The primary colors in a standard color wheel are red, yellow and blue. These are called primary colors because they cannot be created by mixing other colors, and all other colors can be formed by mixing these three primary colors together. The secondary colors are created by mixing two primary colors adjacent to each other on the color wheel. For example, red and yellow make orange. Blue and red make violet. Yellow and blue make green. Finally, the tertiary colors are made by mixing a primary and secondary color that are adjacent on the color wheel. For example, red and orange make red-orange. Blue and green make blue-green. Yellow and green make yellow-green.
The Basic Color Wheel
The basic color wheel that displays primary, secondary and tertiary colors consists of 12 colors. The primary colors again are red, yellow, and blue. The secondary colors, made by mixing two primaries, are orange, green, and violet. Finally, the tertiary colors, made by mixing one primary and one secondary, are red-orange, yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-green, blue-violet, and red-violet.
This 12 color wheel can be visualized as follows:
| Red | Red-Orange | Orange | Yellow-Orange | Yellow |
| Yellow-Green | Green | Blue-Green | Blue | Blue-Violet |
| Violet | Red-Violet |
As you can see, the primary colors of red, yellow, and blue are evenly spaced around the color wheel. The secondary colors are located between the primaries, while the tertiary colors are between the primary and secondary colors.
The History of the Color Wheel
The concept of the color wheel first originated in the 18th century. In 1704, Isaac Newton first presented his color circle in his book Opticks. Newton associated each color with a musical note and believed the color wheel demonstrated the mathematical harmony of nature.
In 1810, the German poet Johan Wolfgang von Goethe created a more psychological version of the color wheel focusing on how colors interact. Goethe studied the afterimages that colors create to propose a color wheel with 6 colors – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet.
The modern 12 color wheel was influenced by Moses Harris in his book The Natural System of Colors published in 1766. Harris proposed a color wheel based on the primary colors of red, yellow and blue. This became the basis for most modern color wheels.
In the early 20th century, Albert Munsell created one of the first standardized color wheels that psychologists and artists still reference today. Munsell’s color wheel has 5 primary hues – red, yellow, green, blue, purple. He also arranged the hues into ten steps of brightness and saturation, creating an early three-dimensional color space.
The Psychology of Color on the Wheel
Each color has psychological associations, with warm colors on one side of the wheel and cool colors on the other. Here is a brief overview of the psychology of each primary, secondary and tertiary hue:
Warm Colors
– Red – passion, excitement, intensity
– Orange – fun, youthful, energetic
– Yellow – happiness, optimism, clarity
Cool Colors
– Green – natural, stable, growth
– Blue – calm, serene, trustworthy
– Violet – creative, magical, spiritual
Secondary Colors
– Orange – cheerfulness, enthusiasm
– Green – balance, natural, health
– Violet – introspective, mystical, royal
Tertiary Colors
– Red-orange – joy, celebration, sociability
– Yellow-orange – friendliness, approachability
– Yellow-green – perceptiveness, decisiveness
– Blue-green – healing, tranquility, trust
– Blue-violet – imaginative, nostalgic, wise
– Red-violet – passion, power, eccentricity
As you move around the color wheel from red to violet, the colors transition from warm and exciting to cool and calming. The tertiary colors have associations drawing from the two hues used to create them. Designers and artists carefully select from the color wheel to choose colors that evoke the desired mood.
Using Complementary Colors from the Wheel
An important application of the color wheel involves identifying complementary colors. Complementary colors are located directly across from each other on the wheel. Some examples of complements are:
– Red and green
– Yellow and violet
– Blue and orange
When placed side-by-side, complementary colors create strong visual contrast, intensifying and highlighting each hue. Since complements are made of colors from opposite sides of the wheel, they also balance warm and cool colors. Let’s look at some examples of using complementary colors:
| Color Scheme | Example |
|---|---|
| Red and Green | Christmas decorations |
| Orange and Blue | Bright poster design |
| Yellow and Violet | Sunflowers in a field |
As you can see, complements are frequently combined in graphic design, nature, and other color applications to create bold, eye-catching combinations.
Creating Color Harmonies
In addition to complements, the color wheel can help create appealing color harmonies through similar hues. Some examples include:
Analogous Colors: Groups of 3-5 adjacent colors on the wheel, such as yellow, yellow-green, green. Analogous harmonies are similar in hue, creating a peaceful, monochromatic look.
Triadic Colors: Three colors equidistant on the wheel, such as red, yellow, blue. Triads have strong visual contrast that balances all parts of the wheel.
Split Complements: A color and the two colors adjacent to its complement, like orange, blue-green and blue-violet. This retains the contrast of complements while subtly expanding the palette.
Tetradic: Two pairs of complementary colors forming a rectangle on the wheel. Tetrads combine rich contrast with color variety.
Color Wheels in Digital Design
With computers and digital design, we can now create color wheels and test color schemes with precise models like RGB and Hex codes. Some key points:
– Digital color pickers allow choosing millions of color variations.
– Digital models like RGB allow mixing any hue mathematically.
– Web sites can incorporate code to display interactive color wheels.
– Programs like Photoshop and Illustrator have built-in color wheel selectors.
For example, this RGB color wheel below was created digitally:
| Red | Red-Orange | Orange | Yellow-Orange | Yellow |
| Yellow-Green | Green | Blue-Green | Blue | Blue-Violet |
| Violet | Red-Violet |
With digital color, we can continue to explore, adjust, and experiment with the foundational color wheel that started centuries ago with Newton and Goethe. The color wheel remains an indispensable tool for understanding and applying color in any medium.
Conclusion
The standard color wheel contains primary, secondary, and tertiary colors based around the primaries of red, yellow and blue. This color wheel was influenced by theorists like Newton and Goethe and artists like Moses Harris. The color wheel helps visualize color relationships and schemes like complements and color harmonies. It is still relevant today among digital designers. Though the options are vast with digital colors, the fundamentals of the color wheel provide guidance in creating color combinations that are balanced, harmonious, and psychologically meaningful. For any coloring application or medium, the color wheel continues to be a fundamental organizing framework.
