How Colour Communicates
Meaning
Color is the aspect of things that is caused by differing qualities
of light being reflected or emitted by them. It is a powerful and important communication tool, and it is tied to religious, cultural, political and social influences.
By stopping to consider what each colour represents and is
linked to in the ‘real
world’ we can make informed design decisions that ensure we appeal
to our target audience. Without this consideration we run the risk of offending
the very people were are designing for.
#1
It Affects your Mood
Most of us have a favourite colour
or prefer some colours over others. This is because can affect our moods so we
surround ourselves in the colours that have a positive impact on our mood.
Red can boost your energy, yellow
often makes people feel happier, and blue is proven to bring down blood
pressure and slow your heart rate which is why it is often associated with
being relaxing. If you combine the happiness of yellow and the relaxing feel of
blue you get green, a very pleasing colour for many people.
Mental health units are known to use
pastel tones on their walls so that patients feel calm, happy, and relaxed.
Walls that are beige with a pink tint combined with mint green floors are a
popular combination as it is said to create a soothing, harmonious and calm
area. At the other end of the spectrum, literally, schools tend to user bright
colours that appeal to children.
When choosing colours for your next
design it is important to consider how they will combine and sit with the other
elements on the page and what impact that will have on the mood of your
audience.
#2 Colours Communicate
Invisibly
Wassily Kandinsky was one of the
first pioneers of colour theory. A renowned Russian painter and art theorist,
he is often considered the founder of abstract art. Kandinsky believed the
following colours communicate the following qualities:
- Yellow – warm, exciting, happy
- Blue – deep, peaceful, supernatural
- Green – peace, stillness, nature
- White – harmony, silence, cleanliness
- Black – grief, dark, unknown
- Red – glowing, confidence, alive
- Orange – radiant, healthy, serious
#3 Colour has Cultural
Significance
Different colours mean different
things in different places. This is extremely important for designers to know
because without an awareness of the cultural significance of a particular
colour, you risk offending your entire target audience.
Purple for example is a colour of
mourning in Thailand. In western culture however, it is associated with
royalty, luxury, wealth and sometimes magic. The brand colour for Thai Airways
is purple. On first glance this seems like a huge error on their part because
as mentioned above, purple is a colour of mourning in Thailand.
It is most likely however, that the
Thai Airways website isn’t aimed at locals but at tourists, therefore if
westerners view the site and see purple it will associate Thai Airways with
values such as luxury and comfort.
Other examples are:
- In western cultures black is a colour of mourning
- In Japan however it is a colour of honour, with white the colour of mourning
- Red in the west represents danger, love, passion
- In India it is a colour of purity, in China it is a colour of good luck and in South Africa it is a colour of mourning
- Yellow represents courage in Japan, mourning in Egypt and hope in the West
#4 Colour can be Inspired by
our Surroundings
We live in a colourful world, a
world that acts as the perfect inspirational trigger for design. The best thing
about looking to the environment for design solutions is that the palette is
always changing, from autumnal oranges to cold winter blues. So where better to
look than out of your window, take in the colours and then apply them to your
designs.
Drawing inspiration from nature for
your designs also makes you look at the world differently. Normally we whiz by
from place to place but you notice the finer details and undiscovered gems when
you actually stop to take it in.
#5 Colour has Political Associations
Individual political parties are
associated with one colour or another. Depending on whom your audience is, this
might prove to be valuable information when designing.
The association between political
parties and colours isn’t a new connection but it is often taken for granted.
In the UK for example the following pairings exist:
- Labour – Red
- Conservative – Blue
- Liberal Democrats – Yellow
- The Green Party – Green
If a colour is representative of a
political party then the values and behaviours that the party is known for can
be suggested through the use of this colour.
- Red is often linked to socialism and communism
- White has links to pacifism and the surrender flag. In contrast to this, black is a colour that is used in conjunction with anarchism.
- Working class Nazism is associated with the colour brown as the SA were known as the ‘brownshirts’.
A design with one of these colours
as the dominant shade may well hint at a right wing or a left wing preference
or at extreme behaviours.
#6
Religion can be Linked to Colours
As with politics, colours are representative
of certain religions. So as not to unintentionally offend anyone through your
designs, some examples of these colour/religion associations are:
- Green is considered to be the holy colour of Islam
- Judaism is represented by the colour yellow
- In Hinduism, many gods have blue skin
- White is linked to peace across many religions
Again this may only be necessary
information if you are designing a site that has specific links to religion but
it also emphasises that a thorough knowledge of your audience is a fundamental
part of the design process.
#7
Age Affects People’s Colour Preferences
Colour expert Faber Birren carried
out many studies into this area and in his book Color Psychology and
ColorTherapy, he states that for both genders, blue and red “maintain a high
preference throughout life”. He found that yellow is popular with children but
as become move into adulthood it shows less popularity. Birren found that “with
maturity comes a greater liking for hues of shorter wave length (blue, green, purple)
than for hues of longer wave length (red, orange, and yellow)”
Another factor that influences
people’s colour preferences is that throughout their life there will be social
and cultural changes and this can directly impact on their favourite colours.
Some knowledge of what colours certain age ranges prefer can be valuable for
designers. If you were designing a website for a toy store or a children’s TV
channel, then knowing they prefer bright colours and yellow in particular would
help with your design decisions.
Likewise, if you designed a website
for a charity whereby the audience was to be the older generation then blue,
green or purple might be ideal, based on Birren’s findings.
Conclusion
Colour is a complex subject with
many strands and it has the power to subliminally convey values and stories.
