The shape of colour order systems and the evolution of colour theory

Abstract

The shape given to colour order systems is related to the colour theory to which they refer and the type of colour mixture they represent. These systems evolved over more than two thousand years, beginning with simple linear scales (one-dimension), progressively changing to two-dimensional schemes (circles, squares, triangles), and ending with three-dimensional models. These three-dimensional systems began to appear in the eighteenth century, and take the form of pyramids, cones, spheres, cubes and other more complex shapes over the next two centuries. The evolution of these colour order systems paralleled changes and evolution in the theoretical conceptions of colour, as well as in the practical needs of producing colours through mixtures of pigments, dyes, lights or other types of material means. In this evolutionary path, there are some ambiguous models. They could be regarded as trials in the evolution towards shapes more definitely adapted to a certain type of chromatic mixture, or hybrid models representing intermediate steps between additive and subtractive processes. This paper aims to offer an overview of this evolution, with its advances, hesitations, ramifications and divisions, trying to establish a gradualist sequence in terms of the transformations undergone by colour order systems.