to the same laws of Physics and Chemistry or mechanistic principles.

We need a methodology to study philosophy and to understand philosophical statements. Logical Positivism, also known as Scientific Empiricism aims to clarify concepts in both everyday and scientific language. It describes analysis of language as the function of philosophy. This analysis of language and of concepts is important to understand questions of belief and ideology which affect what we think we ought to do individually and socially. I would use this method of ‘Applied Philosophy’ to analyze the concept of Spiritual Optics, the Spiritual dimension of biological coloration.

WHAT IS COLOR AND WHAT IS COLORATION?

The term ‘color’ refers to the spectral qualities of emitted or reflected light. The term ‘coloration’ is a dynamic and complex characteristic that has captured human interest and attention for a long time. The human interest to coloration ranges from purely aesthetic to the rigidly pragmatic.

BIOLOGICAL COLORATION:

Biological Coloration refers to the general appearance of an organism as determined by the quality and quantity of light that is reflected or emitted from its surface. This Coloration depends upon several factors:

1. The integrity and deployment of the structural units and features involved in the generation of color,

2. The color and distribution of the organism’s pigments, and the relative location of differently colored areas,

3. The shape, posture, position, and movement of the organism,

4. The quality and quantity of light striking the organism, including the seasonal light and temperature variations,

5. The psychological, behavioral, hormonal, and other physiological conditions associated with the use of color,

6. The visual capacity of the viewer.

The Tristimulus Theory of Color

The comprehensive understanding of biological coloration demands a study of Physics, Chemistry, Physiology, Biology, Psychology and other subjects. It is equally important to pay tribute to people who have contributed to a better understanding of the principles involved in color production. I am happy to introduce Herbert Eugene Ives (1882-1953), son of Frederic Eugene Ives (1856-1937) to my readers.

Herbert Eugene Ives is recognized for his study of the spectral absorption characteristics of all readily available pigments and he concluded that an artist’s palette containing only three properly chosen colors is entirely adequate under most circumstances for color production.

Ives introduced modern Tristimulus Colorimetry, the three-components theory of chromatic adaptation. Through his devotion to the science of Optics and the art of Photography, he proved that three colors are adequate to handle the vast majority of colors needed for naturalistic painting. In nature, the beauty of colorful objects is in the imagination of the viewer. I would like to share some photo images of Glory-bower which belongs to Family Verbenaceae, Order Lamiales, tropical plants and shrubs that are grown for their attractive flowers, and foliage.

The Tristimulus Theory of Color is important as it has several useful, practical applications and it helps the man to reproduce natural colors. At a fundamental level, color provides the sensory stimulus and the man perceives color as the evidence of a work done by a Designer who is intentionally providing a sense of psychological satisfaction in the mind of the viewer.

WHO IS THE ARTIST?

No single function can explain the coloration of living things. We need a comprehensive theory that predicts the lines and patterns of coloration of plants and animals. An artist’s palette containing only three properly chosen colors is entirely adequate under most circumstances to produce the various visual effects of color that is observed. The optical mechanisms involved in the production of color are complex. Coloration is a dynamic and complex characteristic and the term must be clearly distinguished from the term ‘color’ which only refers to the spectral qualities of emitted or reflected light. It is apparent that plants, and animals have no cognitive abilities to produce the coloration by which they are recognized. However, the coloration displayed gives us a clue about the nature of the “Whole Artist” who could be using imagination, has feelings for the forms created and seeks satisfaction from the visual effects that he produced. If man has the ability called visual perception, he must use the ability to visualize the “Whole Artist” who is at work. I ask my readers to give attention to the three dimensions of Color Perception. These are, 1. The Designer or the Artist, 2. The Object of Perception, and 3. The Subject who has the visual capacity of Color Perception.

Simon Cyrene