COLOR SCHEMES 101

 USING YOUR SPLIT PRIMARY COLOR WHEEL

Here is my completed split primary color wheel. I used only the primaries labeled to mix the other colors.

I made a chart for the middle to find different color schemes. (NOTE: IF YOU DON'T CENTER THE MIDDLE OF THE CHART WITH THE MIDDLE OF THE COLOR WHEEL, IT DOESN'T WORK)

RED LINE: Line it up with a color, and the other end of the line points to its complement. In the above picture, it points to yellow and violet.

BLUE/RED LINES: SPLIT COMPLEMENTARY. Point to a color with the red line. The two blue lines on either side of the complement indicate the two colors for split complementary color scheme.This split comp. consists of yellow, blue violet, and red violet.(or find the complement and the color on the left and on the right of it are the colors you use)

PURPLE TRIANGLE: TRIAD. A triad can be any triangle that is a logical arrangement of colors. A split complement is a sort of triad, but I think of it separately. In this picture, the triad is orange, green, and violet.

THE GREEN lines indicate a TETRAD, or four colors. The square is also a tetrad. In the RED tetrad above, the colors are yellow, blue green, violet, and red orange. (Notice the two pairs of complements: yellow and violet; blue green and red orange)  In the green rectangular tetrad below, the colors are yellow orange, red orange, blue green, and blue violet. (the two pairs of complements are red orange and blue green; yellow orange and blue violet)

NOTICE that in any tetrad you form, you will end up with two pairs of exact complements.

In class we did not cover some color schemes yet, such as analogous, analaogous + complement, and odd triads.We did however discuss MONOCHROME. In monochrome you choose a color and use it either full strength or with tints or shades. You create a shade with black (or in this case, neutral tint), and tints are created by thinning the paint. (Or you can use white if you don't mind the opaque)

FOR THIS PROJECT you need to find a simple design and copy it four times onto a sheet of paper. I taped the sides and center to protect it and to give a crisp, quilt like effect when finished.

The first square is done in monochrome, using Alizarin Crimson. I watered it down for tints and added neutral tint for shades. Blacks and whites are usually ok in a monochrome.

The bottom left here is complementary using red orange and bue green. Some of the greens are darker, some lighter, but it is the hue that matters not the value.

Top right is a split complementary using orange, blue green, and blue violet.

Bottom right is a tetrad using Orange, yellow green, blue, and magenta. 

Below is another pattern with the same idea. Monochrome on top left; Complementary with orange and blue on top right; Split comp. with yellow, red violet and blue violet; and last a triad with orange, violet, and green. (the other doesn't include a triad)

When doing the above project, try to keep a warm or cool dominance. (monochrome excepted) For example in the design in the top right above, there is a cool dominance: there is less of the orange (warm) than of the bluet, which is cool. 

COMPLEMENTARY COLORS

Complement means something that completes. Think of a color, say red. What are the 2 primaries missing? Blue and yellow. Together they make green. So green is the color that provides what red is missing. If I have orange, which is made of yellow and red, the primary missing is blue.

I have a blog on January 29, 2020 that gives some reason for using complements. It also contains a chart for how to neutralize colors using their complements, creating browns and grays.