Colour Theory

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Colour Theory


The Colour Wheel PRIMARY COLOURS Red, yellow and blue

SECONDARY COLOURS

Green, orange and purple. These are the colours formed by mixing the primary colours.

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Cool Blue (Prussian Blue)

Cool Yellow (Lemon or chrome)

Brilliant Blue (or cobalt)

Brilliant Yellow

Warm Blue (Ultramarine)

Warm yellow (Ochre or Cadmium Yellow)

Cool Red (Crimson)

Warm Red Brilliant Red

(Vermillion or Cadmium Red)


Cool colours

Warm colours

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Complementary Colours

Complementary colours are opposite on the colour wheel.

Red and green,

yellow and violet, blue and orange are the three simple pairs of complementary colours. These colours always go well with each other, hence the term complimentary.


The Little Yellow Horses by Franz Marc

Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh "There is no blue without orange." - Vincent van Gogh


Tints and Shades • White and black are NEUTRALS. • They change a tone. • By adding white – it lightens the tone to create a TINT. • By adding black – it darkens a tone to create a SHADE. • REMEMBER - it takes large amount of white to alter a tone, but only a tiny speck of black.


Top Tip • When darkening a tone – never use black. • Try changing it with a pure colour to keep the work colourful and clean rather than dull. • Complementaries are good for darkening a tone.


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