Thursday, January 24, 2008

Color and its social implications

The red of the fire alarm is used so often that the familiar sight of red as an indication of danger has become almost cliche. First and foremost, it is an attention grabber. With the frequent assault of images rendered in red, most people have been programmed since birth to respond to it in some way, whether it simply by drawing their attention to the object to read or look at or even by producing a more emotional reaction such as love, anger, fear, or panic. This is probably the reason why red is now so frequently used as a way to direct a viewers attention to something.
The red of the fire alarm is used so often that the familiar sight of red as an indication of danger has become almost cliche. First and foremost, it is an attention grabber. With the frequent assault of images rendered in red, most people have been programmed since birth to respond to it in some way, whether it simply by drawing their attention to the object to read or look at or even by producing a more emotional reaction such as love, anger, fear, or panic. This is probably the reason why red is now so frequently used as a way to direct a viewers attention to something.This photo of a pawn shop's sign is done in colors of green and gold. The green is a darker, forest-like green, and the gold is more subtle and subdued. It seems likely that these colors were chosen either consciously or subconsciously because of their association with money. The green brings to mind the green tint of paper bills, and the gold signifies (quite literally) gold; a valuable metal that suggests wealth to those that behold it. Also, the fact that the colors chosen are not bright and agressive, but rather dark and toned down gives the pawn shop a slightly more sophisticated and serious feel.