Yellow Essay by Maaike van Vliet, Mv2B
Index 1. Primary and complementary 2. Cold/warm colors 3. Symbolism of the color 4. Sentimental value of the color 5. Practical use 6. Symbolism of the color in art.
Primary and complementary Yellow is one of the three primary colors. Complementary to yellow is the color blue. When you place blue next to yellow, they create a stronger contrast than when you place any other color next to yellow.
Cold/warm colors Many people see yellow as a happy and sunny color. Together with orange and red colors, this color is considered as a warm color. Green, blue and violet are considered cold colors.
Symbolism of the color A big party of the symbolism of the color has to do with culture and experience. It may be that the feeling about the color comes from someones cultural values. In the west, yellow is not considered a loved color, there is a low percentage of people that have it as their favorite color, only six percent. In Asia, the color yellow is a sacred color. It is also a symbol for Easter.
Sentimental value of the color Just like the symbolism, culture and experience are also important with the sentimental value. Some people may have experienced something that made them have an ‘opinion’ about the color. Alot of people associate it with the sun and happiness.
Practical use of the color Yellow can be a good color to encourage spontanity. Yellow in combination with red is a powerfull colorcombination to stimulate people into impuls purchares. With this color you can really catch someones attention, if you use the right shades. It can be a pretty fierce color, so you have to use this color with moderation.
Symbolism of the color in art During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, yellow slowly became known as the color of Judas Iscariot, a man who betrayed Christ. Thanks to this, yellow was automatically associated with envy and jealousy. In art they started using the color yellow on clothing to mark non-Christian outsiders. In the 18th and 19th century yellow was also used to express and create emotions or moods. The famous Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh loved to use the color yellow, he taught it was a beautiful color and in one of his paintings, ‘‘Sunflowers (1888)’’, the color yellow really stands out. In the 20th century yellow got more popular due to its high visibility. Yellow was also very popular in neon signs, like in Las Vegas. Piet Mondrian was a Dutch painter that had an own and original new style of painting. He only used very simple colors, such as red, blue, white, black and yellow.
Sources: http://interiordec.about.com/od/color/a/Warm-Colors-And-Cool-Colors.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow