Colours Reflect Cultures

 Colours can be subjective. This subjectivity in colour perception can be due to myriad factors such as the light conditions, the adjacent colours in the environment, and even the emotional state of the viewer. As it happens, colours are subject to cultural and social influences as well. The same colour can have different effects on people, especially if it is tied to a sentimental, emotional or social inference. Unsurprisingly, throughout the history of mankind, colours have shaped how humans perceive the world around them. 

For artists, colours can be a source of passion, creativity and even livelihood. They know and understand the colour theory quite deeply as they implement it in their works. As they use hues, tones and a cascade of shades in their art, they bring out different reactions in the viewers. No viewer sees the same art in the same way. Certainly, at first glance, the viewers may agree on the composition and the presentation of the artwork but on a deeper level, the response to the art greatly varies. And at the core of the visual arts is the application of colour. 

People have always incorporated colours in their lives. Many have a favourite colour on which they base their dresses, home décor and even their choice of coffee mugs. Children are especially prone to favouring one colour over another. Adults take it a step further and paint their homes a specific hue. Most people associate their favourite colour with a sentimental feeling. Perhaps their childhood bedroom was a certain colour, or their cherished clothes had a certain hint of hue. Either way, colours are a part of the human world. It is also interesting how nature is rich in different shades and hues. 

The green of the Amazon is different from the green of a city’s sidewalk trees. The flowers pop up more vividly in a garden than they would in a vase. The blue of the sky, the green of the hills, the turquoise-green of the lake and the vivid hues of flowers and birds are all nature’s gifts to the world. But sadly, most often we take it for granted.

Nature is healing because it isn’t an artifice but an original life source. It breathes life into the planet, which mankind seems bound to destroy. As wildfires rage over many regions of the world, the green trees, the lush forests and the wildlife are at a threat, one created at the hands of human beings due to escalating climate change. Green is a colour that seems to be at peril as deforestation continues and wildfires rage, leaving smoke and ash at its wake. To save the planet, humans might have to mend their ways collectively, which, however, appears to be quite tenuous.

It is a fact that colours provide joy to the viewers. Given the significance that colours have in the human world, it isn’t surprising that among Hindus, there is a festival solely about colours. It is Holi (Faghu Purnima), which fell on the 2nd of March this year. However, even non-Hindus celebrate it as a cultural festival. Such a yearly celebration of Holi continues to remind us of the beauty of colours and the importance of safeguarding them in a natural state.