Goethe, another polymath, assigned emotions and characteristics to color. I went to an exhibit and was going to buy a mug from the gift shop with his color wheel on it:
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| Goethes color wheel |
Yellow/orange was good and represented the mind. Red was beautiful and blue was mean. Except that the German word for mean was modern and meant common in the past.
Too much blue sky and ocean?
Here's a two minute video on it:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=R7rA3XOHRic&t=341s&pp=2AHVApACAQ%3D%3D
As any artist knows there are colors that one likes to work with and it's very individual. Same with people in general. People have their preferences and dislikes when it comes to color; there is no generalized association of emotion with a particular color.
Goethe, a gifted poet, of the early 19th century mindset, had assigned his personal preferences to color in general.
I do not value psychology as a field all that much, while there is a lot of beneficial research and practice it can also cause irreparable harm.
As part of my science related training, I had to observe some patient interviews in child psychology. I had been warned about the supervisor Dr. Ratchet. Basically, sit down observe a 14 year old "troubled" kid, nod, endure it until you're back to science.
After such an interview Dr. Ratchet sat me down to teach and discuss. Out came this kids drawings. They were typical teen boy drawings. Attempts at comic book characters (superheroes are shown in countless violent poses) and copying is the first thing one does.
She wanted my opinion. The only thing I noticed is that even for an untalented 14 year old he was behind.
Dr Ratchet gave me a lengthy color theory speech. He was using a lot of black (batman's outfit IS black.) these colors represented anger because yellow and orange meant well adjusted happiness and he wasn't using them. According to her, red was angry, (Again Superman...)
Maybe the subject matter was an expression of his anger, but it wasn't due to the colors he was using.
Early 19th century color theory that went nowhere being applied to the future of a 21st century teen...
Poor kid.
I don't think colour theory can be relied on to analyse people of any age. There is always more to the individual psyche than what colours they like or use, and colour preferences often change throughout life.
ReplyDeleteCodex: I agree.
DeleteI wonder what my prefered colors say about me. Blue has always been my favorite, eventually added green, then purple, and now gray. Those are the four colors I wear with an occasional outlyer. Never black or white. black because my father was a pathologist who associated it with death and he dealt with death a lot and forbade us as kids to wear black and while I don't associate it with death or even have a dislike of death, the prohibition has stayed with me. I don't feel comfortable in black. White, on the other hand, I don't wear from a lifetime of being a working artist. It would be dirty within five minutes of putting it on.
ReplyDeleteCodex they don't say anything about you.
DeleteThere might be some associations due to experience or cultural influences but there is no one size fits all psychological meaning. We try to make life deeper than it is.
Also take the Chinese eg. Red was hard to dye gold was gold so they associate both with luck and prosperity.
I have heard that certain Colors stimulate Appetite, which is why certain Colors are predominant especially in Fast Food Restaurants. And that some Colors make you feel Cooler... or Hotter... or Calmer... or more Stimulated. I have more of a personal preference for Non Colors and Neutrals such as Black or Sepia as my Favs and people try to say, NO, you can't choose Black as your Favorite Color, it's not a Color! But, it is... IMO... a Color, just a saturation of it. I think Grey is being overdone now, tho' I've often thought it was a very Classy Color if done well in Decorating, the French did a lot of delightful Grey in their Styling of Homes... especially Historic Rural ones and it is Classically Beautiful and rather Timeless. I've never much liked Pastels but I do like Jewel Tones.
ReplyDeleteCodex: Red raises blood pressure but it's brief and temporary. Whether thats because we're trained to see red as a warning or its innate i dont know. Fast food uses primary colors because kids like it and it gets people in a nd out.
DeleteBlack is the absence of color in physics but all colors mixed together in painting/printing.
Room decor is very different. These old lavish homes with grey walls look amazing imo. A friend of mine has a deep dark red accent wall and it's very inviting. Personal taste I think.
Codex:@bo I'm staying on art topics and light things right now after a health scare, but how are you?
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