Without realizing it, colour is involved in your day-to-day tasks such as getting dressed in the morning, driving to and from work and even grocery shopping.
The colours that we see have frequently words used to describe the feel or mood of a colour. There are no right or wrong words to describe a colour or shade and depending on the context the colours are referring to, it can have a negative or positive connotation. According to Color: Messages and Meanings A PANTONE® color resource, red can have a negative association when talking about a fire but could be a perfect colour to use on a packaging label for spicy salsa.
Here is a small list of the frequently used words for popular colours:
Red: Passionate, exciting, dramatic, violent, fire, overly aggressive
Orange: Fun, energizing, glowing, warning, loud
Yellow: Joyful, happiness, hope, betrayal, illness
Brown: Earthy, rich, home, comfort
Blue: Loyalty, calming, dependable, depression, coldness
Green: Fresh, natural, healthy, money, growth, jealously, inexperience
Purple: Royal, creative, spiritual, power, arrogance, bruised tension
(White): Pure, sterile, simplicity, peace, cold, distant
Black: Powerful, elegant, classy
It is a bit difficult to get an accurate list of what each colour means due to the fact that many colours have different meanings depending on the culture.
In China, red means good luck or celebration and is usually worn by brides in China and India. However, in South Africa, red is the colour of mourning.
Brides in western cultures wear white; however, in eastern cultures white is a colour for mourning.
Yellow is a sign of hope in western cultures, but at the end of the spectrum, Egypt and Burma see the colour yellow as a sign of mourning.
Age, gender and class can also have an impact on how you view colours. Younger children prefer brighter colours, where as adults prefer muted pastels. Western men are more likely to be colour blind and are sometimes unable to see the differences in colour on web pages.
According to marketing research in the U.S. it shows that working class individuals lean towards colours that they can name such as red, blue and green. Wal-Mart uses red and blue in their store logo (for more information on branding, please visit Branding and Corporate Identities.)
Resources:
Eiseman, Leatrice. Color: Messages and meanings. Gloucester, Massachusetts: Hand Press Books, 2006.
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