The Colour Theory

The What and Whys Of Colour

The Colour Wheel

1. Primary (inner circle)
Red Yellow Blue

They are the base for every other colour in existence.

The Colour Wheel

1. Secondary (middle circle)
Orange Green Purple

Each is a combination of two primary colours.

The Colour Wheel

1. Tertiary (outer circle)
The base colours: Orange Green Purple

Each is a combination of primary and secondary colours depending on the mix ratio.

Meaning and associations

Every colour has a particular effect on the body. As you know, the mind and sensory organs can affect the physical condition in a variety of ways. The eyes make no exception. And, as what we see are colours, neither do they.

Red
Symbolises: Power, Strength, Live, Vitality, Warm Heart, Love, Fire,
Excitement, Action, War, Anger, Wrath.

In Heraldry: War, Military Strength Effects on the body: Raises the pulse and blood pressure. Red is the
colour, which gets our attention first (although the the most visible) This has to do with the perception of warning or danger in our brain (linked to blood, fire).

Yellow
Symbolises: Sunshine, Friendship, Cheerfulness, Happiness, Optimism,
Deceit, Illness, Jealousy, Hazard

In Heraldry: Generosity Effects on the body: Stimulate the appetite. Increases mental and
creative potential. Its the most visible colour and easy to grab attention. The colour blind can often see yellow, while they cannot recognise any other colour.

Blue
Symbolises: Intellect, Calmness, Serenity, Efficiency, Logic, Harmony,
Stability, Trust, Coldness

In Heraldry: Strength, Loyalty Effects on the body: Soothes the body and mind. Slows down the
metabolism. Improves concentration and thought processes. Creates a feeling of peacefulness and openness.

Orange
Symbolises: Warmth, Security, Relaxation, Joy, Happiness, Leisure, Deceit,
Distrust,

In Heraldry: Ambition Effects on the body: Increases the flow of oxygen towards the head and
therefore has a stimulating effect on the physical and mental activities (red and yellow). Its perceived as recreational and fun. Orange links ot healthy food and appetite (tropics, citruses).

Green
Symbolises: Nature, Life, Growth, Peace, Serenity, Safety, Spirituality,
Healing, Envy, Jealousy, Decomposition, Unnatural Objects.

In Heraldry: Hope Effects on the body: Green has a particularly soothing effect on the body
and mind. Science has proved the colour reduces stress on the eyes and even improves vision.

Purple
Symbolises: Mystery, Spirituality, Peace of Mind, Extravagance, Luxury,
Quality, Depression, Gloominess, Inferiority, Introversion

In Heraldry: Royalty Effects on the body: Purple is most preferred by infants and artists. The
first because of its calming effect on the mind, allowing for easier digestion of information. The latter because purple is linked to introversion and depression - both states common for an artist of any kind.

White
Symbolises: Purity, Cleanliness, Peace, Winter, Innocence, Sterility,
Coldness, Unfriendliness,

In Heraldry: Sincerity, Peace Effects on the body: White is a perfect reflection - all colours in the spectrum combined. It strains the eyes. White signifies sterility so we subconsciously stay away from white objects as to not ruin them.

Black
Symbolises: Death, Emptiness, Grief, Mystery, Evil, Depth, , Efficiency,
Glamour, Sophistication, Elegance

In Heraldry: Grief Effects on the body: Black can be seen as perfection. As it reflects no light wavelengths, it is the absolute absence of colour. Therefore, its not stained with imputiries.

Hue
The hue wheel is a the true, non simplified wheel of the colour spectrum. It starts with red (longest wavelength) and ends with violet (shortest wavelength). It represents all possible colours not taking into account saturation and value.

Saturation and Value

Saturation a.k.a intensity is the level of dilution of a colour. From left to right is the scale of saturation, left being 0% colour and right 100% Value is scale on the vertical axis. It corresponds to the lightness of a colour. Top being 0 or the lightest and bottom - 10 or pure black. Together, value and saturation represent the full shade spectrum of a particular hue

Colour Interaction
If you were to sample both yellow squares in any graphics editing tool, the results will be the same. However, because of the surrounding colours, we perceive their value differently - the left being darker than the right. Its important to not only pick the right shade but the surrounding colours as well to convey the proper visual information

Resources
http://www.quora.com/Audrey-Wright-3/Posts/The-Colour-Theory-InsideYour-Home http://budgetdecorating.about.com/od/usingcolor/ss/color_wheel_9.htm http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry. com/~jkmacmul/heraldry/colors.html http://www.colour-affects.co.uk/psychological-properties-of-colours http://www.incredibleart.org/lessons/middle/color2.htm