What color is best for the walls of an art gallery? This question is asked a lot and while there may be no “right” answer, many people have their opinions. Speaking about strongly colored walls Jake says, “These colors may make people comfortable, but they skew viewers' perceptions of the paintings. Some shade of gray or white is best: paintings stand out best against a neutral background, and the painting's own colors are true against a neutral background” (Boddy-Evans). While the color of the wall could very well depend on what work is being displayed, the color could just as well affect the viewers’ mood, in return changing their opinion on the piece. A just as opinioned Jonathan Jones, of the The Guardian, believes, “The best wall colour is drab – a dreary colour that the gallery-goer does not even notice. The colours you should remember are those of the paintings” (Jones). While these are both valid opinions, one cannot know until it is experimented. This paper will review the history of color and mood as well as try and answer the question at hand. Does the color of the wall affect viewer’s perception of the work in an art exhibit? Color is all around and plays a huge role in our life. Trucco says it best when she says, “…color is hard at work, often subliminally, massaging your mood, tickling your emotions, teasing your brain” (Trucco 8). The color of and in a room can highly affect the aura of the space. Colors can take us back to the past, re-creating specific moods or events (Trucco 13). In the book, Think Color, Tricia Guild associates soft purples with a relaxed and restful state (Guild 115). In an indicative association study, it was found that Japanese differ in many color connotations than Americans. Americans str... ... middle of paper ... ...nk Color. San Fransico: Chronicle Books, 2003. Print. Hoppen, Stephanie. Perfect Neutrals: Color You Can Live With. New York City: Watson-Guptill, 2006. Print. Hugendubel, Eleonore. "Small Steps to Bigger Changes: MoMAs Shifting Wall Colors." Inside/Out. N.p., 2010. Web. 20 Feb 2012. Jones, Jonathan. "What colour should gallery walls be?." The Guardian. N.p., 2011. Web. 19 Feb 2012. . Kitao, Kenji, and S Kathleen Kitao. "A Study of Color Association Differences Between Americans and Japanese." Human Communications Studies; V13 P59-75 Spr 1986, 13 (Apr 1986) (1986): 59-75. Trucco, Terry. Color details and design. Glen Cove: PBC International , 1998. Print.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” 1892. Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 1998.
I believe the gallery presented the works in the best possible way. They are in the room on the first floor. T...
- - -. "The Yellow Wallpaper." 1892. Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1998. 41-59.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "Why I Wrote 'The Yellow Wallpaper'" Ed. Catherine Lavender; The College of Staten Island of the City University of New York, Fall Semester, Oct. 1997. (25 Jan 1999) http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/history/lavender/whyyw.html
Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." In An Introduction to Literature, Sylvan Barnet, William Burto, and William E. Cain, 420. New York: Person Longman, 2006.
Wilson, Kathleen, ed. "The Yellow Wallpaper." Gale Virtual Reference Library. N.p., 1997. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Wagner-Martin, Linda. "The Yellow Wallpaper." Reference Guide to Short Fiction. Ed. Noelle Watson. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994. 981- 982.
Color can be a semiotic resource. It has many uses in the cultural association of signs. Some features that contribute as a signifier are saturation, purity, modulation, value and hue. Red can signify danger, green can stand for hope. In most countries black is a sign of mourning. However, in some parts of Europe, brides wear black for their wedding. In China and some other Eastern Asian countries, white is considered the color for mourning. While in America and most of Europe, white is a sign of purity and warn by brides. These contrasts of cultural semiotics make color partly unpredictable. In order for the color to function as a sign, there must be a consensus of meaning. In most cases there is not a consensus that is shared by all societies. There are some regularities and this is what makes color function as a semiotic resource. The challenge is understanding the motivations and interests of different groups. Some colors translate well and some do not. Finding these regularities within groups and applying them as semiotic resources is a challenge (Kress, 2002). Some associations to color are universal and these connections could spread as communication becomes more global (Eiseman, 2000).
Hurt, Perry . "Revolution in Paint." North Carolina Museum of Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2013. . NCMA Conservator and Curator of "Revolution in Paint"
They might not be very prominent, but they exist the painting and serve as the base for creation. For starters, the window pane contains lines that highlight its simple design. Simplicity remains as the core of this work. Moreover, sill is roughly represented by a thick brown line underneath the window as a boundary in a quietly brilliant fashion. The work has a wonderful color allocation to express the mood. The color is limited within the muted palette color range. Grey—the intermediate color of black and white, is the dominate color for both exterior view and the interior part, as a matter of fact, the observer notices that nearly all colors are mixed instead of natural this work. The cloudy sky corresponds to the grey color of the wall, yet the brightness is not influenced. However, this consistency has successfully created a cold, grave and silent environment for a crowded place such as New York. The whole environment of this painting seems to be surrounded by the negative and depressive
Golden, Catherine, ed. The Captive Imagination: A Casebook on "The Yellow Wallpaper." New York: Feminist Press, 1992.
Color theory encompasses a variety of definitions, concepts and design applications. Color theory to create a logical structure for the color. However, there are three main categories of color theory, which is logical and useful. They:
Gilbert, Kelly. "Charlotte Perkins Gilman “The Yellow Wallpaper"" Gilman, "Yellow Wallpaper" Florida Gulf Coast University, 27 July 1998. Web. 30 Nov. 2013.
The human brain is attracted to the presence of color and it leaves a satisfying feeling when it is perceived.(The Psychology of Color—How Color Affects Human Behavior) This can be applied to an everyday society by helping to improve behavior through the spread of colorful graffiti. Color not only attracts the attention of the brain, but it also leaves a lasting impact because of its uniqueness and difference between the norm.(The Psychology of Color—How Color Affects Human Behavior)
—. Southwest Interior Design Style for Your Living Space. 2007-2014. Online. 1 Jan. 2014. .