Strike Me Pink…You Feel Me? Color Associations & You

Strike Me Pink…You Feel Me?

  Color Associations & You

Hello Gentle Readers of Artissima!  I am Debra Disman, your friendly Color Muze, here to share tasty tidbits of color wisdom…from here, there and everywhere.  (If you would like to know about the relationship between color, and taste..please check out previous posts on SYNESTHESIA, and….Synesthesia!)

April 15, 2012,on Rebecca E. Parsons wonderful, and inspiring  blog talk radio “Artistically Speaking Talk Show” ,  our Color Muze   found me in colorFULL convo with Rebecca, and her two highly cre8tive guests,  Deb Thompson, and Christy Gossett ; bloggers extraordinaire. We had a fun romp through a serious color association study, that I learned about from Mr.  Frank H. Mahnke, my instructor at the IACC-NA ( International Association of Colour Consultants/ Designers North America).  The  color skinny, as per this study?  Color associations may indeed be cross cultural…even universal, within a certain range, of both colors, and cultures.  Meaning that…in this study, the majority of participants had similar color associations.  What were they?  Well…please peruse my take and interpretation  below, and let the fun, and fascination, begin!   Less verbiage…let’s let “Les Couleures” speak for themselves!

Red   =   Love

Wouldn’t you know it?  (Heart, blood, life force, et al…)

However, when paired with black, the love may change to hatred…oh dear.

However, this may shift depending on the proportions of red to black, and the addition of another color, such as white.

The human presence, also may alter this association!

The obvious associations with sky and water seem to compel us to associate the color blue with peace and tranquility.

As well, green, with its relationship to springtime,  plants, and the rejuvenating life force of nature.

Although white may be the color of mourning in some cultures, the majority of participants associated the colors black and gray with mourning and sorrow.  Here the effect may be mitigated by an undertone of life giving green, paired with  fresh creamy trim.

The most common color associated with “happy” in this study was yellow…with orange coming in second.

What comes to mind when YOU think of orange? The color of joviality…[“French, probably from Italian giovale, from Old Italian, of Jupiter (regarded as the source of happiness”; from Latin joviālis of (the planet) Jupiter, considered by astrologers to foster good humour),

Warm oranges may be associated with appetite, and can be used effectually in kitchens and dining areas.

Here, the radiant, embracing orange wall and ceiling of this living room veer towards the yellow, or golden, also associated with “jovial”.

Fresh clear life affirmative green…no surprise that “LIFE” is a big association!

Slightly toned down, but still radiant!  Life Force…here we come!

Light-filled yellow…no orange here..with luminous associations.

More luminous-ness…an exterior faux finish featuring a deeper-valued texture over a lighter base,

popping on this building against an azure blue sky.  Yellow = sun/sunshine = light = luminous, indeed.

Speaking of blue…blue and violet associate with “noble”.

Noble blue door…this one does make a statement.

Purple has long been associated with royalty…and has been the color of royalty, or the “highest” of “noble blood”.  To obtain this once rare color, a fair amount of effort once had to be made.

“The actual color of Tyrian purple, the original color purple from which the name purple is derived, is the color of a dye extracted from a mollusk found on the shores of the city of Tyre in ancient Phoenicia (present day Lebanon) that in classical antiquity became a symbol of royalty because only the very wealthy could afford it. Therefore, Tyrian purple was also called imperial purple.“ (See Article).

Nature arranges colors so beautifully…in ways that delight us, and make our hearts sing… might her “color associations”  be the same as ours?

 What colors do YOU associate with “love”, “hatred”, “peace/tranquility”, “sorrow/mourning” “happiness”, “joviality”, “life”, “luminous”. or “noble”?

If you feel so inclined, please share them with us here.

We love to hear from You.

Remember, we are all color associating with this thing called Life, together.

The Colors of Healing

The Colors of Healing

In November of  2011 I chatted with  Rebecca E. Parsons  on her fascinating  Artistically Speaking Talk Show , on Blog Talk Radio   where she interviews a wide range of artists, coaches, and other creatives, such as mixed media painter  Sarah Ahearn Bellemare.  As the show’s   Color Muze , it is my job to offer fun, interesting, colorFULL and salient color tips each third Sunday of the month, at the end of the interview.  The Color Muze  is then transformed into an article, and published in Rebecca’s   Cre8tive Compass Magazine , and my own blog, Artissima, the blog of ArtiFactory Studio.  We strive to make our Color Muzes both delicious AND nutritious…to keep the learning sweet!

On November 20, 2011, our Color Muze took a turn to the metaphysical, and the arena of  psychosomatic medicine. We discussed an approach to healing with color I had learned about during my studies with the  IACC , ( International Association of Colour Consultants/Designers), based on the “Chakras‘, or energy centers existing outside of the body, which, according to our teacher and color expert, Frank Mahnke , “are in communication with the automatic nervous system and the regulation of hormone secretion.  These energy centers are divided into seven chakras and each chakra corresponds to one of the seven spectral colors.”

We had so much colorFULL fun during our Muze, looking at the list of these, and their correlations, which, gratis Mr. Mahnke,  I share with you, Gentle Readers, here and now.

   The Vertex chakra corresponds to VIOLET…representing  wisdom and  spiritual energy, and influences the pituitary gland.

The Forehead  chakra  corresponds to INDIGO…representing intuition, ( the third eye), and  influences the pineal gland.

The Larynx chakra corresponds to BLUE… representing religious inspiration, creativity, language, and communication, and influences the thyroid gland.

The Heart chakra corresponds to GREEN and PINK… representing  love, sympathy, harmony, and influences heart and thymus glands.

The  Solar Plexus chakra corresponds to YELLOW…representing  knowledge and intellect, and is the seat for tension, and influences solar plexus and adrenal body.

The Spleen chakra corresponds to ORANGE… representing energy, and  influences the  spleen and pancreas.

The Basis chakra corresponds to RED… representing life and reproduction, and influences sex glands and sexual organs. (Can’t help thinking about VALENTINE’S DAY here!)

And, what happens when colors such as complimentary BLUE and ORANGE are placed next to each other?

We invite you to  listen to our Color Muze from November 20th, along with the wonderFULL interview with Sarah Ahearn Bellemare, and find out!

What experiences have YOU had with Color Healing?

If You feel so inclined, please share them with us here…Muze with us!

We love to hear from YOU!

Remember, we are all healing through this thing called Life, together.

Wishing YOU Health, Peace, and Color in Your Life.

A a liner note, the above pictures were taken at the magical and marvelous San Francisco event, “Bouquets to Art”, held each MARCH, at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, (FAMSF).  Follow the link, and check it out if you are in the Bay Area at that time (it is coming up next month!)  You won’t be disappointed…”Bouquets” is bound to add sweetness, AND color to your life and senses!