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  About Combining Colours

Colour Theory

Colour theory encompasses a multitude of definitions, concepts and design applications. All the information would fill several encyclopedias. As an introduction, here are a few very basic concepts.

The Colour Wheel

A colour circle, based on red, yellow and blue, is traditional in the field of art. Sir Isaac Newton developed the first circular diagram of colours in 1666. Since then scientists and artists have studied and designed numerous variations of this concept. Differences of opinion about the validity of one format over another continue to provoke debate. In reality, any colour circle or colour wheel which presents a logically arranged sequence of pure hues has merit.

A century after Newton, Johann Wolfgang Goethe began studying psychological effect of colours. He noticed that blue gives a feeling of coolness and yellow has a warming effect. Goethe created a colour wheel showing the psychological effect of each colour. He divided all the colours into two groups – the plus side (from red through orange to yellow) and the minus side (from green through violet to blue). Colours of the plus side produce excitement and cheerfulness. Colours of the minus side are associated with weakness and unsettled feelings.

PRIMARY COLOURS
Red, yellow and blue

SECONDARY COLOURS
Green, orange and purple

These are the colours formed by mixing the primary colours.

TERTIARY COLOURS
Yellow-orange, red-orange, red-purple, blue-purple, blue-green and yellow-green.

Colour Harmony

Harmony can be defined as a pleasing arrangement of parts, whether it be music, poetry, colour, or even an ice cream sundae.

In visual experiences, harmony is something that is pleasing to the eye. It engages the viewer and it creates an inner sense of order, a balance in the visual experience. When something is not harmonious, it's either boring or chaotic. At one extreme is a visual experience that is so bland that the viewer is not engaged. The human brain will reject under-stimulating information. At the other extreme is a visual experience that is so overdone, so chaotic that the viewer can't stand to look at it. The human brain rejects what it can not organize, what it can not understand. The visual task requires that we present a logical structure. Colour harmony delivers visual interest and a sense of order.

In summary, extreme unity leads to under-stimulation, extreme complexity leads to over-stimulation. Harmony is a dynamic equilibrium.

There are many theories for harmony. The following illustrations and descriptions present some basic formulas.

Analogous colours are any three colours which are side by side on a 12 part colour wheel, such as yellow-green, yellow, and yellow-orange. Usually one of the three colours is used as a dominant colour while others are used to enrich the scheme.

Complementary colours are any two colours which are directly opposite each other, such as red and green and red-purple and yellow-green. In the illustration above, there are several variations of yellow-green in the leaves and several variations of red-purple in the orchid. These opposing colours create maximum contrast and maximum stability.

Nature provides a perfect departure point for colour harmony. In the illustration above, red yellow and green create a harmonious design, regardless of whether this combination fits into a technical formula for colour harmony.

Here are some examples of colour schemes.

Don't worry: we're fully aware that you're not going to decorate your home with some of the wild colour combinations below. They're only to demonstrate how the colour wheel works and how various colours can be combined to achieve a pleasing result.

Analogous Colour Schemes

Analogous colour schemes use colours that are adjacent to each other on the colour wheel. One colour is used as a dominant colour while others are used to enrich the scheme.

Split Complementary Colour Schemes

Split complementary schemes use a colour and the two colours adjacent to its complementary. This provides high contrast without the strong tension of the complementary scheme.

Triadic Colour Schemes

Triadic colour schemes use three colours equally spaced around the colour wheel. The scheme is popular among artists because it offers strong visual contrast while retaining balance, and colour richness.

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