the color wheel primary secondary tertiary

Today, it’s a visual representation of 12 colors, as we can see in the image below. The color wheel has come a long way since Newton’s version from the 1600s. We can see from this representation that shining light through a glass prism can make all kinds of colors appear - just like Newton’s theory said. This gave us one of the earliest versions of the color wheel - a framework for how we organize and understand colors today. Newton also thought that the colors he saw related to each other, so he recorded them on a circular map to visualize his theory.

Eventually, his experiments led him to discover that colors are part of light.īut there’s more to the story.

He let sunlight shine through one side of a glass prism and then saw several colors come out the other. You might have heard of Newton’s studies of the relationship between color and light. In fact, scholars have been studying them for centuries - from Aristotle in the 4th century BCE to Sir Isaac Newton in the 1600s - and even today! While colors can be an abstract topic, there’s a lot of science behind them. Let’s get started! What is color theory? A brief historyĬolor theory is all about the study of colors - how they work, where they come from, and how we experience them. We’ll walk you through the basics and share some tips to get you thinking about colors like a pro. If you’re new to color theory or simply looking to polish your design knowledge, you’ve come to the right place. Regardless of the task, understanding color theory can be a huge help. Designers think about colors a lot - whether they’re building a brand’s identity or looking to convey the right mood for an ad.

The color wheel primary secondary tertiary