Blue is a primary color, meaning it cannot be created by mixing other colors. However, various shades and tints of blue can be achieved through mixing.
Creating Shades of Blue
While you can't make a pure blue from mixing other colors, many sources suggest that mixing cyan and magenta produces a blue hue. This is common in printing, where cyan and magenta inks are used.
- Cyan: A greenish-blue.
- Magenta: A purplish-red.
The resulting blue will depend on the specific shades of cyan and magenta used and their proportions. This method doesn't create a pure blue as defined in color theory, but rather a close approximation.
Other sources mention the possibility of adding small amounts of black or orange to blue to achieve navy blue variations, thus modifying the existing blue instead of creating it from scratch. This confirms that blue itself cannot be made by mixing but that existing blue can be adjusted with other colours.
It's crucial to understand that the concept of "making blue" depends on the context. In subtractive color mixing (like with paints), blue is a primary color. However, in additive color mixing (like with light), the situation is more complex.
