Function to generate random RGB tuples using Seaborn color palettes.

generate_random_rgb_colors.py

import random
import seaborn as sns


def random_colors(n_colors, palette='hls', xkcd_colors=[]):
    """
    Generates list of random RGB colors.

    Args:
        n_colors (int): Number of random colors to return.
        palette: Seaborn palette to generate random colors from. Can be a 
                 string identifying a palette (e.g. 'hls', 'husl', 'Set2'),
                 or a list of colors (e.g. ["#9b59b6", "#3498db", "#95a5a6"]).
        xkcd_colors (list): List of string color names from the xkcd RGB color
                            names. Overrides 'palette' arg.
    Returns:
        colors (list): List of n_colors 3-tuples of RGB values.

    Options for xkcd_colors: https://xkcd.com/color/rgb
    
    Choosing Seaborn palettes: https://seaborn.pydata.org/tutorial/color_palettes.html
    """
    if xkcd_colors:
        palette = list(sns.xkcd_palette(xkcd_colors))
    colors = list(sns.color_palette(palette, n_colors))
    random.shuffle(colors)
    return colors


if __name__ == '__main__':
    import numpy as np
    import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

    def _plot_subplot(axis, points, colors, title):
        axis.scatter(points[:,0], points[:,1], s=1000, c=colors)
        axis.set_title(title)
        axis.set_xticks([])
        axis.xaxis.set_ticklabels([])
        axis.set_yticks([])
        axis.yaxis.set_ticklabels([])
    
    points = np.random.random((20, 2))

    hls_colors = random_colors(len(points))
    set2_colors = random_colors(len(points), "Set2")
    manual_colors = random_colors(len(points), ["#9b59b6", "#3498db", "#95a5a6",
                                                "#e74c3c", "#34495e", "#2ecc71"])
    xkcd_colors = random_colors(len(points), xkcd_colors=["windows blue", "amber", "faded green",
                                                          "dusty purple", "light red", "deep blue"])
    fig, axes = plt.subplots(2, 2)
    fig.set_size_inches(12, 12)
    _plot_subplot(axes[0, 0], points, hls_colors, "HLS Palette")
    _plot_subplot(axes[0, 1], points, set2_colors, "Set2 Palette")
    _plot_subplot(axes[1, 0], points, manual_colors, "Manual Palette")
    _plot_subplot(axes[1, 1], points, xkcd_colors, "XKCD Palette")
    plt.tight_layout()
    plt.show()