Colour Theory and Complementary Colours

In the visual Arts, colour theory is a body of practical guidance to colour mixing and the visual effects of a specific colour combination. Colour terminology based on the colour wheel and it’s geometry deprecated colours into primary colour, secondary colour, and tertiary colour. Understanding colour theory dates to antiquity.

The primary colours are red, yellow and blue. They can’t be made by mixing other colours together. The primary colours sit equal distances apart in the colour wheel. All other colours can be mixed from red, yellow and blue.

Secondary colours are made by mixing equal amounts if primary colours together :

Blue + Red = Purple

Yellow + Red = Orange

Blue + Yellow = Green

A tertiary colour is made by mixing equal amounts of a primary colour and a secondary colour together. There are six tertiary colours. On the colour wheel, they sit between the primary and secondary colour they are mixed from.

Complementary Colours

Complementary colours sit across from each other on the colour wheel. These are often referred to as opposite colours and even contrasting colours. These are :

Red and Green

Blue and Orange

Yellow and Purple

Yellow-green and Red-purple

Blue-purple and Yellow-orange

Red-orange and Blue-green

Colour Wheels