The last couple of days I've spend researching the history and symbolism of colour to get a a solid colour palette for my final major project. I wanted to apply colours that evoked emotions of power and confidence but for this I needed to understand the history of the meaning of colour.
After watching the inspiring BBC documentary 'The History of Art in Three Colour" Episodes Blue, White and Gold, suggested by Elizabeth, I was completely enlightened and I instantly felt as though my project could contain the meaning and importance and that I hoped to achieve and give to the audience that see my book.
BLUE
The nature of blue is that it cannot be touched from the sea to the sky and its horizon. Dr. James Fox, the presenter of the show said Blue captures imagination and mystical new worlds beyond our own.
The symbolic meaning of blue was very interesting to discover. As there are such a wide variety of blues from ultra marine, cobalt blue, lapis lazuli to azure the meaning varies.
The Old Guitarist, 1903, Pablo Picasso
Through Pablo Picasso's blue period it is said that blue represents his descent into slight schizophrenia and depression as well as difficult, dark times ahead and encounters we all face. From this I instantly made a connection to the audience I am trying to reach out to as many in todays society are faced with these issues on a daily basis.
Venus, 1962, Yves Klein
On the other, more uplifting hand, Artist Yves Klein wanted to create a colour that helped him to escape. For a short space of time he wanted to experience freedom and set aside his everyday life as most do in todays society wish for. Escapism is something I want my audience of my book to be able to create for themselves by using my designs and images to create there own envision of power and freedom. His colour 'International Klein Blue' was a revolution and used through all of his art work as a form of escapism for himself.
From this I now intend of using a variety of blues as part of my colour palette to symbolise the hard times we all face but that there is a solution and a way to escape to a mystical realm just for small amount of time to give us that time to breath we all need to function.
WHITE
History has shown that white is an extremely dominant and powerful colour. This can be seen from the dictator Mussolini's obelisk monument and his urban fantasy of a white city, EUR in italy. He believed white was a colour of conquering and power as it has the ability to reflect the sun.
Although whites symbolic meaning dates further back to the civilisation of ancient Greece. They believed it symbolised beauty and purity and the gods. This again links the god like resemblance and powers I want to portray through my final images.
Apollo Del Belvedere
Art Historian, Johann Joachim Winckelmann, once gazing upon the statue of Greek god apollo, said he had never had seen true beauty like it, the white conveyed the simplicity, innocents, clarity and natural health that we have in this world.
These are all elements that I want my audience to reestablish that they have within themselves just as we did once as children dressing up as superheroes. I also be including white as a bit part of my colour palette through make up, hair and clothing to symbolise beauty and clarity we all have.
GOLD
Gold is a colour that instantly defines wealth, status and power but I never truly understood why until I became this research. Ancient civilisations believe that gold and the sun were one of the same. To honour the heat and light of gold was to honour the sun.
Tutankhamun's Death Mask
As well as this the egyptians took this a step further and believed that gold contained magical powers as it never corroded, never rusted and never lost its shine. They believed it had immortal abilities. Tutankhamun's sarcophagus contained 110kgs of solid gold as he believed he could be brought back from the dead. This is one of the themes that one of my images is based on so this factor was very interested to me as it is something I can use and help to create my symbolic colour language.
Gustav Klimt, The Kiss, 1908-1909
Austrian artist Gustav Klimt believed that gold was scared, precious, spiritual and of other worlds. He created a series of golden paints including a variety of gold techniques such as gold leaf and gold paint on top of shellac and plaster to create a jew like feel to his image. He wanted to capture the beauty and glory of gold as he believed gold was becoming too common in his society.
This too is something that connects gold to my work I want to create. Gold reflects the things society today holds scared, one of those things meaning time and being confident to be oneself. Using gold in my colour palette will also give be the opportunity to using different textures and objects in my designs as well as special effects products.
This research, although at first felt quite overwhelming, made me get a clear understand and meaning for the colours I wish to work with now in my designs. Using similar colours through out will also link all my images together rather than them all being separate categories. As well as colour symbolism I will now look into perhaps object symbolism for all of the abilities I will be creating and looking for connections there as well as beginning to start designing face charts with these colours.
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