Class Resources > Color > The Dynamics of Color


The Dynamics of Color: Light and Emotion
The Physical Properties of Light
For every person you ask, "What is color?" you are sure to get a range of answers. A physicist will tell you it's a study of electro magnetic waves and their frequencies. A chemist may tell you it's a study of pigmentation. Others will say it's what the eye perceives. A psychologist may tell you it's the study of the mind, and an anthropologist could say it's a cultural phenomenon. In fact color is all of these.

Regardless of how we identify color, all color theory is based on the principle that color is light. When a beam of light is refracted by a crystal prism, we can see a spectrum of colors. This spectrum of color is unique to the human eye.

If we think of color as reflected light, then the nature of the illuminating source is important because it effects the color we see. For example, in spring you will see the hills in the south bay are green. In the morning light on a clear sunny day, the hills are especially green. The green is bright and saturated. A vivid green that is breathtaking. This green is a result of natural sunlight and clear optimal atmospheric conditions. As the day continues and the sun's intensity begins to fade, so does the color of the green hills. By late afternoon - early evening the color of the hills becomes a less saturated green. The green has more gray in it. The green is less intense than in the morning because there is less sunlight.

From this we can see that color is effected by light. The range of natural light is affected by the sun's position and atmospheric conditions. Similarly, the range of artificial light is determined by the nature of it's source; florescent, incandescent, candle light…

So what does this have to do with design? Well it's a part of you developing an awareness of color. Understanding how light can affect color will give you more control over how you use it.

Perceptions of Color
We know from the previous section that color can be manipulated by other colors. Yellow will look more saturated if it is surrounded or next to its complimentary color {colors opposite each other on the color wheel}. We must also be aware that color can evoke emotional/social responses.

I lived in Tokyo for five years. In one of the neighborhoods where I resided I often saw groups of people who wore black. The men wore black suits and ties and the women wore black dresses or skirts with matching black shoes and handbag. I remember thinking there must be a funeral home in the neighborhood. Also, these people seemed somber and serious. All the pieces fit to convince me there was a funeral home in my neighborhood. I thought this for over a year.

I realized after some time though that funeral homes as I understood them weren't customary in Japanese culture. Some confusion started creeping in. My perception was shattered when a Japanese friend explained to me that the 'people in black' weren't going to a funeral, they were attending weddings. What I had believed to be a funeral chapel in my neighborhood was a wedding chapel. Japanese wear black for all formal occasions including weddings.

The above illustrates my cultural perception about the color black. In this instance culture affected my ability or rather inability to understand a situation right in front of me. Color is more than just a hue. We base certain understandings on it. In the case of the color black, I associated formality, seriousness and death with it.

In considering the cultural/social implications of color we should keep in mind who our audience is. If I am making a website for seniors about the benefits of exercise, the colors that audience may identify with may be different than the colors I would use if I were designing the Crayola Crayon website.

The color palette you choose must reinforce the message you are trying to communicate. Colors have meaning, and it's up to you to decide how you will use color to communicate your message. Although there are no steadfast rules, colors have associations. The trick is to understand that these associations are cultural and social, and be aware of this when you are designing.

Choosing a color palette for a particular project should involve asking the client how they envision it. They need to identify what type of response they want the audience to feel. You may even want to query a few people in the targeted audience that could provide valuable information for more than just color.

If it is not clear enough already, what you shouldn't do is just choose a random color. You need to consider the above aspects when designing with color. Identify what colors would suit the audience and subject, and use this information to help you choose a color scheme. This scheme may have variations based on the vocabulary {value, complimentary colors...} we have learned to describe color.