Lesson 2 Color Psychology and Symbolism

© Cheryl Machat Dorskind ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ALL About Color Lesson Two www.cherylmachatdorskind.com Lesson 2 Color Psychology and Symbolism Whether roaring through a field with orange-tiger force or whispering through a steel gray dawn, color is used to stage, flavor, and articulate. This lesson focuses on colors’ symbolic and expressive powers. Color affects us in many ways. It influences how we build our wardrobe, select our meals, and design our living rooms. Before taking the first bite, we may like or dislike a particular food partially because of its color. Color uplifts, depresses, promotes hope, and instills fear and wonder. While most of us have a favorite color, there’s often a hue we detest. Some colors are good luck. Color, so important to our physical and emotional well-being, was cited as a key critical factor for designing the NASA space station. © Cheryl Machat Dorskind Lesson 2, page #!1 © Cheryl Machat Dorskind ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ALL About Color Lesson Two www.cherylmachatdorskind.com Color has long been associated with healing powers. Hospitals often have green or pink walls. Pharmaceutical manufacturers color code their medicines to trigger placebo effects. I recently heard a humorous anecdote on National Public Radio about the color blue. A nearly universal symbol of peace and meditative calm, a pharmaceutical company mistakenly designed a sleeping tablet, targeted for the Italian market, in a blue pill form. In Italy, blue is connected with the national soccer team, which is hardly associated with tranquility. This blue pill proved to be a costly mistake. What’s your favorite color? Do you find yourself frequently wearing the same color clothes? Is you room painted blue? Do you buy books because you’re drawn to the graphic covers? Does your child refuse green food? Each of us has a personal color key. According to academic Robert Hirsh in his terrific book, Exploring Color Photography, “The color key reveals the character of a person. It is not constant. It’s all a balancing act that mirrors your inner state of mind.” So, what’s your color key? Don’t say you don’t have one. Go through your favorite images or study an admired photographer’s or artist’s body of work, and then find the color thread. Expressive symbolic colors are culturally defined. White, a color that symbolizes hope and purity in the Western world, represents health and wisdom to the Sioux Indians, and connotes death to people of the Far East. This lesson explores color’s psychological and physiological qualities as we learn color symbolism. We’ll then incorporate this knowledge into our photography to enhance its message. RED Red, the boldest of all colors and both a light and pigment primary color, is considered the most emotional color. It sits on the top of the rainbow, and people who prefer red like to sit on top. Bright and dark red vary in meaning. Bright red is associated with excitement, youth, courage and martyrdom, beauty, ardent love, fire, anger, heat, physical stimulation, strengthening, and © Cheryl Machat Dorskind Lesson 2, page #!2 © Cheryl Machat Dorskind ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ALL About Color Lesson Two www.cherylmachatdorskind.com blood. It can can speed up metabolism and raise blood pressure. Dark red connotes a forbidden or esoteric realm, earthly fire, heart and soul. Dark red is often associated with rage, anger, vigor courage, and longing. Red is a good color choice when designing product shots, as it is the color used by advertisers to stimulate a quick buying decision. In its most ominous sense, red, the first color of the spectrum, is associated with sin, cruelty, and violence. Culturally, red varies greatly. Red symbolizes happiness in China and it is customary for a bride’s gown to be red. The red rose is a metaphor and a symbol of love. Red restores life through healing. The Egyptians used red to protect themselves from fire and for the treatment of disease. To the American Indian, red symbolizes day and in Tibet, red connotes west. Like humans, an octopus turns red when angry. Red sunsets are romantic and powerful. Have you noticed that restaurants often have red walls? This is done purposely to encourage a hardy appetite. Light red represents joy, sexuality, passion, sensitivity, and love. Character traits People who prefer red are said to be witty, charming, and impulsive. Red people are resourceful and optimistic; eager to jump into action. Professionally, red fans prefer careers which encourage independence, competition, © Cheryl Machat Dorskind Lesson 2, page #!3 © Cheryl Machat Dorskind ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ALL About Color Lesson Two www.cherylmachatdorskind.com and freedom. They like to use their hands and play games. People who prefer red are adventurous. Acting might be your destiny; your world is a stage. Pink The name magenta was coined in commemoration of the Blood Battle of Magenta. The Austrians were defeated by the French and Sardinians on August 2, 1859 and forced to evacuate Lombardy. Magenta is a brilliant red aniline dye derived from coal tar, which was discovered right before the battle. Magenta is one of light’s secondary primaries. Pink, is like red in a subtler sense. Pink signifies romance, love, and friendship. Pink is the color of femininity. Shades of red, such as pink, contain the same expressive characteristics of red, but delivered in a subtler manner, although, there is nothing subtle about a “pink slip.” Yellow Yellow, a pigment primary and the lightest of colors, is often regarded as divine. Yellow’s associations include intuition, illumination, and wisdom. It is also associated with spring, Yang Ylang, Buttercups, © Cheryl Machat Dorskind Lesson 2, page #!4 © Cheryl Machat Dorskind ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ALL About Color Lesson Two www.cherylmachatdorskind.com Sunflowers, butter, Easter, bananas, taxis, glory, the Gates of Heaven, and “third prize.” Because of its warm and welcoming properties, yellow is one of the most widely used colors in home decorating. In Egypt, yellow is the color of happiness and prosperity. In Asia, yellow is the color of power, and during the Ching dynasty (1644-1911) only the emperor was allowed to wear yellow; in fact, it was the special color he wore to worship the sky. Yellow represents the third charka, a vortex of energy, which represents personal power, self image, and the emotions. In its evil sense, yellow signifies cowardice, deceit, and sickness (yellow fever). In the animal kingdom, yellow combined with black conveys warning signals. In Chinese culture, yellow on black conveys an old man’s death. Metaphorically, yellow wallpaper implies female madness. Throughout history, artists have been enamored with yellow. Van Gogh, Monet, Cézanne, and Pissarro instantly come to mind. The Impressionists developed their own method of color mixing, which was really in reaction to the then common practice of mixing pigments to dilute the intensity. Instead, the Impressionists sought to recreate the experience of the play of light. Rather than mixing pigment colors, The Impressionists experimented with the theories of light and discovered that if they applied small strokes or dots of pure color (paint straight from its source or tube), such as red and green pigment, and applied them directly adjacent, then the intensity of the contiguous colors would create a brilliant yellow. The Impressionists understood that optical illusions affected color as it played upon the eye’s retina and proved in countless masterpieces that two colors could create the illusion of others. © Cheryl Machat Dorskind Lesson 2, page #!5 © Cheryl Machat Dorskind ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ALL About Color Lesson Two www.cherylmachatdorskind.com Gold Like red, gold traditionally symbolizes the rising or setting sun. It represents the sun’s brilliant rays and is used for adorning royal crowns. Gold remains a symbol of authority. Gold can be seen as both a warm or a cool color, so what you juxtapose gold with will have bearing on its implied meaning. Universally, gold represents first prize as the Olympic Gold Medal is recognized by all as supreme. Here in the US, we give gold on a fiftieth wedding anniversary and gold is the basis of the US monetary system. Couple gold with blue and it is said to become a symbol of credibility as blue represents intellect. Pair gold with brown or green and the color gold represents a more down-to-earth wealth. © Cheryl Machat Dorskind Lesson 2, page #!6 © Cheryl Machat Dorskind ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ALL About Color Lesson Two www.cherylmachatdorskind.com Orange Orange, a combination of yellow and red, is similar to yellow and gold in its associations and often represents wealth and power. Paying homage to their humble roots, Tibetan Buddhist monks wear saffron-colored robes. (Some categorize saffron as yellow, while others argue pro orange). In her comprehensive book, Color A Natural History of the Palette, Victoria Finlay remarks that the robes are actually dyed with the less expensive spice turmeric, rather than with the most costly of spices, saffron. In its ominous sense, orange represents Satan and is the color of prisoner’s attire. Orange is often used as a warning visual marker. Nature abounds with orange; orange day lilies are the symbol of fertility and are often the decoration for brides at weddings. The Impressionists discovered that placing a stroke of pure red adjacent to a stroke of pure yellow, created a vibrant orange. Paradoxically, an orange tree is actually an evergreen that has white flowers. The orange fruit, like the tomato and chile pepper, is actually a berry. Orange is the color of joy and creativity. In the spiritual and healing realms, orange promotes optimism and wellness. Orange evokes emotional energy. People who prefer orange as a favorite color are said to be kind, courageous, and genuine.

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