Color Assignment · S. Kaldacheva

ESMOD Paris · Creative Design · Color and Illustration

Color Assignment

Individual deliverable — Part 2 and Part 3

Sviatlana KALDACHEVA  ·  Class LRF-IP/2627  ·  November 2026

Scroll down — each part plays by itself

Inspirational image

Velvet Nocturne

the palette of the image

Inspirational image: red and violet roses, books and brass candlesticks

Part 2 · Color Scales

1.Image and palette

One inspirational image. With the eyedropper I take its seven main colors and name them. The palette is called Velvet Nocturne. The bars show how much of each color is in the picture.

HierarchyBase: Midnight Ink. Key: Plum Shadow. Accents: Crimson Rose, Royal Violet.
HarmonyAnalogous violet – plum – crimson, against warm brass and candlelight.
AmbianceDark, warm and intimate, like a room lit by candles.

Part 2 · Color Scales

2.Three color scales

All three scales start from the same swatch of the palette: Royal Violet #7B1A80.

Gradient · tints + white, 12% more each step
Folded · shades + black, 10% more each step — step 7 is almost the Plum Shadow of the picture
Chromatic · broken violet mixed step by step with yellow, its opposite — the middle turns grey-brown

violet + yellow in water

Itten’s wheel: violet and yellow face each other

Part 3 · Illustration: face drawing

3.Half-face exercise

Step 1
Step 1The photo is cut in half. On the empty half: the proportion grid and the missing half of the face in pencil.
Step 2
Step 2The photo is removed. The second half is drawn on the grid to complete the face.
Step 3
Step 3Final portrait: pencil shading, the grid erased.

Part 3 · Illustration: face drawing

4.Testing drawing tools

The same face drawn ten times, each time with a different tool and style: graphite pencil, colored pencils and felt-tip pens on paper.

Part 3 · Illustration: self-portrait

5.My photo and three illustrators

Three styles chosen to be as different as possible: loose watercolor, flat graphic color, monochrome charcoal.

My photo
My photofull length — the reference for all three
Petra Dufková
Petra Dufkováwatercolor and ink
Jordi Labanda
Jordi Labandabrush outline, flat color
David Downton
David Downtoncharcoal and grey wash

Part 3 · Illustration: self-portrait

6.Observe

How each artist distorts the figure, and which medium, color and technique they use.

Part 3 · Illustration: self-portrait

7.Experiment: my self-portrait in three styles

All three illustrations are drawn by hand on paper.

Color Assignment · individual deliverable

Sviatlana KALDACHEVA

Class LRF-IP/2627 · ESMOD Paris · Creative Design · November 2026

Reference illustrations © Petra Dufková, Jordi Labanda, David Downton — shown for study only.