Classical theories
- Chevreul studied simultaneous contrast and separated harmonies of analogy and of contrast.
- Munsell held that combinations balancing around middle grey (N5) in hue-value-chroma space are harmonious.
- Ostwald defined colours by white, black and full-colour content and argued that harmony equals order, e.g. equal-white or equal-black series.
Moon-Spencer and Judd
Moon and Spencer classified identity, similarity and contrast as harmonious and ambiguous intervals as disharmony, proposing an aesthetic measure M = O/C. Judd summarised four principles: order, familiarity, commonality and unambiguity.
Obangsaek
Based on yin-yang and the five phases, Korea's five cardinal colours—blue/green (east, wood), red (south, fire), yellow (centre, earth), white (west, metal) and black (north, water)—with five intermediate colours, appear in dancheong, saekdong and folk painting.
Colour image scale
Kobayashi mapped colours and combinations on warm-cool and soft-hard axes grouped into image words such as romantic, natural and modern; Korea's IRI Colour Institute adapted the scale for local design use.
References
- Chevreul, M. E. (1839). De la loi du contraste simultané des couleurs. Pitois-Levrault.
- Moon, P., & Spencer, D. E. (1944). Geometric formulation of classical color harmony. Journal of the Optical Society of America, 34(1), 46-59.
- Judd, D. B. (1955). Classic laws of color harmony expressed in terms of the color solid. ISCC News Letter, 119, 13-14.
- Kobayashi, S. (1981). The aim and method of the color image scale. Color Research & Application, 6(2), 93-107.
- Ostwald, W. (1916). Die Farbenfibel. Unesma.