KALEIDOSCOPE OF COLOUR

Pastels, neons, neutrals, earth tones and brights – how does the never-ending array of hues around us illustrate our inner selves? We throw some light on the subject.

Ever been tickled pink? Had a case of the blues? Felt red-hot rage? Or maybe you’ve been green with envy? Whether consciously or subconsciously, we associate colours with certain moods and meanings to help us makes sense of both our surroundings and ourselves. But are human reactions to colours universal and innate? Or do they depend on where you live, what you’ve been taught, and other factors particular to you?

LIGHT & SHADE

Poets, artists and philosophers have been theorising on colour and emotion for centuries. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote his Theory of Colours in the 19th century, a poetic exploration of the relationship between the two. In 1963, The Interaction of Color by artist Joseph Albers was published, examining how colour alters human perception.

Before launching into a discussion of colour psychology and colour symbolism, it’s worth examining what each of these terms mean, says independent evidence-based colour consultant Dr Zena O’Connor.

“Many claims about colour psychology are muddled up with beliefs about colour symbolism – the two are vastly different,” says O’Connor.

Colour psychology refers to various emotional, mental, and behavioural responses and associations connected with specific colours. For example, studies have found that certain wavelengths of light may affect us in different ways, including our circadian rhythm of sleeping and wakefulness, and blue light being theorised to improve cognitive performance. Similarly, coloured lenses may help with reading difficulties like dyslexia.

Colour symbolism, on the other hand, is attributing abstract concepts such as love, curiosity or friendship to colours according to a shared understanding in a culture.

The interplay between human responses and colour, O’Connor argues, has been the subject of conflicting messages. Accepted research into colour psychology is patchy and divided into two main schools of thought. The first suggests our view of colour is determined by the culture in which we live. The other proposes that human reactions to various hues are universal responses by our body and mind. O’Connor suggests there are additional factors to take into account – including age, gender, and an individual’s personality. Of course, individual preferences and past experiences are also part of the equation – your favourite colour might be green because you associate it with a cooling forest walk, or you detest red because it reminds you of blood, or you love a particular tone of blue because it’s the same shade as your father’s eyes.

“Humans have a love-hate relationship with colour,” says Tracie Rodwell-Dunne, Principal and Director at the Beaumont School of Interior Decorating & Design. “Almost everyone has a colour or several that they don’t like or even hate. Even those who state that they love all colours will have some they prefer over others and there is a very involved reason as to why. Colour has an energy to it which we resonate with – either positively or negatively, and the reason for our response is based on our individual emotional programming, life experiences, and thoughts.”

Animals can show a remarkable preference for colours as well. Bowerbirds collect and decorate their nests with objects such as straws, bottle tops, feathers, and strips of paper of a particular hue. The spotted bowerbird prefers whites and silvers, while the satin bowerbird is drawn to blue. We are still decoding the reasons why.

SHIFTING SANDS

Before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, bright colours were making a comeback. Once it hit, there was a shift towards neutrals. Now in the post-lockdown era, brights seem to be making a comeback.

Annually, colour specialists Pantone select a defining shade for the coming year. Their colour experts comb trends across the globe in diverse arenas such as films, art collections, fashion, travel, sporting events, technology, socio-economic circumstances, and social media. In turn, once the new hue is chosen, it influences industries such as graphic design, fashion, furnishings, and product packaging.

“It is interesting to note that the Pantone colour for 2020 was classic blue, connected with authority and communication,” says Rodwell-Dunne. “For 2021, two colours were selected: yelloworange, which is about wisdom, abundance and creating life changes, and gray, which is about balance and dealing with health issues. The colour for 2022 was blue-violet, which is about understanding deeper spiritual wisdom and allowing others to express their point of view.”

The Pantone website describes Very Peri, the blue-violet for 2022, in terms of renewed wonder and optimism: “Displaying a carefree confidence and a daring curiosity that animates our creative spirit, inquisitive and intriguing PANTONE 17-3938 Very Peri helps us to embrace this altered landscape of possibilities, opening us up to a new vision as we rewrite our lives.”

Very Peri was selected for its ability to walk the line between the soothing effects of blue and the more energetic feeling of red.

Executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, Leatrice Eiseman, is quoted as saying: “As we move into a world of unprecedented change, the selection of Pantone 17-3938 Very Peri brings a novel perspective and vision of the trusted and beloved blue colour family, encompassing the qualities of the blues, yet at the same time with its violet red undertone, Pantone 17-3938 Very Peri displays a spritely joyous attitude and dynamic presence that encourages courageous creativity and imaginative expressions.”

We’re ready to embrace bright colours now the world is slowly emerging from its cocoon of the past couple of years.

HEALING HUES

There are countless mixed messages we receive in popular culture about how we interact with the colours around us. Among them are claims that they can be harnessed to cure or alleviate a range of physical and mental illnesses through our biological responses to colour exposure. ‘Colour therapy’ or ‘chromotherapy’ is the name that is given to this idea.

It’s billed as a holistic treatment which uses the seven colours in the spectrum to align the seven chakras associated with various body parts, including the throat, heart, and solar plexus. Proponents suggest it can help with conditions ranging from depression, headaches and sleeplessness to chronic pain and circulatory blockages.

Chromotherapy may involve activities such as exposing a client to coloured lights on certain regions of their body, visualising certain colours, wearing coloured clothing, or massage using coloured oils. All or only selected colours may be used.

Dr Zena O’Connor recommends caution when assessing claims of the healing powers of colour therapy: “Colour therapy is highly dubious, especially colour therapists that claim it can cure a range of illnesses such as cancer,” she says.

DOPAMINE DRESSING

One of the easiest ways to reintroduce colour into our daily lives is through what we wear. For many of us, concern for how we look has taken a backseat while we stayed inside more, says Associate Professor Lauren Rosewarne, social scientist at the University of Melbourne. “During lockdowns, people weren’t dressing to impress as they were unlikely to be leaving their home much – instead, they were dressing for comfort and colour wasn’t a priority,” says Rosewarne. “Now as people are not only returning to work but attending more public events [they] are once again concerned more with their appearance and cognisant of their visibility. “For some people, bright colours are a sign of optimism, as well as fun and approachability,” she adds.

Daring to dress in the loudest, proudest hues you can, or ‘dopamine dressing’, has been heralded as 2022’s biggest fashion trend after the past two years of tea-stained trackies in lockdown. Sure, black and beige are safe as work-appropriate neutrals, for their hiding-all-manner-of-splatters approach to style, and for when you want to blend into the background, but where’s the fun in that?

After a period where many of us have felt like freedoms have been curtailed and sources of joy have been few and far between, is it any wonder we’ve turned to one thing within our control – what we wear – to be a small spark of delight?

Science backs up the happy-go-lucky claims of the trend. In 2012, a study found that participants who wore clothes that held meaning for them derived a sense of confidence and competence from them.

Another study in 2015 showed what we wear can not only affect the way others see us and the way we see ourselves, but also influence our decision-making capabilities. In other words, the way we dress has the potential to alter our mindset. It’s ‘fake it until you make it’ in the sartorial sense.

Rather than confining yourself to the shades and styles that are in fashion or that you feel you’re expected to wear, the key is seeking out the colours that resonate with you on an emotional level. “Dopamine dressing is the idea clothing has the capacity to influence mood and the belief colours can encourage feelings of wellbeing,” says Rosewarne. “The belief is that through certain coloured garments we can influence our sentiments, so cool colours like pastels invoking feelings of calm and wellbeing, and statement colours like red are about confidence.”

One of the main criticisms of colour psychology is that it suggests humans all have the same reaction to the same colours.

“It is an area that is problematic because there are many assumptions about colour psychology that presume we all respond to colour in a uniform, standardised way,” says Dr Zena O’Connor.

However, our interpretation of the meanings behind different hues takes into account groups represented by those colours, availability of materials in art and clothing, and a variety of other factors.

“The different meanings of colour are complicated and culturally specific,” says Associate Professor Lauren Rosewarne.

“In Western culture, for example, purple is a colour associated with royalty – it’s seldom seen in nature and because the technique used to produce purple dye was expensive, its use was associated with people who could afford it.

“In more recent years, the colour has been embraced by suffragettes and became the colour of the women’s liberation movement. Such an analysis can be applied to many colours – their history, the presence in art and garments, and its use in political contexts all contribute to shaping perceptions of it.”

Rodwell-Dunne argues that while the way we respond psychologically to colour is similar, which colour is favoured for various cultural traditions depends on the emotion the culture is seeking to evoke. “Cultures will put their own emphasis on whether a colour is good or not good to wear,” says RodwellDunne. “For example, in India the widow wears white, as an aspect of white is it washes away sorrow. But in Italy and Greece, they wear black – an aspect of black is it keeps control of emotions. While both colours are appropriate from a colour psychology point of view, each culture has made the decision as to which colour they should wear.”

The meaning assigned to colours varies depending not only on the groups they represent and the events they’re associated with, but the times of year when traditions are celebrated. “Colours hold strong culturally specific connotations with little resonance outside of a particular jurisdiction,” says Rosewarne.

“In Ireland, for example, the colour orange is associated with Irish Protestants, while Catholics are associated with the colour green. Colours also have different meanings at different times: red, for example, while being often associated in Western culture with confidence and excitement, also comes to symbolise love in February and Christmas in December.”

Ultimately, your enjoyment of the many shades of the rainbow is influenced by what they mean to you on a personal level. Paint your world any way you like.