Art can help you express your feelings….. or art can help you make someone else feel something….

Art can convey happiness, joy, sadness and loss.  Art can be a celebration.  Art can be mourning a loss.  Art is used in all areas of life – personal enjoyment or professional use.  Just think of marketing – marketing is an art form using art!  The photos of delicious foods, fast cars to clothing and entertainment…. color sets moods, sends thoughts into our unconscious mind.

Do you feel tranquilly calm when surrounded by green fields and blue skies? Or perhaps slightly alarmed when staring at a red stop sign?

Color has been known to have a powerful psychological impact on people’s behavior and decisions, and this knowledge has been harnessed all too well by designers and marketers alike. Color can often be the sole reason someone purchases a product, where 93% of buyers focus on visual appearance and almost 85% claim color to be their primary reason for purchase!

How do Colors Influence People?

Red – Creates a sense of urgency, which is good for clearance sales. Encourages appetite, thus is frequently used by fast-food chains. Physically stimulates the body, raising blood pressure and heart rate, associated with movement, excitement, and passion.

Blue – The preferred color of men. It’s associated with peace, water, tranquility, and reliability. Blue provides a sense of security, curbs appetite, and stimulates productivity. The most common color used by conservative brands looking to promote trust in their products.

Green – Associated with health, tranquility, power, and nature. Used in stores to relax customers and for promoting environmental issues. Green stimulates harmony in your brain and encourages a balance leading to decisiveness.

Purple – Commonly associated with royalty, wisdom, and respect. Stimulates problem solving as well as creativity. Frequently used to promote beauty and anti-aging products.

Orange & Yellow – Cheerful colors that promote optimism. Yellow can make babies cry, while orange can trigger a sense of caution. Used to create a sense of anxiety that can draw in impulsive buyers and window shoppers.

Black – Associated with authority, power, stability, and strength. Often a symbol of intelligence, but can become overwhelming if used to frequently.

Grey – Symbolizes feelings of practicality, old age, and solidarity. But too much grey can lead to feelings of nothingness and depression.

White – Associated with feelings of purity, cleanliness and safety. Can be used to project an absence of color or neutrality. White space helps spark creativity since it can be perceived as an unaltered, clean state.

Is it not amazing how “color” alone affects us!  We were not talking about subject matter – the object of the art – a landscape painting – a tree, a sculpture – human, a textile garment – fashion, just the power of color alone before it is applied to an object!

Do you have a favorite piece of clothing base on color?

I myself ended up buying a car – because I loved the color!

Color evokes strong emotions – I love that color!  It is my favorite color!  Then there is the, I hate that color!  I would never wear or buy anything that color!

Color…. more powerful than you may have thought!