Showa era · refined · cool · austere

Yellow Orange & Violet Blue

Plate 89 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Yellow Orange, Violet Blue.

Yellow Orange

#f99d1b

Violet Blue

#40456a

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About this combination

Combination 89 of 348 in Wada's six-volume 1933 work. A two-colour pairing of Yellow Orange, Violet Blue, as documented in the original plates.

Historical context

Plate 89 of Wada's 348 anchors Yellow Orange and Violet Blue in the yellow family — a 2-colour grouping with a refined, cool, austere character, recorded in Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations (six volumes; Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint), and in the public domain by age. Its strongest pairing — Yellow Orange on Violet Blue — reaches a contrast ratio of 4.33:1, usable for large text but not body copy, so it reads best in decorative blocks rather than text pairings.

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Taking Yellow Orange & Violet Blue off the screen

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  • ...onto paper

    Start here if the palette gets printed. Screen colour and ink colour are not the same colour, and this is the deck that translates between them.

    Listed on Amazon as Pantone GP6102B Color Bridge Guide Set Coated & Uncoated, Multi-Colour

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  • ...onto a screen you can trust

    Start here if it stays digital. An uncalibrated monitor is the single most common reason a palette that looked right on your desk looks wrong everywhere else.

    Listed on Amazon as Calibrite ColorChecker Studio Spectrophotometer for Complete Color Management for Display, Projector, Printer and Scanner Profiling

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  • ...by hand

    Start here if you are mixing it. Wada's plates were flat printed colour; gansai pans are the closest everyday medium to them.

    Listed on Amazon as Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 24 Colors II - Art Nouveau

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Questions about Yellow Orange & Violet Blue

What colors are in the "Yellow Orange & Violet Blue" palette?
Yellow Orange & Violet Blue contains 2 colors: Yellow Orange (#f99d1b), Violet Blue (#40456a). From Sanzo Wada's "A Dictionary of Color Combinations" (1933).
When was the "Yellow Orange & Violet Blue" palette created?
This palette is from Sanzo Wada's 1933 reference work "A Dictionary of Color Combinations" (Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint). The source work is in the public domain.
What style or era does the "Yellow Orange & Violet Blue" palette belong to?
Yellow Orange & Violet Blue is associated with the showa era and emphasizes yellow tones. Plate 89 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Yellow Orange, Violet Blue.
Can I use the "Yellow Orange & Violet Blue" palette in my own design?
Yes. The source palette by Sanzo Wada (1933) is in the public domain. This page's curation and metadata are CC BY 4.0 licensed — attribution to colorcombinations.org appreciated but not required for the colors themselves.

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