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Caroline Feldman's picture

The psychology of color

Colors can have a psychological and physiological effect on all of us. As an artist, a user and manipulator of color, you need to be aware of some of these effects. I was reading an article online about color psychology and physiology and that it is a combination of personal observation and the ideas and observations of two major authors and their books on the subject: The Power of Color by Dr. Morton Walker and Color Psychology and Color Therapy by Faber Birren. These two authors, and the experts they cite, delve much more finely and deeply into this vast area of color theory. I have taken the highlights from these sources just to give you an idea of what it is you are dealing with when considering color.
From this research, it seems that the jury is still out on the definitive psychological effects of color on living things. Yet, certain professionals, such as chromotherapists (therapists who use color for medical purposes), believe color affects us so powerfully that subjecting patients to different colored lights has curative qualities for their various ailments. This is not a new age idea. In his book The Power of Color, Dr. Morton Walker states that
"...The ancient Egyptians, for example, built temples for the sick that were bedecked with color and light. They set aside special colored rooms as sanctuaries where the sick could be bathed in lights of deep blue, violet, and pink. Native American Indians also used color for healing ... to fight chronic illness and to heal injuries sustained during buffalo hunts and intertribal warfare."

This is so interesting. How can different colors affect the brain in different ways?

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