Color wheel

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For other uses, see Color wheel (disambiguation).

Boutet's 7-color and 12-color color circles from 1708

 Wilhelm von Bezold's 1874 Farbentafel
A color wheel or color circle[1] is an abstract illustrative organization of
color hues around a circle, which shows the relationships between
primary colors, secondary colors, tertiary colors etc.
Some sources use the terms color wheel and color circle
interchangeably;[2][3] however, one term or the other may be more
prevalent in certain fields or certain versions as mentioned above. For
instance, some reserve the term color wheel for mechanical rotating
devices, such as color tops or filter wheels. Others classify various color
wheels as color disc, color chart, and color scale varieties.[4]
As an illustrative model, artists typically use red, yellow, and blue
primaries (RYB color model) arranged at three equally spaced points
around their color wheel.[5] Printers and others who use modern
subtractive color methods and terminology use magenta, yellow, and
cyan as subtractive primaries. Intermediate and interior points of color
wheels and circles represent color mixtures. In a paint or subtractive
color wheel, the "center of gravity" is usually (but not always[6]) black,
representing all colors of light being absorbed; in a color circle, on the
other hand, the center is white or gray, indicating a mixture of different
wavelengths of light (all wavelengths, or two complementary colors, for
example).
The original color circle of Isaac Newton showed only the spectral hues
and was provided to illustrate a rule for the color of mixtures of lights,
that these could be approximately predicted from the center of gravity of
the numbers of "rays" of each spectral color present (represented in his
diagram by small circles).[7] The divisions of Newton's circle are of
unequal size, being based on the intervals of a Dorian musical scale.[8]
Most later color circles include the purples, however, between red and
violet, and have equal-sized hue divisions.[9] Color scientists and
psychologists often use the additive primaries, red, green and blue; and
often refer to their arrangement around a circle as a color circle as
opposed to a color wheel.[10]

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External linksColors of the color wheel[edit]
A 1908 color wheel with red, green, and violet "plus colors" and magenta, yellow,
and cyan blue "minus colors"
The typical artists' paint or pigment color wheel includes the blue, red,
and yellow primary colors. The corresponding secondary colors are
green, orange, and violet or purple. The tertiary colors are green-yellow,
yellow-orange, orange-red, red-violet/purple, purple/violet-blue and blue-
green.
A color wheel based on RGB (red, green, blue) or RGV (red, green,
violet) additive primaries has cyan, magenta, and yellow secondaries
(cyan was previously known as cyan blue). Alternatively, the same
arrangement of colors around a circle can be described as based on
cyan, magenta, and yellow subtractive primaries, with red, green, and
blue (or violet) being secondaries.
Most color wheels are based on three primary colors, three secondary
colors, and the six intermediates formed by mixing a primary with a
secondary, known as tertiary colors, for a total of 12 main divisions;
some add more intermediates, for 24 named colors. Other color wheels,
however, are based on the four opponent colors, and may have four or
eight main colors.
Goethe's Theory of Colours provided the first systematic study of the
physiological effects of color (1810). His observations on the effect of
opposed colors led him to a symmetric arrangement of his color wheel
anticipating Ewald Hering's opponent color theory (1872).
... for the colours diametrically opposed to each other ... are those that
reciprocally evoke each other in the eye.
— Goethe, Theory of Colours
The color circle and color vision[edit]

A 1917 four-way color circle related to the color opponent process

A color circle based on spectral wavelengths appears with red at one
end of the spectrum and is 100% mixable violet at the other. A wedge-
shaped gap represents colors that have no unique spectral frequency.
These extra-spectral colors, the purples, form from additive mixture of
colors from the ends of the spectrum.
In normal human vision, wavelengths of between about 400 nm and
700 nm are represented by this incomplete circle, with the longer
wavelengths equating to the red end of the spectrum. Complement
colors are located directly opposite each other on this wheel. These
complement colors are not identical to colors in pigment mixing (such as
are used in paint), but when lights are additively mixed in the correct
proportions appear as a neutral grey or white.[11]
For example: the reason that the Wimbledon tennis tournament uses
purple on the Wimbledon official logo is that purple is located almost
opposite of green on the color wheel. Purple against green provides
good contrast.[12]
The color circle is used for, among other purposes, illustrating additive
color mixture. Combining two colored lights from different parts of the
spectrum may produce a third color that appears like a light from another
part of the spectrum, even though dissimilar wavelengths are involved.
This type of color matching is known as metameric matching.[13] Thus a
combination of green and red light might produce a color close to yellow
in apparent hue. The newly formed color lies between the two original
colors on the color circle, but they are usually represented as being
joined by a straight line on the circle, the location of the new color closer
to the (white) centre of the circle indicating that the resulting hue is less
saturated (i.e., paler) than either of the two source colors. The
combination of any two colors in this way are always less saturated than
the two pure spectral colors individually.
Objects may be viewed under a variety of different lighting conditions.
The human visual system is able to adapt to these differences by
chromatic adaptation. This aspect of the visual system is relatively easy
to mislead, and optical illusions relating to color are therefore a common
phenomenon. The color circle is a useful tool for examining these
illusions.
Arranging spectral colors in a circle to predict admixture of light stems
from work by Sir Isaac Newton. Newton's calculation of the resulting
color involves three steps: First, mark on the color circle the constituent
colors according to their relative weight. Second, find the barycenter of
these differently weighted colors. Third, interpret the radial distance
(from the center of the circle to the barycenter) as the saturation of the
color, and the azimuthal position on the circle as the hue of the color.
Thus, Newton's color circle is a predecessor of the modern, horseshoe-
shaped CIE color diagram.
The psychophysical theory behind the color circle dates to the early
color triangle of Thomas Young, whose work was later extended by
James Clerk Maxwell and Hermann von Helmholtz. Young postulated
that the eye contains receptors that respond to three different primary
sensations, or spectra of light. As Maxwell showed, all hues, but not all
colors, can be created from three primary colors such as red, green, and
blue, if they are mixed in the right proportions.
Color wheels and paint color mixing[edit]
There is no straight-line relationship between colors mixed in pigment,
which vary from medium to medium. With a psychophysical color circle,
however, the resulting hue of any mixture of two colored light sources
can be determined simply by the relative brightness and wavelength of
the two lights.[13] A similar calculation cannot be performed with two
paints. As such, a painter's color wheel is indicative rather than
predictive, being used to compare existing colors rather than calculate
exact colors of mixtures. Because of differences relating to the medium,
different color wheels can be created according to the type of paint or
other medium used, and many artists make their own individual color
wheels. These often contain only blocks of color rather than the
gradation between tones that is characteristic of the color circle.[14]
Color wheel software[edit]
Main article: Color picker
A number of interactive color wheel applications are available both on
the Internet and as desktop applications. These programs are used by
artists and designers for picking colors for a design.
HSV color wheel[edit]

A color wheel based on HSV, labeled with HTML color keywords

The HSL and HSV color spaces are simple geometric transformations of
the RGB cube into cylindrical form. The outer top circle of the HSV
cylinder – or the outer middle circle of the HSL cylinder – can be thought
of as a color wheel. There is no authoritative way of labeling the colors in
such a color wheel, but the six colors which fall at corners of the RGB
cube are given names in the X11 color list, and are named keywords in
HTML.[15]
Color schemes[edit]
Main article: Color scheme
Color schemes are logical combinations of colors on the color wheel.
Moses Harris, in his book The Natural System of Colours (1776), presented this
color palette. Complementary colors are two colors directly across from each
other; for example, red and green are complementary colors. Tetradic color
palettes use four colors, a pair of complementary color pairs. For example, one
could use yellow, purple, red, and green. Tetrad colors can be found by putting a
square or rectangle on the color wheel.
In color theory, a color scheme is the choice of colors used in design for
a range of media. For example, the use of a white background with black
text is an example of a common default color scheme in web design.
Color schemes are used to create style and appeal. Colors that create
an aesthetic feeling together commonly appear together in color
schemes. A basic color scheme uses two colors that look appealing
together. More advanced color schemes involve several colors in
combination, usually based around a single color—for example, text with
such colors as red, yellow, orange and light blue arranged together on a
black background in a magazine article.
Ignaz Schiffermüller, Versuch eines Farbensystems (Vienna, 1772), plate I. Color
wheels can be used to create pleasing color schemes. An analogous color
scheme is made up of colors next to each other on the wheel. For example, red,
orange, and yellow are analogous colors.
Color schemes can also contain different shades of a single color; for
example, a color scheme that mixes different shades of green, ranging
from very light (almost white) to very dark.
Analogous colors are colors next to each other on the wheel. For
example, yellow and green. Monochromic colors are different shades of
the same color. For example, light blue, indigo, and cyan blue.
Complementary colors are colors across from each other on a color
wheel. For example, blue and orange. Triadic colors are colors that are
evenly across from each other, in a triangle over the color wheel. For
example, the primary colors red, yellow, and blue are triadic colors.[16]
For a list of ways to construct color schemes, regarding properties such
as warmness/achromiticness/complementariness, see color theory.
Analogous color schemes use colors that are next to each other on the
color wheel. They usually match well and create serene and comfortable
designs. Analogous color schemes are often found in nature and are
harmonious and pleasing to the eye.[17]
Gallery[edit]
 •
•

Newton's asymmetric color wheel based on musical intervals. Mixing

"rays" in amounts given by the circles yields color "z"

Goethe's symmetric color wheel with 'reciprocally evoked colors'

A color circle based on additive combinations of the light spectrum,

after Schiffman (1990)

•
 A color circle based on additive combinations of the light spectrum,
after Schiffman (1990)

Human Color Wheel based on the hue and light detected on human
skins, after Harbisson (2004-2009)

RGB color wheel

RYB color wheel

See also[edit]
• Color theory
• Visual perception
• Psychophysics
• Color solid
• Spectral color
• Octave
 • Color blind
• Ishihara test
References[edit]
1 ^ Morton, J.L. "Basic Color Theory". Color Matters.
2 ^ Simon Jennings (2003). Artist's Color Manual: The Complete Guide to
Working With Color. Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-4143-X.
3 ^ Faber Birren (1934). Color Dimensions: Creating New Principles of
Color Harmony and a Practical Equation in Color Definition. Chicago: The
Crimson Press. ISBN 1-4286-5179-9.
4 ^ Joseph Anthony Gillet and William James Rolfe (1881). Elements of
Natural Philosophy: For the Use of Schools and Academies. New York:
Potter, Ainsworth.
5 ^ Kathleen Lochen Staiger (2006). The Oil Painting Course You've Always
Wanted: Guided Lessons for Beginners. Watson–Guptill.
ISBN 0-8230-3259-0.
6 ^ Martha Gill (2000). Color Harmony Pastels: A Guidebook for Creating
Great Color Combinations. Rockport Publishers. ISBN 1-56496-720-4.
7 ^ Newton, Isaac (1704). Opticks. pp. 114–117.
8 ^ Briggs, David. "Newton's hue system".
9 ^ Steven K. Shevell (2003). The Science of Color. Elsevier.
ISBN 0-444-51251-9.
10 ^ Linda Leal (1994). The Essentials of Psychology. Research & Education
Assoc. ISBN 0-87891-930-9.
11 ^ Krech, D., Crutchfield, R.S., Livson, N., Wilson, W.A. jr., Parducci, A.
(1982) Elements of psychology (4th ed.). New York: Alfred A. Knopf. pp.
108-109.
12 ^ "Natural Court Colors Give Way to a Kaleidoscope of Shades".
13 ^ Jump up to:
a b Schiffman, H.R. (1990) Sensation and perception: An integrated

approach (3rd ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons, pp. 252-253.
14 ^ Rodwell, J. (1987) The complete watercolour artist. London: Paul Press,
pp. 94-95.
15 ^ "Basic HTML data types". HTML 4.01 Specification. W3C. 24 December
1999.
16 ^ How to create color palettes
17 ^ del rosario, Sivy. "Color Harmonies".
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has
media related to
Colorwheels.
• David Briggs (2007). Hue in The Dimensions of Colour
• Interactive Color Wheel (Color Scheme Generator)
 • "Colour Wheels, Charts, and Tables Through History". The Public
Domain Review. Illustrated history, with links to mostly public
domain images from digitized historic books.
show
• vte
Color topics
show
• vte
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
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Categories: ColorColor scales

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