Hue: The First Dimension of Color
Hue is the name used to denote a color. Red, yellow, purple, pea-green, etc., are different hues and are found on different locations on the color wheel.
The three primary colors of pigments are red, yellow, and blue. They are pure colors and cannot be made by combining any other colors. In my mental image of the color wheel, red is at 12:00 o’clock, yellow is at 4:00 o’clock and blue is at 8:00 o’clock.
The secondary colors are mixtures. Red and yellow combine to form orange (at 2:00), yellow and blue form green (at 6:00), and blue and red form purple (at 10:00).
Colors that are adjacent on the color wheel are said to be harmonious because each contains some color of the one next to it. Colors that are opposite on the color wheel are not at all related, and are called complements. When these are mixed, they form black, but when used in the same oil painting, they make the painting pop!