COLOR AND MARKETING 

Marketing people know that "low cost" is associated with bright yellow and black signs and packaging. Psychedelic colors often make people uneasy because these colors have been associated with exaggerated loud music, drugs and shocking colored hair and dress — these colors are more easily accepted in the theater or circus arena where excitement is encouraged. And, haven't you observed that a car or dress can look very rich in one color and ordinary or cheap in another? A taupe-colored car is "richer" looking than a lime green car.  

The following example of a yellow-red dress and a blue-red dress illustrates the different energy expressed by each:  The bright red dress communicates a hot, attention-getting dress, whereas the cranberry dress is more sophisticated. If the cranberry dress had long sleeve lines, the sophisticated energy would be doubled.

COLOR AND MUSIC

Nearly 300 years ago Newton saw vibration in tones of the music scale:

red       = C       orange = D       yellow  = E       green   = F       blue     = G       indigo  = A       violet   = B

Color and music share vocabulary and freely exchange terms such as tone, pitch, intensity, volume, color and chromatic. Beethoven, Wagner, Schubert and other composers related their music to color. Liszt had pet terms such as, "more pink here," "This is too black" and "I want it all azure."   To Rimsky-Korsakov, F sharp was strawberry red and sunlight was C major. 

Another interesting fact, music also aligns with the energy of the Seasons. Consider the following:

           Winter = Classical Music
           Summer = Waltz Music
           Autumn = March Music
           Spring = Jazz Music

 
COLOR AND THEATER

The psychological reactions to color are mainly associated with two modes:  the warm active, exciting qualities of red, orange and yellow; the cool passive, calming qualities of green, blue and violet. In the theater, lighting and costumes portray and stimulate definite emotions.
 

COLOR AND HEALTH

Sunlight, containing all the colors of the spectrum, is a nutrient scientists observe that all living things tend to orient themselves toward light or brightness — when energy stimulation goes up, the response tendency goes with it. It appears that muscular activities perform in warm light and surroundings; mental tasks are better performed with softer, deep colors. The study of human muscular strength and movement verifies the body's need for the right vibration in color. A person's normal muscle strength is weakened by wearing colors that are incompatible with their coloring.    The body absorbs energy vibrations from colored water and colored materials. This is undoubtedly one reason man has universally enjoyed sleeping under grandmother's multi-colored patchwork quilts. When one looks at color, the vibration strikes the eye and is transferred throughout the body. We may be well advised to "look" at the roses as well as to "smell" the roses.

Seriously, the quickest way to really understand and know how to use color deliberately, is to get a deep feeling for the meaning of each color  ..............

The following analogies are gathered from commonly used, everyday terms and associations with color. Understanding these associations will give you a powerful tool that is vital knowledge for students of all art disciplines. Take time to visualize each color as you read along and you will gain a fundamental feeling for each color that will serve you well.

Red — Begins the color spectrum. The name Adam means "red clay". Red is the primal color, produced by long wave lengths of low frequency, and is nearest to infrared waves which produce the sensation of heat, thus red is very stimulating. It is "bossy" and grabs attention:  Red stands out as a party dress, stop-sign, package on a supermarket shelf and on lips. Eve was attracted to the red apple, and restaurant owners have long known that vivid red goblets, tablecloths and rugs stimulate both the appetite and mood of diners. Red is the color of passion, vigor, courage, excitement, sensuality and symbolizes, anger, lust, seeing red, red-letter days, red ink, red tape, red-light districts and blood on the man being caught red-handed. Children and bulls are attracted to this heavy attention-getting vibration.

Orange — The most energetic of all the colors, symbol of the sun and radiant energy. If autumn had a color it would be orange. Orange is a secondary color and plays second fiddle to red because red hair, red clay, red fire and red sky are all arguably orange. It connotes endurance and strength and is the color of fun, joviality, clowns and friendship. Fast food restaurants use orange to get customers to "eat and run" for quick turnover. Orange virtually has no negative associations; no one gets orange with rage, orange with envy or has a nasty orange streak. Usually children or people with high energy wear orange.

Yellow — The brightest color of the spectrum and we associate it with the intellect. Because it is a mental stimulant, yellow is the color of legal scratch pads, yellow pencils, caution signs for school buses, maintenance trucks and warning hazards on step edges. In its pure form, yellow represents inspiration and a sunny disposition, yet it sullies easily just as a negative thought ruins dispositions. Yellow is a favorite of advertisers and stands for a "bright idea" (light bulb) cheerfulness (yellow kitchens) and the enlightened Buddhists who wear yellow saffron robes. Negative associations are cowardly with a yellow streak down the back. Yellow is a difficult color for people to wear because of warm skintones.

Green — Is the midpoint of the spectrum and divides the warm and cool colors, being a mixture of happy yellow and tranquil blue it represents emotional balance. Green is the color of money and represents the resources of a nation. It rests the eye and counterbalances cause and effect. Green is ambivalent -- being the color of mold, sickness, bruises and poisoning; yet it is nature's greatest healing color in grass, trees, parks and herbs for rest and refreshment. The dual nature of green signified freshness, yet decay, a color of great visibility as well as the color of camouflage; the green thumb of the gardener contrasting the green hand of the novice sailor. Green is used for the surgeon's gown to neutralize the after image of the patient's red blood. Green is reputable, civilized, and stands for the rebirth in the spring and the silent abiding power of nature. 

Blue — The coolest of all the colors and reminiscent of the sky which is transparent and intangible. Blue is spiritually related without the sensuality of red or the intellect of yellow. It is fundamentally beneficial, even its negative meanings are merely extensions of its positive traits; cool taken to cold, solitude to isolation and tranquility to inertia. Blue skies are a patent cure for the blues, sorrow ultimately being transcended into heaven, singing or listening to the blues brings relief and pleasure. Blue bears dirt more gracefully than other colors, has a calming effect, "bolts from the blue," being true-blue and representing high value as in blue ribbons, blue chips and blue-blood meaning "high born". The pigment ultramarine, processed from lapis lazuli was originally as costly as gold, but after it was chemically synthesized it became so common it was even used for laundry bluing to keep things bright and white. In clothing, blue flatters nearly everyone.

Indigo — The deepest of all the colors, an ultramarine color with just a hint of red like the midnight sky or the deep clear ocean. A mysterious color, historically references to the color are virtually nonexistent. Before synthetic dyes, navy blue was made from the indigo plant which furnished the worlds only blue dye and was the official color of the Royal Navy. The universal "Levi" pant was made from this dye. Indigo is the closest color to black which has the ability to absorb all light rays. Because of its intensity and depth of color indigo is associated with the misery of the human condition known as "the blues."

Violet / Purple — The shortest ray of the visible spectrum, the highest vibratory color and is used to represent high rank and royalty. In medieval days it was against the law for commoners to wear purple. Purple is a mixed color (a bit darker than violet;) violet is a pure spectral hue. There is no real evidence that early man saw violet as we do today (color sensitivity seems to be evolutionary.) People have mixed and varied feelings about violet as it seems to psychologically affect people to an extreme of delight or aversion. being the last color of the spectrum it is associated with death, but being arranged in a circle between indigo and red indicates it also suggests transmutation and new beginnings. Artists and creative people are more attracted to this high vibratory color. Color-wise, purple and violet are flattering to all skintones.

Pink — Anytime white is added to a color the vibration is refined and lifted higher. Add white to dynamic red, and instead of passionate love we have the red-red of the valentine or the delicate pink symbol of babies. Pink is always positive suggesting high spirits and tip-top condition — if you're in the pink, everything is rosy.

Black — The subtractive absorption of all color and light. In reality there is only light; black is merely the absence of light. Symbolically, it is associated with authority and discipline. Positive associations begin with black as part of the creative process, the seed needing dark to germinate. Other positive associations are: formal, sophisticated (tuxedo and basic black dress), sexy, black lace, black satin sheets and the dark lighting desired by romantics. Negative associations are grief, despair, evil, black-ball and blackmail.

White — Symbolizes God, totality and "Oneness." All the colors or the light spectrum added together create white light. Positive associations are purity, goodness, all knowing, ascension, "white lies," angels and cosmic consciousness. Negative associations express the vanity of the Caucasian race in casting aspersion on red, black and yellow man. To say that a "man is white" or one is a "fair-haired boy" suggests that superiority.

Interesting detail ....... the reason each color is related to a specific form is because of how the eye perceives the color-vibration filling into the edges of the form.
 

COLOR	FORM	SYMBOL	ASSOCOATION
Red	Square		Red has the lowest vibration rate. It is hot, dry, opaque, solid and substantial. It is highly visible to the eye — ends itself to structural planes and sharp angles.
Orange	Rectangle    or   Trapezoid		Orange is less earthy than red. It is more incandescent and is clearly focused by the eye — lends itself to sharp angles and points.
Yellow	Triangle		Yellow is more celestial than worldly, lacks substance and weight. It is the color of highest visibility in the spectrum — lends itself to sharp angles and points.
Green	Hexagon		Green is the midpoint of the spectrum with qualities of both sides. It is cool, fresh, soft and not sharply focused by the eye — does not lend itself to angularity.
Blue	Circle		Blue is cold, wet, transparent, celestial, has a retiring quality and creates a blurred image on the retina — therefore, it lends itself to soft or round shapes.
Indigo	Spherical / Triangle		Indigo is obscure, mysterious and shows depth. It has the lowest visibility in the spectrum — lends itself to vague forms.
Violet	Oval / Ellipse		Violet/Purple has the highest vibration in the spectrum. The added red makes it cling more to the earth than blue. It is associated with the highest universal oval form (i.e. the egg, head, eye and seeds) and has a medium focus in the eye — lends itself to graceful, regal lines and shapes.