Adjusting colors on mesh objects


    Colors are added to mesh objects using the Color palette, the Swatches palette, the Color Picker, by dragging and dropping colors, or by using the Paint Bucket tool. When you select and color a mesh point, the mesh point and surrounding area are colored with the current fill color. When you click over a mesh patch, all four mesh points surrounding the patch are colored. You can also use color filters to change the color of mesh points.

    Important: If you assign a spot color to a mesh point, Illustrator will convert the color to a process color when printing separations.

    Adding color to a mesh point (left) compared to adding color to a mesh patch (right)
    Adding color to a mesh point (left) compared to adding color to a mesh patch (right)

    Once color is applied to parts of a mesh object, you can change the shape and extent of the colored areas by editing the mesh points, anchor points, and mesh lines. (See Editing mesh objects.)

To add color to a mesh point or mesh patch with the Color palette:

  1. Select a mesh point or mesh patch with the Mesh tool Mesh tool or the Direct Selection tool Direct Selection tool . To select a mesh patch with the Mesh tool, hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Control (Mac OS).
  2. Do any of the following:
    • In the Color palette, select a color using the sliders or the color bar.
    • In the Swatches palette, select a swatch.
    • Double-click the Fill box in the toolbox, and select a color in the Color Picker.

To add color to a mesh point or mesh patch by dragging and dropping:

    Drag a color directly over a mesh point or mesh path from the Fill box in the Color palette, the Swatches palette, or the Fill box in the toolbox.

To add color to a mesh point or mesh patch with the paint bucket:

  1. Select the Paint Bucket tool.
  2. Click directly on a mesh point or a mesh patch. The point or patch is colored with the current fill color.