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- For the physiological perception of color, see color and color vision.
Color symbolism in art and anthropology refers to the use of color as a symbol throughout culture. Color psychology refers to investigating the effect of color on human behavior and feeling, distinct from phototherapy (the use of ultraviolet light to treat conditions like psoriasis or infantile jaundice). Color symbolism is a contentious area of study which is dependent upon a large body of anecdotal evidence, but not supported by data from well-designed scientific studies.
Color symbolism and color psychology are culturally constructed linkages that vary with time, place and culture. In fact, one color may perform very different symbolic or psychological functions in the same place. For example red is often used in North America to indicate stop, as with a stop sign, or danger, as with a warning light. At the same time, red symbolizes love, as with Valentine's Day. A person not familiar with the cultural coding of red in North America could, theoretically, confuse the symbolism of red and mistake a red Valentine's Day heart for a warning. Cross-cultural diversity is found in the symbolism of white, which historically has signified purity, virginity or death (as in Herman Melville's Moby Dick). In Western traditions it is the color worn at weddings. During certain periods in history, it was the color worn at funerals in parts of China, Korea, and Japan.
In Buddhist religious art there is the most famous Stupa of Bodnath showing the color of the Buddha's eyes as light blue.[1][2] It is not known whether this color is due to symbolism or whether Buddha Shakyamuni is believed to have been blue-eyed.
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Common connotations
White
White is the color that represents purity, neutrality, sterility and youth. White is often associated with cleanliness or sterility.[citation needed] White is also associated with neutrality and peace — hence a white flag for surrender or parley. For the same reason it is a neutral color that will continue to be the preferred backdrop on websites and the "color" behind the color.[3] In Western tradition the bride wears white, a custom dating back to Ancient Greece. There, the temple that was dedicated to the goddess Athene was made of white marble. It led to the linking of the color to virginity.[4]
White is known for symbolizing light, reverence, purity, truth, snow, peace, innocence, cleanliness, simplicity, security, humility, sterility, winter, coldness, surrender, fearfulness, unimaginative, air, death (in Eastern cultures), life, marriage (in Western cultures), hope, bland, empty (interior) and January (winter).
Black
Black is a multi-dimensional color that can mean classic or new. It has an ominous characteristic symbolizing death. Therefore it is used in Western cultures for funerals. It has an air of intelligence (graduation robes), marked with rebellion (the bad guy), shrouded in mystery (space). It typically symbolizes absence, modernity, power, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, mystery, style, evil, death (in Western cultures), fear, emptiness, darkness, seriousness, conventionality, rebellion, anarchism, unity, sorrow, and professionalism,
Gray
Gray, somewhere between white (good) and black (evil), is a blasé color. It can symbolize elegance, humility, respect, reverence, stability, subtlety, wisdom, old age, pessimism, boredom, decay, decrepitude, dullness, pollution, urban sprawl, strong emotions, balance, neutrality, mourning, or formality.
Red
Red strikes a chord with more cultures than many other colors because of its intensity, passion and invocation of an inherent physiological response. Red is the color of celebration and good luck (China), purity and integrity (India), and mourning (South Africa). When used with a wide brush, red typically makes whatever it’s painted on look larger, whether it’s a torso or wingback chair. The color is bold and audacious, so it usually dilutes the colors around it. For this reason it’s used to accent and highlight objects of importance such as the stop light on a traffic signal.
Studies show that red can have a physical effect, including increasing the rate of respiration, raising blood pressure and thus making the heart beat faster. Red is also said to make people hungry (McDonald's, Burgerville, corner cafés). The red ruby is the traditional 40th wedding anniversary gift. Red is also the color of the devil in modern Western culture.
Red typically symbolizes passion, strength, bravery, danger, energy, fire, sex, love, romance, excitement, speed, heat, arrogance, ambition, leadership, courage, masculinity, power, danger, gaudiness, blood, war, anger, revolution, radicalism, Communism, aggression, respect, martyrs, the Holy Spirit, conservatism (US politics), Liberalism (Canadian politics), wealth (China) and marriage (India).
Orange
Orange is energy, enthusiasm, 'get-it-done' attitude, and balance. It typically symbolizes Hinduism, Buddhism, happiness, energy, balance, heat, fire, enthusiasm, flamboyance, playfulness, gaudiness, autumn, desire, Sagittarius (star sign), and September. Orange has less intensity or aggression than red and is calmed by the cheerfulness of yellow. Orange is symbolic of the Royal family of the Netherlands. As such, in the Netherlands, Orange symbolizes royalty, and as William of Orange was the Calvinist color, orange symbolizes protestantism, particularly in Ireland (Orange Order).
Yellow
Yellow echoes the dual nature of red. Though yellow evokes feelings of happiness, when we are confronted with too much yellow we become annoyed or angered. Yellow typically symbolizes sunlight, joy, happiness, earth, optimism, intelligence, idealism, wealth (gold), summer, hope, air, liberalism, cowardice, illness (quarantine), fear, hazards, dishonesty, avarice, weakness, greed, decay or aging, femininity, gladness, sociability, friendship, Gemini, Taurus, Leo (golden yellow, star signs), April, September, deceit, hazard signs, death (Middle Ages), mourning (as in Egypt and Frank Herbert's Dune), courage (Japan), royalty (China) and God (gold). Yellow ribbons were worn during times of warfare as a sign of hope as women waited for their men to return.
Green
Green says 'nature,' which explains why it is such a powerful symbol in the eco-friendly movement, as well as 'initiative' and 'wealth,' but just as it symbols good, the extremes of green are considered to be bad as in "green with envy" or its association with money which is sometimes deemed as "the root of all evil." It is a color that soothes the eyes and produces a calming effect when seen. This is likely due to the association with the greenery of nature. It’s also the color of spring, a time of rebirth and renewal.
Green symbolizes intelligence, nature, spring, fertility, youth, environment, wealth, money (US), good luck, vigor, generosity, go, grass, coldness, cunning, jealousy, perverseness (Spain), deceit, disgrace (China), illness, greed, corruption (North Africa), life eternal, air, earth (classical element), sincerity, Cancer (bright green, star sign), renewal, natural abundance, growth, health, August, balance, harmony, stability, calming, creative intelligence, Islam, and the ordinary.
During the Middle Ages, both green and yellow were used to symbolize the devil. Green is believed to be the luckiest of colors in some western countries including Britain, Ireland and the US. It may also symbolize hope, spirit, life, precious, gem, gracious. While an association with green and forward motion or action may seem, at first blush, to make sense because of its association in the western world with the "go" traffic light, this association is not innate (green being a calming or soothing color) and is as a result of acculturation. Green for traffic signals was selected due to its ability to be seen well over distances and its high contrast with the colors used for stop (red) and caution (yellow).
Blue
Blue is non-threatening, yet confident and stable. Many police uniforms are blue because the color says confidence and security, while being non-threatening. Weightlifters have proven to lift heavier weights in blue rooms[citation needed]. With the good, there’s the bad. Blue can also signify depression. 'The blues' is a nod to this attribute. Blue is also used to symbolize the greek god "Yotuma", who protected stranded soldiers at sea.
Blue can symbolize seas, men, clouds (New Zealand), productive, interior, skies, peace, unity, harmony, tranquility, calmness, trust, coolness, confidence, conservatism, water, ice, loyalty, dependability, technology, winter, depression, coldness, idealism, air, wisdom, royalty, nobility, Earth (planet), Virgo (light blue), Pisces (pale blue) and Aquarius (dark blue, star sign), strength, steadfastness, light, friendliness, peace, mourning (Iran),[citation needed] truthfulness, love, liberalism (US politics), and conservatism (UK, Canadian & European politics). In many diverse cultures, blue is significant in religious beliefs. It is held to keep the bad spirits, stupidity and misfortune away.
Indigo
Indigo symbolizes spirituality and intuition.[5] In the Seven rays belief system, indigo is believed to represent both love and wisdom.
Violet
Violet symbolizes magic.[6] In Chinese painting, the color violet represents the harmony of the universe because it is a combination of red (yang) and blue (yin).[7] In the United Kingdom it is traditional to package chocolate in violet colored packaging because of the association of the color royal purple with luxury.[8]
Purple
The culture of thailand considers purple to be the color of mourning. This is different from western cultures, where purple is the color of royalty and wisdom. The Purple Heart, a military honor given to those wounded or killed in the United States military, embodies both purple attributes. Purple can symbolize nobility, envy, sensuality, spirituality, creativity, wealth, royalty, nostalgia, ceremony, mystery, wisdom, enlightenment, arrogance, flamboyance, gaudiness, mourning, exaggeration, profanity, bisexuality, pride, May, November, riches, romanticism (light purple), delicacy (light purple), and penance. Purple is the color of mourning for widows in Thailand. Purple was also the color of dye that corkers used to make the king and queen's clothing[citation needed].
Magenta
Magenta symbolized artistic creativity[9] or anti-racism.[10]
Rose
Rose symbolizes optimism (as opposed to the gray which is used to represent pessimism) or romantic love (since it is the color of roses, which it is the custom to give to ones beloved in many cultures). It also represents innocence, romance, love, and simplicity.
Pink
Pink is a sister color of red, but they are very different in terms of symbolism. It is a tranquilizing color. For this reason in many prisons the cells of the most dangerous residents have been painted pink[citation needed]. It symbolizes spring, gratitude, appreciation, admiration, sympathy, socialism, femininity , health, love, romance, June, marriage, joy, flirtatiousness, innocence and child-like features.
Brown
Brown is the color of soil, giving it an earthy, environmental quality which is popularly coupled with green. Shades of brown represent skin tones and produce a comforting feeling. Brown symbolizes calm, boldness, depth, natural organisms, nature, richness, rusticity, stability, tradition, anachronism, fascism, boorishness, dullness, filth, heaviness, poverty, roughness, earth (classical element), October, and the quality of being down-to-earth. Brown can stimulate the appetite, wholesomeness, steadfastness, simplicity, friendliness, and dependability. Ironically, brown is also associated with disgust[citation needed].
Criticism
Most evidence suggests the lack of a single, universal psychological reaction to a particular color. For example, death is symbolized by black in most Western cultures and by white in many Eastern cultures. Even members of the same culture from different age groups can act differently. Referencing colors with emotions is developed by every individual when they feel an emotion and then see a color repeated during this time. After the connection is ingrained, the referencing can go both ways.
Reasons for color association
Black is often seen as the 'color' of death in Western culture. Black represents darkness and the unknown, and death is associated with the extinguishing of light. The association of white with death in Eastern cultures could come from the white cloth used to enshroud corpses (as in Egyptian mummies), the pale skin of a dead person, or the stark whiteness of bones and skeletons. Many Eastern cultures also view death as the passage into a higher state of being (Buddhism, Hinduism), and thus could view white as a positive color association for death. Red is often a color representing violence, war, aggression, or passion; most likely because red is the color of fire and human blood.
Psychology
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Color psychology is an immature field of study viewed dubiously by mainstream psychologists and therefore qualifies as "alternative medicine". Critics view it as an overstatement of what can be justified by research, and point out that different cultures have completely different interpretations of color.
Practitioners of color psychology, sometimes called color consultants, claim there are a number of reactions to color which seem to be noted in most persons. They also note that common physiological effects often accompany the psychological effects.
Color consultants claim hues in the red area of color are typically viewed as "warm" while those in the blue and green range are typically viewed as "cool". Reds are also viewed as active and exciting, while the blues and greens are viewed as soothing and passive. Physiological tests have revealed similar responses[citation needed]. It is claimed that red hues increase bodily tension and stimulate the autonomic nervous system, while "cool" hues release tension. Black is considered unique, as it can be either evil or malevolent, yet it also stands for elitism and style. White is associated with purity, whereas grey is viewed as dull or boring (or sophisticated and elegant).
Color consultants also point to an increasing number of studies linking colors to specific responses. One study found that weight-lifters have more powerful performances in blue rooms. Another study found that babies cry more frequently in yellow rooms. Color consultants believe that the colors used in the design of environment can have a significant impact on the emotions and performance of people within that environment.
In one system, red is considered to motivate action, orange and purple are related to spirituality, yellow cheers, green creates coziness and warmth, blue relaxes, and white is associated with either purity or death.
Although color psychology is a relatively new area of scientific research, ancient civilizations believed in the influence of color on humans. The ancient Chinese, Egyptians, and Indians believed in chromotherapy, or healing with colors.[11]
References
Notes
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ Sparxoo "Color of Economy"
- ^ http://www.hauntedhamilton.com/3symbolandritual.html
- ^ Tansley, David V. Subtle Body: Essence and Shadow New York: 1984 Avon (Art and Cosmos series--Jill Purce, Editor)
- ^ Bonewits, P.E.I., Real Magic New York:1975 Berkley Medallion Books 1971 Page 141 Note: P.E.I. Bonewits in 1970 was the first person ever to graduate from U.C. Berkeley with a degree in Magic.
- ^ Varichon, Anne Colors:What They Mean and How to Make Them New York:2006 Abrams Page 138
- ^ Varley, Helen, editor Color London:1980--Marshall Editions, Ltd. ISBN 0-89535-037-8 Page 222
- ^ Oslie, Pamalie. (2000.) Life Colors: What the Colors in Your Aura Reveal New World Library , Novato, California. See magenta auras: pages 44-51.
- ^ Magenta Foundation. Organization website.
- ^ Color Healing Therapy by Lily Cornford (1906-2003), who (in cooperation with Ronald Leech) was the founder and director of the Maitreya School of Healing in London, England
Resources
External links
- Psychology Central: Blue-colored light can help prevent suicide and crime [3]
- Color Psychology
- Color Symbolism in Buddhism
- WikiAnswers.com Skin color of the Polar Bear
- [4] The Designer's Handbook of Colors
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