Most gardeners do not consider themselves artists. But with a little help from Mother Nature, they certainly are artists! Just look at the colours that occur in the garden either by (happy!) chance or by plan.
Above is Artemesia 'Silver King' with the red climbing rose 'Blaze'. Pale gray is a terrific neutral colour to have in a perennial bed - it enhances the colours right next to it and makes them much brighter.
Here Silver King is paired with the pale pink polyantha rose 'The Fairy'
The gray of Lamb's Ears (Stachys byzantina) brings up the multi-coloured pinks of Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus)
Some gardeners prefer soft pastels but hot colours like red and yellow together make a bold statement. Here is red Maltese Cross (Lychnis chalcedonica) beside Yellow Loosestrife (Lysimachia punctata)
On the other side of the garden, Maltese Cross stands out well with yellow Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale)
When these deep purple petunias fill out over the summer, they will be a perfect dark spot between the different hostas surrounding them
On a walk through the garden last evening, I noticed an unexpected shot of hot pink peeking out through the pussywillow bushes
It was the clematis I had purposely planted in there to wind its way through the branches but (typical me) had forgotten about it until now when it bloomed :)
Annuals play a very important role in the garden - the intensity of their colours are a joy to behold. For example a very deep dark purple petunia with white and blue Lobelia.
Colour echoes blend well in a garden: the spotty pink in the Caladium is echoed in the much deeper pink of the Rex Begonia
Even NEON colours have their place: hot pink Wave Petunia is paired with lime green Potato Vine.