This hefty glass cube features transparent faces of cyan, magenta, and yellow—the primary colors of the CMY color model used by designers worldwide.
The CMY color model is subtractive, which means that these three colors can be layered in different ratios to absorb, or “subtract”, specific wavelengths, creating a vast range of colors. By mixing all three in equal amounts, enough wavelengths can be subtracted to leave only black.
As light passes through the cube, the colors can be mixed or isolated to create new colors and achieve various effects for photography, art, teaching, or exploring color theory.
You’ve probably heard of CMYK, where “K” represents black, or “key.