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If such simple ideas work for all of a given culture or market what could it
mean to the graphic design of your website, brochure, or product if you know
some of this information. First let’s start with the basics. The colour wheel. We’ve all seen it. The
colour wheel shows the basic colours, each wheel is different in how many shades
of each colour is shown, but they are essentially the same.
Colour harmony, colours that go together well. These will be colours that are
next door to each other on the colour wheel. Such as blue and green. In
reference to clothes these colours match each other. Instinctively most of us
know which colours go together when we dress ourselves every morning.
Colour complements, colours that set each other off, they complement each
other. These are colours that are opposite on the colour wheel. Such as blue and
orange.
Colour depth, colours can recede or jump forward. Remember that some colours
seem to fall back such as blue, black, dark green, and brown. Other colours will
seem to step forward such as white, yellow, red, and orange. This is why if you
have a bright orange background it may seem to fight with any text or images
that you place on it. The orange will always seem to move forward.
Now you have the basics so let’s go further. Just because to colours go
together or complement each other doesn’t mean that you necessarily want to use
them on your project. I opened this article with the meaning of colours now here
is an example, keep in mind this is one example from western culture.
Colour Survey: what respondents said colours mean to them.
Happy = Yellow
Pure = White
Good Luck = green
Good tasting = Red (tomato)
Dignity = Purple
Technology = Silver
Sexiness = Red (tomato)
Mourning = Black
Expensive = Gold
Inexpensive = Brown
Powerful = Red (tomato)
Dependable = Blue
High Quality = Black
Nausea = Green
Deity = White
Bad Luck = Black
Favourite colour = Blue
Least favourite colour = Orange
So in designing your project it’s important to know what colours mean. You
can now see why a black back ground with green type would be bad, beyond being
nearly impossible to read, if your target market thinks that black represents
mourning and green makes them sick. There are exceptions to every rule of
course.
So you may want to include some research in what colours mean to your target
market. Colours that would get the attention of a teen would probably annoy an
older person and the colours that appeal to the older person wouldn’t get a
second look from a young person.
Colour may be one of the most overlooked aspects of design.
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