Täydennysvärejä

Täydennysvärejä, often translated as complementary colors, are pairs of colors which, when combined or mixed, cancel each other out (lose hue) by producing a grayscale color like white or black. When viewed opposite each other on the color wheel, they create the strongest contrast.

The concept of complementary colors is fundamental in art and design. In subtractive color systems, like those used in printing and painting with pigments, complementary colors absorb light. For example, yellow and violet are complementary. When yellow paint is mixed with violet paint, the yellow absorbs blue and green light, while the violet absorbs red and yellow light. The remaining light is perceived as a neutral gray or black.

In additive color systems, such as those used for digital displays and stage lighting, complementary colors add up to white light. Red and cyan are a complementary pair in this system. When red light is combined with cyan light, which is a mixture of blue and green light, all three primary colors of light (red, green, and blue) are present, resulting in white.

The most common pairs of complementary colors are red and green, blue and orange, and yellow and violet. These pairings are based on the standard RYB (red, yellow, blue) color model, though variations exist depending on the specific color model used (e.g., RGB for light, CMY for printing). Understanding complementary colors allows artists and designers to create vibrant and visually appealing compositions by strategically placing them to enhance each other or to neutralize colors when a desaturated effect is desired.