Colour is something we all as human beings take for granted
as we are born with this fascinating privilege of colourful sight, unless if
you’re born blind of course. For the majority of us, colour is a major catalyst
of universal design that evokes a wide variety of emotions – although it is
perceptual to each individual’s experiences in life i.e. red can be associated
to passion and love for one person and mean something completely different to
another individual, most likely in another part of the world.
By understanding the environment in which we intend to
unleash our designs, we can spark the desired emotional response to create an
affinity from consumer to creation – something that many businesses seek to
create in order to maximise the sale of their products or services.
For designers in the Western world who intend to release
their illustrations on their local demographic, the desire is there to always
follow the curve, as businesses do, and create a red heart for example as you
know that it is socially acceptable and the affinity to love is expected. But
is there something more to be had from confusing the senses of your expecting
audience? This is where the study of psychological response to colour can make
your design become “off the wall”.
Using the example of the heart, I’ve presented a few images
I’ve pulled from Flickr below which show a standard illustrative heart in
different colours.
1. Green Heart
2. Red Heart
3. Wood Heart
It will be interesting to see what the results of this psychological test present. I will present an in-depth discussion on the topic following its results in a month's time. Please comment your responses to the designs presented above below.
