Color & Design

"...MERE COLOR, UNSPOILED BY MEANING, AND UNALLIED WITH DEFINITE FORM, CAN SPEAK TO THE SOUL IN A THOUSAND DIFFERENT WAYS." - OSCAR WILDE

Color Personalities
Which colors will soothe you? Which colors will engergize you? Our Color Personalities will tell you and help you choose the color that helps you make just the right impact in your space.

What is your favorite color?

Most of us, even those with limited color perception, have a favorite color. We know that there are certain colors that "feel" sad, or peaceful, or invigorating. So it is not surprising that the belief in the direct connection between specific colors and specific human emotional responses has gained a priori acceptance within the design community. We seek to create spaces that resonate meaningfully. We design intuitively and on the authority of our conviction that the use of color in the creation of impactful places can impart meaning on the people who inhabit them.

Yet, some of our accepted beliefs about the connection of color and emotion are being challenged by researchers attempting to draw causal connections between them. Most of the evidence for causality in the literature, it turns out, is anecdotal, contradictory, or simply misunderstood (Tofle, Schwarz, et al. 2003). Cultural identity and our day-to-day experiences in the world are significant controlling factors in how we perceive and react to colors.

Does this mean that our preconceived notions about color and emotional response are invalid? Not exactly. Our notions are probably not contextual enough. Multiculturalism is blossoming in our societies and our understanding and appreciation of color is constantly evolving. As designers in an increasingly connected world we are challenged to seek a more robust understanding of what drives human emotion as we think about the colors we use in the design of the built environment.

Antron® Carpet Fiber Color Point of View: Issue V offers color perspectives coupled with theoretical positions that can, when considered, offer a plausible, if not measurable, impact on human beings in the built environment. The following market-focused color combinations are meant to inspire you to seek a broader understanding of the interaction of context and color perception as a matter of process.

So what is your favorite color? The answer, as Oscar Wilde surely understood, depends.

Tofle, R.B., B. Schwarz, S-Y Yoon, and A. Max-Royale. "Color in Healthcare Environments." The Coalition for Health Environments Research (CHER), 2003