A color wheel is a tool used by artists and designers to create color combinations that are pleasing to the eye. Color wheels can be simple or complex, depending on the number of colors used. Artists may use colors that appear next to one another, or on the opposite side of the color wheel, depending on what scheme fits their project best.
What Is a Color Wheel?
A color wheel is a basic tool of design that has been in use for centuries. Isaac Newton created the first color circle in 1666, and artists have since honed his ideas and created numerous circular color diagrams. Color wheels begin with the three primary colors--red, blue, and yellow--from which all other colors are created, through mixing and blending. Yet while all colors derive from these three, no other colors can be mixed to create them. Mixing the three primary colors creates the secondary colors, purple, orange, green. Tertiary colors, like red-orange, yellow-green and blue-violet, are created by mixing a primary color and a secondary color together. A tint is created when a color is mixed with white; mixing a color with black creates a shade. Advanced color wheels usually include at least tertiary colors.
Color Harmony
Color wheels are used by artists who want to create color harmony. A design that incorporates color harmony is pleasing to the eye because it is founded on balance and visual order. Designs that are not harmonious are either too bland and uninteresting, or too jarring and difficult to process. Therefore, artists want to make sure that their designs are harmonious. They can determine which color schemes work best by using a color wheel to understand how colors relate to one another.
Color Schemes
A color scheme is a harmonious combination of colors. There are several popular color schemes that artists regularly use. A monochromatic color scheme uses only one color throughout, utilizing that color's various tints and shades. Artists can ensure that this scheme is not too monotonous by employing various textures within the design. A complementary color scheme employs two colors that sit opposite one another on the color wheel, such as red and green or violet and yellow. Analogous color schemes use three colors that are next to one another on the color wheel. Warm color schemes (red, orange, yellow) and cool color schemes (blue, green, purple) are examples of analogous color schemes. A triadic color scheme employs three colors that are equidistant from one another on the color wheel, such as red, yellow, and blue (each one slot removed from each other in a secondary color wheel).
