Mixing colors is a fun and creative way to produce new shades and hues. With just the primary colors red, blue and yellow, you can create a wide spectrum of colors by combining them in different ratios. Understanding color theory and color mixing allows artists, designers, and anyone feeling creative to blend custom colors for their projects.
The Primary Colors
The primary colors are red, blue and yellow. These are called primary colors because they cannot be created by mixing other colors. All other colors are derived from these 3 main hues. For example:
| Color 1 | Color 2 | Resulting Color |
|---|---|---|
| Red | Blue | Purple |
| Blue | Yellow | Green |
| Red | Yellow | Orange |
The primary colors are the building blocks of the color wheel. Starting with red, blue and yellow, you can create all the other colors by mixing different ratios of the primaries.
Mixing Primary Color Pairs
Mixing any two primary colors together creates a secondary color. For example:
- Red + Blue = Purple
- Blue + Yellow = Green
- Red + Yellow = Orange
When mixing two primary colors, the resulting secondary color will be somewhere between the two original colors on the color wheel. For example, mixing red and yellow creates orange, which sits between red and yellow.
The exact shades of the secondary colors can be tweaked by adjusting the ratios of the two primaries. Using more red and less yellow makes the resulting orange shift closer to red. Using less red and more yellow shifts the orange toward yellow. This allows for many different orange shades by tweaking the red/yellow ratio.
Mixing All 3 Primary Colors
When all 3 primary colors (red, blue and yellow) are mixed together, they create various shades of brown, depending on the ratios used. For example:
- Equal parts red, blue and yellow make a muddy brown.
- More red and blue create a deep, earthy brown.
- More yellow with red and blue make a sandy, tan brown.
Brown sits opposite the color wheel from the 3 primaries. So mixing the 3 primaries neutralizes their hues and creates the browns on the opposite side of the wheel.
While brown may seem boring compared to bright primaries, the ability to mix different shades of brown is useful for artistic work. Browns and earth tones are important for painting landscapes, objects and realistic portraits.
Tertiary Colors
Tertiary colors are made by mixing a primary color with a secondary color next to it on the color wheel. For example:
- Red + Purple = Red-Purple
- Yellow + Green = Yellow-Green
- Blue + Purple = Blue-Purple
These combinations create vibrant tertiary colors with names like red-violet, yellow-orange, blue-green, etc. The tertiary colors fill in the gaps between the primary and secondary colors on the wheel.
With different ratios of the two component colors, many shades of tertiary colors can be made. For example, a red-violet with more red than purple will appear closer to plain red on the wheel.
Complementary Colors
Complementary colors sit directly across from each other on the color wheel. Common complementary pairs are:
- Red & Green
- Yellow & Purple
- Blue & Orange
These opposing colors create strong contrast and vibrancy when placed next to each other. Using complementary colors together makes both appear more intense. Complementary colors are often used together in art, graphic design and fashion.
However, pure complementary colors can sometimes clash if they have high saturation. In design, complementary colors are often desaturated or shaded with grey to make them easier on the eyes.
Color Mixing Ratios
The ratios of the component colors have a big effect on the resulting mixed color. Here are some examples of mixing red, yellow and blue in different ratios:
| Red | Yellow | Blue | Resulting Color |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 part | 1 part | 1 part | Muddy brown |
| 3 parts | 2 parts | 1 part | Orange leaning red |
| 1 part | 3 parts | 1 part | Yellowish tan |
| 2 parts | 1 part | 4 parts | Blue-violet |
As shown above, the color with the highest ratio has the biggest influence on the mixed shade. Keeping the ratios consistent allows you to recreate the same custom colors every time.
Mixing Tips
Here are some useful tips for mixing colors:
- Start with small amounts and add more as needed – it’s easier to lighten a color than darken it.
- Mixing white with a color makes it lighter (tint). Mixing black makes it darker (shade).
- Keep track of color ratios for replicating mixes.
- Let washes and thin layers dry between mixing to prevent muddy colors.
- Mixing complementary colors makes both look more vivid.
- Mixing analogous colors creates pleasant, harmonious hues.
Tools for Mixing
There are various tools that can be used for color mixing:
- Paint palettes – For mixing paint colors. White plastic or ceramic palettes work best.
- Mixing trays – Different sized compartments for mixing precise color ratios.
- Paint brushes – Soft brushes for blending and applying paint mixes.
- Mixing chart – Reference for color mixing combinations.
- Containers – For mixing liquid paints, dyes, inks, etc.
Uses of Color Mixing
Understanding how to mix colors has many practical uses including:
- Painting – Mixing paints on a palette to create custom hues.
- Dyeing – Blending dyes to dye fabric unique colors.
- Printing – Combining colored inks to print custom shades.
- Drawing – Layering colored pencils or markers to form new colors.
- Design – Selecting and blending colors digitally or physically for graphics.
- Effects – Mixing media like pigments or lighting gels for theater effects.
- Crafts – Tinting polymer clays, icing, cosmetics, wax, glazes, etc.
Color mixing allows endless creativity across many mediums and disciplines.
Teaching Color Mixing
Color mixing is often taught to children as an engaging introduction to colors and art. Primary grade lessons may cover:
- Identifying the primary colors
- Mixing primary pairs to make secondary colors
- Experimenting with color mixing using fingerpaint, tempera paint, etc.
- Color mixing activities like spinning color wheels
- Learning color vocabulary like hue, tint, shade, primary, secondary, etc.
Hands-on color mixing projects allow young students to explore colors and develop important fine motor skills. Lessons can incorporate math and ratios by mixing colors in different proportions.
Color Mixing in Art
Understanding color mixing is fundamental to the visual arts. Painters blend colors on a palette to capture the perfect hues for conveying light, shadows, textures and form. Color choice also impacts mood, emotion and meaning.
Many renowned works derive their power from expert color mixing. Monet’s dreamy Water Lilies use soft color mixtures to capture tranquil scenes. Van Gogh’s bold complementary colors make his paintings instantly recognizable. Vermeer mixed his own paints to portray light with incredible detail.
Contemporary artists continue innovating with new materials and effects. Mixed media works blend multiple paints, papers, inks and objects. Graffiti artists mix spray paints into vibrant street art. Found object sculptors combine disparate materials and colors.
Conclusion
Mixing the primary colors red, yellow and blue provides an endless spectrum of shades for creative work and expression. Understanding color ratios allows colors to be consistently replicated. While mixing colors may seem simple on the surface, there is great nuance and skill involved. Mastering color combinations takes artistic intuition developed over time and practice.