Colour: Why is colour choice so important in design?
This week we are going to focus on colour.
Colour is one of the most powerful tools that a designer can draw upon and understanding how colour affects us is key in communicating messages effectively.
Colour Theory
You may muse that over time, we have conditioned ourselves to what these colours mean, but to the contrary, the colours, symbols and even the fonts were meticulously considered to convey the information that was adorned upon them. Indeed the major factor in the production of road signage was the use of colour to indicate directional, regulatory or warning signals.
The basis for these considerations into how to colour code our signage system dates as far back as 1810, when a German Poet and Government Minister, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, documented the purely psychological effects of colour in his book, The Theory of Colours. This was followed some 20 years later by The Law of Simultaneous Colour Contrast, written by French Industrial Chemist, Michel Eugène Chevreul. Both books would form the basis of what is considered to be modern colour theory.
As the theory of colour further developed, the meanings and associations of which we relate to today were defined and articulated. For the most part, colour symbolism and psychology does vary with time, place and culture. For instance, in Western Culture, red can symbolise danger or a warning, yet we also associate it with love and Valentines day is awash with red, entirely opposite ends of the scale to each other, whereas in the East, red ranges from the colour of luck, purity, integrity, to mourning and indeed communism, again, at completely different ends of the scale entirely. It is, however, these observations of colour and its effect on our psyche, which we must consider carefully when choosing colours to represent ourselves as businesses and organisations.
Whether you realise it or not, colour has a big part to play in our day-to-day lives and this is an important factor to consider when taking on any branding project.
More often than not, getting it right should be a matter of common sense for the most part. For instance, if you look at the way restaurants use colour, you will notice that the colours used will generally speak to the audience that frequent such establishments. If you look a restaurant aimed at the children’s or family market, these are usually use bright and non-confrontational colours to express their brand, as they want to a) associate themselves with their market/audience and b) create an environment in which appeals to children. Similarly, if you go to the other end of this sector and look at À la carte restaurants, they tend to use a much more subdued palette, the bright reds of the children’s restaurants become regal looking burgundies, and vibrant yellows become an understated ecru, and so on.
So, just how do you determine which colour and tone is right for your brand?
A good place to start is taking a look at your competitors or other businesses within your industry, gather enough material together and you should see a common theme in the colours and tones of these brands. This information should give you a good point of reference to start from, but from there, you may want to dig a little deeper and research colour theory, as there are few other factors to take into consideration, like the use of complementary and contrasting colours, both of which can add an extra dimension to any brand.
