Image by
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Colors and their keyword values
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Most designers, if not all, treat color as a major tool to establish a look and
create a pleasant appearance for the entire web site.
You have heard this saying before: "The main color of the site should be sage".
As a designer, you know sage can be "sage green", "paramount sage", "pastel
sage", "colonial sage", "dull sage", and many more.
As a computer-literate designer, you also know that 256x256x256 RGB color
systems will give a choice of 16777216 colors and your "sage" may become 100%
different from what your client asked for. Often coloring options, such as
school colors or corporate logos have little tolerance for change.
What does one do when the client asks about "Deep Claret 19-1840" or "Verdant
Green 19-6026"?
Recently while browsing the Internet, I found references to Angela Wright. After
reading this article, I made an attempt to visualize the color values mentioned
there .
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"There are just four personality types and each has its
own distinctive characteristics and typical responses to a variety of
situations.
These classifications indicate where humanity fits into the natural world.
Human colour patterns are a reflection of nature's patterns, and the constant
play of light shows us wonderful colours and harmonies that change
consistently. We rely on the colour signals in our environment to orient
ourselves, so for example, in many parts of the world, when the leaves change
colour and go through golds, reds, purples and browns before they fall off the
trees, we know that the natural cycle is drawing to a close. We prepare for
nature to shut down and hibernate, as regeneration begins under the earth. We
ourselves instinctively draw in. As long as this happens in October and
November, we are quite comfortable; but can you imagine how deeply disturbed we
would be if it happened in June? We depend on the natural order more than we
realise.
The archetypal Group 1 personality reflects the patterns of springtime.
The archetypal Group 2 personality is linked to the natural patterns of the
summertime in many parts of the world.
Archetypal Group 3 personalities are linked to the autumnal pattern.
Archetypal Group 4 personalities are an expression of the natural pattern of
winter.
The four colour groups, and the predominant characteristics of each, could
loosely be described as follows:"
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| scarlet
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#FF3300
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GROUP 1
Clear, delicate warm colors containing no black.
Personal characteristics associated with this tonal family are light, warm,
friendly, new, young, lively, fresh, clean, and optimistic.
Negatively, they may be perceived as insubstantial, frivolous and immature.
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| coral
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#FF7F50
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| peach
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#FFE5B4
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| daffodil yellow
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#E69100
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| emerald green
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#50C878
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| sky blue
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#87ceeb
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| cobalt
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#0047AB
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| and lilac
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#C8A2C8
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| rose pink
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#F3C3B9
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GROUP 2
These tones are cool, contain more grey and, whilst also delicate, are not
necessarily light. They are soft and subtle.
The characteristics are understood elegance, cool, calm poise, graceful,
upmarket, timeless, expensive, soothing.
Negatively, they may be interpreted as draining, unfriendly, aloof, elitist, and
'wishy-washy'.
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| maroon
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#53434A
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| grapefruit
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#F3E88E
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| sage
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#9EA587
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| viridian
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#678975
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| dove grey
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#949494
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| Air Force blue
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#28497E
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| delphinium
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#6C92AF
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| lavender
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#BDBBD7
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| tomato red
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#912e30
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GROUP 3
These tones are again warm, but much more intense and fiery. They contain black
in their mixing (e.g. olive green is yellow mixed with black) but black itself
does not belong in this group.
The characteristics are warm and friendly, traditional, solid, substantial,
reliable, earthy, environmentally aware.
Misused, Group 3 tones can convey heavy, old-fashioned, boring predictability
and bossiness.
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| burnt orange
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#ED7700
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| rust
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#A0410D
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| butter yellow
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#FFCF53
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| leaf green
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#436A0D
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| olive
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#808000
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| teal blue
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#044259
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| peacock
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#406E88
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| aubergine
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#614050
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| black
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#000000
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GROUP 4
These colours are very clear and strong, with no subtleties.
They communicate characteristics of uncompromising excellence, material
aspiration, efficiency, drama, sophistication, modernity, and 'high-tech'.
The other side of Group 4 is cold, uncaring, unfriendly, materialist, and
expensive.
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| white
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#ffffff
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| crimson
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#65000B
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| magenta
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#8B008B
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| lemon
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#FFD962
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| jade green
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#577057
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| ice blue
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#B0DBE2
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| indigo
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#4B0082
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| violet
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#A13B3B
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| These photographs can be described as light, warm, friendly, new,
young, lively, fresh, clean, and optimistic (Group 1).
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| These image colors can reperesent elegance, graceful, upmarket,
timeless concepts (Group 2). |
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| These photographs have warm and friendly, traditional, solid,
substantial, reliable, earthy, environmentally aware colors (Group 3).
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| These images can communicate characteristics of efficiency, drama,
and sophistication, modernity, and 'high-tech'(Group 4).
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