“The subject of color seems to have almost endless ramifications

and to touch upon life in almost every quarter, for color is rich in lore,
rich in meaning and purpose.” – Faber Birren

There is a large array of emotional responses that are associated with colors. Some
of these are obvious, some obscure. Certain associations are specific to a country
or region, while others are universally recognized—being rooted in human
anatomy or observable natural phenomena. Some colors can have different
meanings, even opposing meanings, based entirely on context and application.

While there are many, many factors that come into play when coming up with a
design’s color, this should certainly be one of them. By knowing that red and
yellow are the most visually attention-grabbing colors, you might design a better
billboard. Knowing that blue signifies knowledge may help decide the color of a
library’s logo. Like most things related to design, these aren’t rules set in concrete
but rather one more tool that you can use or intentionally violate to deliver your
intended message.

In this article, I’ve collected and summarized the emotions and concepts
associated with the six basic colors, plus black and white. I’ve tried to make it as
definitive as possible and included numerous examples, but the more you study
this subject, the more you will find. The most definitive texts on the subject, in my
opinion, are the books of Faber Birren, who was a consultant on color and color
theory and put out numerous books on the subject.
With that caveat, you should find this article comprehensive and useful in design,
photography and illustration. And if you do find something missing, please feel
free to leave a comment.

(Note on Character Studies: I’ve included these as I found them interesting, not
because I believe they are accurate or true. And aside from being an interesting
read, they also may be of use to character designers or costume designers who
are having trouble figuring out the color choices of their characters.)

CONTENTS
 Red
 Green
 Yellow
 Blue
 Black
 White
 Orange
 Purple
 Color Combinations
RED
“At once, red is the passionate and ardent hue of the spectrum, marking the saint and the
sinner, patriotism and anarchy, love and hatred, compassion and war.” – Faber Birren

Warmth, anger, crudity, excitement, power, strength, love, passion, fire, blood,
extreme emotions, battle. Red is supposed to prompt impulse buying. It has been
used by the church to give the feeling of pomp and circumstance. In history it
represents royalty, majesty and triumph. Usually thought of as a violent and
exciting color.

Emotional Response
Red is a very emotionally intense color. It enhances human metabolism, increases
respiration rate, and raises blood pressure. It has very high visibility, which is why
stop signs, stoplights, and fire equipment are usually painted red. In heraldry, red
is used to indicate courage. It is a color found in many national flags.

Use in Design & Advertising

Red brings text and images to the foreground. It is used to stimulate people to
make quick decisions; it is a perfect color for ‘Buy Now’ or ‘Click Here’ buttons on
Internet banners and websites. In advertising, red is often used to evoke erotic
feelings (red lips, red nails, red-light districts, ‘Lady in Red’, etc). Red is widely
used to indicate danger (high-voltage signs, traffic lights). This color is also
commonly associated with energy, so would be appropriate when promoting
energy drinks, games, cars and other items related to sports and high physical
activity.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Brilliant, intense, opaque, dry
 Mental Associations: Hot, fire, heat, blood
 Direction Associations: Danger, Christmas, Fourth of July, Valentines Day,
Mother’s Day, Flag
 Objective Impressions: Passionate, exciting, fervent, active
 Subjective Impressions: Intensity, rage, rapacity, fierceness
 Signifies: strength, health, vigor, lust, danger
 Holiday: Yule
 Planet: Mars
 Day: Tuesday
 Astrological: Scorpio
Color Shape

Red suggests the form of the square and the cube. It is hot, dry and
opaque in quality. It is solid and substantial. It is extremely advancing and holds
the strongest of all attractions to stimulus. Because it is sharply focused by the
eye, it lends itself to structural planes and sharp angles.

Character Study
Here is the vital color. Love red in a big and generous way and you have real
courage before life. You are vigorous and given to action, for life means much to
you. Do you like sports? Are you inclined to be very positive in what you have to
say?

In affairs of the heart you are rather likely to be fickle. Because of your eagerness
for excitement you may break many old hearts in your glamorous efforts to win
new ones. But people who understand you recognize that you are a very human
person, after all, and will more readily forgive your faults than you will forgive
theirs.

You are quick to judge people. First impressions count with you and very often
cause you to act emotionally rather than mentally.

Related Colors
 Light red represents joy, sexuality, passion, sensitivity, and love.
 Pink signifies romance, love, and friendship. It denotes feminine qualities
and passiveness.
 Dark red is associated with vigor, willpower, rage, anger, leadership,
courage, longing, malice, and wrath.
 Brown suggests stability and denotes masculine qualities.
 Reddish-brown is associated with harvest and fall.
Examples
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GREEN
Spring, the macabre, freshness, mystery, envy, hope, eternal life. Being composed
of yellow and blue, green presents the feeling of light and coolness, cheer and
restraint. It is the color of nature as usually seen. Green alleviates tension and
implies restfulness.

Emotional Response
Green supposedly has healing power. It is the most restful color for the human
eye; it can improve vision. Green suggests stability and endurance. Sometimes
green denotes lack of experience; for example, a ‘greenhorn’ is a novice. In
heraldry, green indicates growth and hope. Green, as opposed to red, means
safety; it is the color of free passage in road traffic.

Use in Design & Advertising

Green is used to indicate safety when advertising drugs and medical products.
Green is directly related to nature, so is used to promote ‘green’ or natural
products. Dull, darker green is associated with money, the financial world,
banking, Wall Street.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Clear, moist
 Mental Associations: Cool, nature, water
 Direction Associations: Clear, Saint Patrick’s Day
 Objective Impressions: Quieting, refreshing, peaceful, growing
 Subjective Impressions: Repulsiveness, disease, terror, guilt
 Signifies: finances, fertility, luck, success, charity, growth, rejuvenation,
ambition, greed and jealousy, plant kingdom, herbal healing
 Planets: Venus, Mercury
 Days: Friday, Wednesday
 Holidays: Spring Equinox, Beltane, Saint Patrick’s Day
 Astrological: Taurus
Color Shape
 Green suggests the form of the hexagon or the icosahedron. It is cool,
fresh, soft. It is not sharply focused and therefore does not lend itself to much
angularity. It is a big color and can dominate the eye without distressing it.

Character Study
This is nature’s color, preferred by human beings who are likewise fresh and
natural in personality. If you like green, you are sure to have a rather broad
interest in the world, to be aware of the problems of life, to be tolerant and
somewhat liberal.

Because your mind is clear and full of varied attentions, you are an agreeable
person. You like to play bridge, to shop, to read all the best-selling books. You
respect money and are anxious to improve your standard of living. In this,
perhaps, you are like many others. Yet the chief difference in you is that you
delight in friends, travel, sensible luxuries, without being either miserly or
inclined to put on a false front. You are good and normal, and relish the scandals
of others while carefully avoiding them within your own household.

Related Colors
 Dark green is associated with ambition, greed, and jealousy.
 Yellow-green can indicate sickness, cowardice, discord, and jealousy.
 Aqua is associated with emotional healing and protection.
 Olive green is the traditional color of peace and ironically a color common
in military uniforms.
Examples
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YELLOW
Value, sunlight, the Orient, treachery, brilliance, joy. Being nearest to sunlight, it
is connected with cheer and springtime. Yellow claims attention first and fastest
and sits alongside red as the most obvious and vibrant color.

Emotional Response
Yellow produces a warming effect, arouses cheerfulness, stimulates mental
activity, and generates muscle energy. Yellow is often associated with food. Bright,
pure yellow is an attention getter, which is the reason taxicabs are painted this
color. When overused, yellow may have a disturbing effect; it is known that babies
cry more in yellow rooms. Yellow is seen before other colors when placed against
black; this combination is often used to issue a warning. In heraldry, yellow
indicates honor and loyalty. Later the meaning of yellow was connected with
cowardice.

Use in Design & Advertising

Use yellow to evoke pleasant, cheerful feelings. You can choose yellow to promote
children’s products and items related to leisure. Yellow is very effective for
attracting attention, so use it to highlight the most important elements of your
design. Men usually perceive yellow as a very lighthearted, ‘childish’ color, so it is
not recommended to use yellow when selling prestigious, expensive products to
men—nobody will buy a yellow business suit or a yellow Mercedes. Yellow is an
unstable and spontaneous color, so avoid using yellow if you want to suggest
stability and safety. Light yellow tends to disappear into white, so it usually needs
a dark color to highlight it. Shades of yellow are visually unappealing because they
loose cheerfulness and become dingy.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Sunny, incandescent, radiant
 Mental Associations: Sunlight
 Direction Associations: Caution
 Objective Impressions: Cheerful, inspiring, vital, celestial
 Subjective Impressions: High spirit, health
 Signifies: knowledge, learning, concentration, persuasion, charm,
confidence, jealousy, joy, comfort
 Planet: Mercury
 Day: Wednesday
 Astrological: Gemini, Leo
Color Shape

Yellow suggests the form of the triangle or the pyramid, with its apex
down. It is the color of highest visibility in the spectrum and therefore sharp,
angular and crisp in quality; but it is more celestial than wordly. It is without solid
base, lofty and reaches upward into space.

Character Study
This hue is often picked as a favorite color by very intelligent people. If you like
yellow, you are probably high-minded and, perhaps, a person who is drawn into
reforms or strange groups.

You have a beautifully controlled temper. Yet the temper is there, nonetheless,
and you are quite capable of putting people in their places if you feel so moved.
People you meet for the first time may not always think you the most friendly soul
in the world; but those who know you intimately will respect and cherish your
profound character.

You long secretly for the admiration of others. While you outwardly resist flattery,
you inwardly glory in it. You are inclined to live alone mentally. You are a true
friend and a rare soul who can keep secrets.

Related Colors
 Dull (dingy) yellow represents caution, decay, sickness, and jealousy.
 Light yellow is associated with intellect, freshness, and joy.
Examples
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BLUE
Blue is usually associated with knowledge and serenity. Coolness, ethereality, the
infinite, significance, repose, formality. It is associated with the sky, the ocean and
ice. It has always been the symbol of truth and purity. Loyalty, compassion,
connotes serenity.

Emotional Response
Blue is considered beneficial to the mind and body. It slows human metabolism
and produces a calming effect. Blue is strongly associated with tranquility and
calmness. In heraldry, blue is used to symbolize piety and sincerity.

Use in Design & Advertising

You can use blue to promote products and services related to cleanliness (water
purification filters, cleaning liquids, vodka), air and sky (airlines, airports, air
conditioners), water and sea (sea voyages, mineral water). As opposed to
emotionally warm colors like red, orange, and yellow; blue is linked to
consciousness and intellect. Use blue to suggest precision when promoting high-
tech products. Blue is a masculine color; according to studies, it is highly accepted
among males. Dark blue is associated with depth, expertise, and stability; it is a
preferred color for corporate America and by survey is the “favorite” color.

Avoid using blue when promoting food and cooking, because blue suppresses
appetite. When used together with warm colors like yellow or red, blue can create
high-impact, vibrant designs; for example, blue-yellow-red is a perfect color
scheme for a superhero.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Transparent, wet
 Mental Associations: Cold, sky, water, ice
 Direction Associations: Service, flag
 Objective Impressions: Subduing, melancholy, contemplative, sober
 Subjective Impressions: Gloom, fearfulness, secrecy
 Signifies: tranquility, understanding, patience, health, truth, devotion,
sincerity, honor, loyalty, peace, wisdom, protection during sleep, astral projection
 Planets: Moon, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter
 Days: Monday, Friday, Saturday, Thursday
 Astrological: Libra, Sagittarius
Color Shape

Blue suggests the circle or the sphere. It is cold, wet, transparent,

atmospheric. Blue is retiring, dignified, and tends to create a blurred image in the
eye. While it may have bulk, it does not seem to lend itself to angularity.

Character Study
Here is the color of conservatism and dignity. You are sensitive to others, sensitive
to yourself. You have real weight to your character and never enter into any silly
enthusiasms without careful thought.

You are not one to monopolize conversations, although you can hold your own
when you once make up your mind to do so. You are cautious in word, dress and
action. What troubles you most, however, is an inability to let go in moments of
excitement. Perhaps situations and personalities bother you unduly.

When you sin, your conscience is bothered, but you will sin just the same. This is
because you have a rational mind and know how to justify yourself.

Related Colors
 Light blue is associated with health, healing, tranquility, understanding,
and softness.
 Dark blue represents knowledge, power, integrity, and seriousness.
 Examples

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BLACK
Death, gloom, sorry, hidden action, evil, mourning, disorientation through
absence of light. Black denotes strength and authority; it is considered to be a very
formal, elegant, and prestigious color (black tie, black Mercedes).

Emotional Response
Black is a mysterious color associated with fear and the unknown (black holes). It
usually has a negative connotation (blacklist, black humor, ‘black death’). In
heraldry, black is the symbol of grief.

Use in Design & Advertising

Black gives the feeling of perspective and depth, but a black background
diminishes readability. A black suit or dress can make you look thinner. When
designing for a gallery of art or photography, you can use a black or gray
background to make the other colors stand out. Black contrasts well with bright
colors. Combined with red or orange—other very powerful colors—black gives a
very aggressive color scheme. Black also communicates elegance and prestige and
thus is commonly used in high-end products, such as smartphones, limousines,
formal suits and Jack Daniel packaging.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Spatial—darkness
 Mental Associations: Neutral, night, emptiness
 Direction Associations: Mourning
 Objective Impressions: Funeral, ominous, deadly, depressing
 Subjective Impressions: Negation of spirit, death
 Signifies: Negation without reflecting, unlocking when stuck, banishing evil
or negativity
 Holiday: Samhain
 Planet: Saturn
 Day: Saturday
 Deities: The Crone
 Astrological: Scorpio & Capricorn
Examples

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WHITE
Snow, delicacy, purity, cold, peace, cleanliness, elegance, frailty, mourning,
enlightenment, faith, glory, salvation. Orientation through light. In war, white
means surrender.

Emotional Response
White is associated with goodness, innocence and virginity. It is considered to be
the color of perfection. White means safety, purity, and cleanliness. As opposed to
black, white usually has a positive connotation. White can represent a successful
beginning. In heraldry, white depicts faith and purity.

Use in Design & Advertising

 In advertising, white is associated with coolness and cleanliness because it’s the
color of snow. You can use white to suggest simplicity in high-tech products.
White is an appropriate color for charitable organizations; angels are usually
imagined wearing white clothes. White is associated with hospitals, doctors, and
sterility, so you can use white to suggest safety when promoting medical products.
White is often associated with low weight, low-fat food, and dairy products.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Spatial—light
 Mental Associations: Cool, snow
 Direction Associations: Cleanliness, Mother’s Day, flag
 Objective Impressions: Pure, clean, frank, youthful
 Subjective Impressions: Brightness of Spirit, normality
 Signifies: purity, consecration, meditation, divination, exorcism, the full
moon, healing, peace, spiritual strength, may be substituted for any other color
 Planet: Moon
 Day: Monday
 Astrological: Cancer
Examples

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ORANGE
Being made of yellow and red, orange gives the idea of light and heat. It is the
color of pride and ambition. Associated with sunshine and warmth, considered
cheerful.
 Emotional Response
Orange combines the energy of red and the happiness of yellow. It is associated
with joy, sunshine, the tropics. Orange represents enthusiasm, fascination,
happiness, creativity, determination, attraction, success, encouragement and
stimulation.

Use in Design & Advertising

To the human eye, orange is a very hot color, so it gives the sensation of heat.
Nevertheless, orange is not as aggressive as red. Orange increases oxygen supply
to the brain, produces an invigorating effect, and stimulates mental activity. It is
highly accepted among young people. As a citrus color, orange is associated with
healthy food and stimulates appetite. Orange is the color of fall and harvest. In
heraldry, orange is symbolic of strength and endurance.

Orange has very high visibility, so you can use it to catch attention and highlight
the most important elements of your design. Orange is very effective for
promoting food products and toys.

It’s disadvantage is that by survey of “favorite color” orange usually comes the
lowest and thus it is rarely used for longer term products, such as cars or
electronic products.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Bright, luminous, glowing
 Mental Associations: Warm, metallic, autumn
 Direction Associations: Halloween, Thanksgiving
 Objective Impressions: Jovial, Lively, energetic, forceful
 Subjective Impressions: Hilarity, exuberance, indulgence
 Signifies: encouragement, adaptability, stimulation, attraction, plenty,
kindness
 Holiday: Candlemas
 Deities: Brigid
 Planets: Sun, Mars, Mercury
 Days: Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday
 Color Shape

Orange suggests the form of the rectangle. It is less earthly in quality

than red, more tinged with a feeling of incandescence. It is warm, dry, compelling.
Optically, it produces a sharp image and therefore lends itself to angles and to
well-defined ornaments.

Character Study
Choose orange and you are a person to be envied. For you are a “hail fellow well
met.” Perhaps not so ardent and so passionate as the red type, you still have a
grand love for life.

Your taste runs to cheerful friends and good foods. You are just as much at ease
among sinners as among saints. In fact, much of your life is devoted to things
social. Yet, you should be careful. People may say behind your back that your last
friend is always your best friend.

You are not one to be alone. You like eminent people, whether they are
prizefighters or presidents. You want life to surround you, warm and mellow, like
the orange glow from a fireplace.

You make the ideal bachelor or spinster, perhaps because you are inclined to
know a little about many people and not very much about one or two.

Related Colors
 Dark orange can mean deceit and distrust.
 Red-orange corresponds to desire, sexual passion, pleasure, domination,
aggression, and thirst for action.
 Gold evokes the feeling of prestige. The meaning of gold is illumination,
wisdom, and wealth. Gold often symbolizes high quality.
Examples
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PURPLE
Color of royalty. Has a strong religious significance. It is used as half-mourning.
By associations, it gives a feeling of mystery. It is the color of shadows.

Emotional Response
Purple combines the stability of blue and the energy of red. It symbolizes power,
nobility, luxury, and ambition. It conveys wealth and extravagance. Purple is
associated with wisdom, dignity, independence, creativity, mystery, and magic.

Use in Design & Advertising

According to surveys, almost 75 percent of pre-adolescent children prefer purple
to all other colors. Purple is a very rare color in nature; some people consider it to
be artificial.

Light purple is a good choice for a feminine design. You can use bright purple
when promoting children’s products.

Associated Meanings
 General Appearance: Deep, soft, atmospheric
 Mental Associations: Cool, mist, darkness, shadow
 Direction Associations: Mourning, Easter
 Objective Impressions: Dignified, pompous, mournful, mystic
 Subjective Impressions: Loneliness, desperation
 Signifies: power, piety, sanctity, sentimentality, tension, sadness
amplification of other energies, wisdom, high ideals, spiritual protection and
healing, psychic ability, protective energy
 Planet: Jupiter
 Day: Thursday
 Astrological: Sagittarius
Color Shape

Purple suggests the form of the oval. It is even more refined than blue.
The eye finds difficulty in focusing an image of it sharply. It is thus soft, flowing
and never angular. Unlike blue, however, it is not so lofty but clings closer to
earth.

Character Study
Two different types of people like purple—very profound beings and those who
merely wish to appear so.

Choose purple and you are, no doubt, a mystery to yourself as well as to others.
Aristocratic and artistic people often favor the hue for its exclusive dignity. Such
persons are generally satisfied with themselves, sometimes conceited and nearly
always capable of great things.

If you like purple, you no doubt lay claim (if only in your heart) to a rather
superior attitude toward the world; but, if you are extremely clever, are you also
inclined to be a trifle lazy?

Purple types are easy to live with. They are neither too bold, like red, nor too
straight-laced, like blue. Yet they must beware of any “lavender-and-old-lace”
tendencies, which may snare them if they don’t watch out.

Related Colors
 Light purple evokes romantic and nostalgic feelings.
 Dark purple evokes gloom and sad feelings. It can cause frustration.
Examples
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COLOR COMBINATIONS
There are certain color combinations which together have their own symbolism.

RED & GREEN

Red and green together denote pain (and, ironically, Christmas).

Examples

BLACK & WHITE

Black relieved with white signifies sophistication, vigor, newness.

Examples

BLACK & RED

Black and red together are the colors of enemy.

Examples