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Participating Frequently
June 29, 2025
Question

Cannot change colour in dynamic symbol instances

  • June 29, 2025
  • 1 reply
  • 448 views

Hello,

I’m encountering an issue with dynamic symbols in Illustrator and wanted to check if this is expected behavior.

When I try to change the color of a single instance of a dynamic symbol (even something as simple as a rectangle), I select it using the Direct Selection Tool (A). However, when I choose a different colour, the color doesn’t change—nothing happens.

If I use the Recolor Artwork function, all instances of the symbol are updated, rather than just the one I selected.

Is this a known limitation (I was watching several videos and saw that it should work) or is it possibly a bug? I'm currently using Illustrator 29.6 on macOS 15.4.1.

Thank you in advance!

1 reply

Monika Gause
Community Expert
Community Expert
June 29, 2025

Can you show a screenshot that includes the Appearance panel?

Participating Frequently
July 7, 2025

Sorry, I was not online for a few days due to travelling. This is what I see in the Appearance panel

Monika Gause
Community Expert
Community Expert
July 7, 2025

And when you select the symbol with the direct selection tool?