The very first diagram showing the relationships between colours was created in 1666 by Sir Issac Newton. It shows a logically arranged sequence of hues from red through to blue (one end of the spectrum to the other).

In traditional colour theory, there are three Primary colours red, blue and yellow.

These are the pigment colours that cannot be mixed or formed by any combination of the other colours. All other colours on the colour wheel can be made up from these three.

There are also 6 Secondary colours which are formed by the mixing of the primary colours.

Finally, there are the Tertiary colours, which are formed by mixing the primary and secondary colours, they are colours such as, blue-green, red-violet etc.

This is obviously useful if you are a traditional artist, or mixing paint to decorate your house, but you may be wondering what possible benefit this would be for designing using a computer, after all, the colours are all already there on the palette for you to select from. Well the trick to good design is knowing how colours work together and understanding the colour wheel forms the basis for that understanding.

 

 

Colour harmony - the combining of colours to create great results.

Harmony in colour, as in music is something which is creates a pleasant experience, an arrangement of parts that work well together. Visually, harmony engages the viewer and creates a sense of order and balance. When something isn't visually harmonious, it creates an experience that is either boring, or worse, chaotic and unpleasant. At one end of the scale, the viewer will not be engaged, at the other the viewer will be repulsed. Naturally the human brain rejects what it can't organise, so it makes sense for a designer to make sure that a piece of artwork not only delivers visual interest, but creates a sense of order to make the most impact.

Colour harmony formulas
There are many theories for harmony, but the illustrations show two common ways to create a visually attractive image.

Analogous colours
Analogous colours are any three colours that are side by side on a 12 part colour wheel, for example yellow green, yellow and yellow orange. Usually one of the colours predominates and the others act as accents. Using colours in this way creates a sense of calm and simplicity.

Complementary colours
Complementary colours are any two colours that are directly opposite each other on the colour wheel, such as red and green, or red-purple and yellow-green. Using opposing colours in this way creates maximum contrast and is therefore more lively, vibrant and exciting.