Through sequences of color arranged in vertical or horizontal bands, Progression explores the fascinating ways colors interact with and influence one another. These interactions happen through two main approaches: distinct steps and smooth gradients. When colors are arranged in mathematically even steps, our visual system creates an undulating effect - a rippling sensation that moves across the surface as our eyes try to process these regular intervals. This is similar to how we perceive the regular grooves in architectural fluting.

In contrast, when colors transition smoothly into one another, they create zones of perceptual ambiguity where it becomes impossible to say exactly where one color ends and another begins. These soft transitions allow colors to seemingly dissolve into each other, creating an atmospheric quality that draws viewers in as they try to resolve these subtle boundaries.

The width of these color bands can vary significantly. Sometimes they appear as equal intervals, creating a steady rhythm across the surface. Other times they form sequences of different sizes that pulse with visual energy. What's particularly fascinating is how colors activate their neighbors - causing vibrations at their boundaries, generating afterimages in our vision, or making adjacent hues appear more intense than they actually are. These effects ripple through the entire composition, demonstrating a fundamental truth about human perception: we never see a color in isolation, but always in relationship to the colors that surround it.

The project draws inspiration from several pioneering artists who deeply investigated color relationships in their work. Paul Klee, who was both a painter and accomplished violinist, understood color as a musical phenomenon. Just as musical notes combine to form chords and create harmonics, he observed how colors resonate with their neighbors to create visual harmonies that ripple through a composition. Josef Albers, through his systematic study of color interaction, identified what he called the "fluting" effect - the way our eyes create a rippling sensation when viewing colors arranged in mathematically even steps, similar to how we perceive the regular grooves in classical architecture.

Mark Rothko's paintings demonstrated how colors could interact in more subtle ways through carefully constructed transitions. His signature technique of building up thin layers of paint created ethereal boundaries where colors seem to breathe into one another rather than meeting at hard edges. This approach reveals how colors can create zones of perceptual ambiguity that actively engage the viewer's eye. Gene Davis explored another dimension of color interaction through his stripe paintings, showing how variations in the width and sequence of color bands could create dynamic rhythms and movement across a composition. These artists' investigations into color relationships help us understand the various perceptual effects at play in these progressive color sequences.