AESTHETICS: Appearance and Colour

1. AESTHETICS:Appearance and Colour Chun Tung Sam Inglis

2. Appearance • Appearance is how a product visually looks before any other senses or logic are used to further judge the object.

3. What does this mean? • In a design context, especially for product packaging and general for all products, appearance is perhaps the main aspect of aesthetics. • Appearance is the first thing that people notice about a product, since sight is the strongest sense. Being able to do this well can make or break a product.

4. Example in context • ANYTHING that is not designed for the purely functional, i.e. an engine. • This means cars, clothes, packaging, toys, etc. all benefit from the aesthetic property of appearance

5. Why is appearance important? • Appearance is important because it covers the superficial and materialistic side of the product. Many times, a customer will choose a product based on it’s appearance, because sight is more intense than the other senses. • What this means is that any product that has a good appearance will do better in sales, regardless of actual quality. That is not to say that quality is not important, but the truth is that most people DO judge books by their covers.

6. Conclusion • Appearance serves as the first bond/attraction between customer and product, as it is always the first thing that a person notices. • Appearance is therefore a very important aspect of aesthetics as it is a factor that significantly affects design choice and sales.

7. Black: • authority and power • In Fashion: • people appear thinner • stylish and timeless • implies submission - priests wear black to signify submission to God • possible that a woman wearing black implies submission to men • overpowering, or make the wearer seem evil. Villains, such as Dracula, often wear black • Yellow: • cheerful • sunny yellow is an attention getter • considered an optimistic color • people lose their tempers more often in yellow rooms and babies will cry more • most difficult color for the eye to take in, so it can be overpowering if overused • enhances concentration, hence its use for legal pads • speeds metabolism • Red: • most emotionally intense color • red stimulates a faster heartbeat and breathing • color of love • red clothing gets noticed and makes the wearer appear heavier • an extreme color, red clothing might not help people in negotiations or confrontations. • red cars are popular targets for thieves. • in decorating, red is usually used as an accent. Decorators say that red furniture should be perfect since it will attract attention • Pink: • most romantic color, pink, is more tranquilizing • sports teams sometimes paint the locker rooms used by opposing teams bright pink so their opponents will lose energy. • White: • innocence and purity. • reflects light and is considered a summer color • popular in decorating and in fashion because it is light, neutral, and goes with everything • white shows dirt and is therefore more difficult to keep clean than other colors. • doctors and nurses wear white to imply sterility. • Purple: • color of royalty • connotes luxury, wealth, and sophistication • feminine and romantic • because it is rare in nature, purple can appear artificial • Brown: • solid, reliable brown is the color of earth and is abundant in nature • light brown implies genuineness • dark brown is similar to wood or leather sad and wistful • men are more apt to say brown is one of their favorite colors • Green: • currently the most popular decorating color • symbolizes nature • easiest color on the eye and can improve vision • calming, refreshing colour • people waiting to appear on TV sit in "green rooms" to relax • hospitals often use green because it relaxes patients • brides in the Middle Ages wore green to symbolize fertility dark green is masculine, conservative, and implies wealth seamstresses often refuse to use green thread on the eve of a fashion show for fear it will bring bad luck • Blue: • color of the sky and the ocean • one of the most popular colors • opposite reaction as red • causes the body to produce calming chemicals, so it is often used in bedrooms • can also be cold and depressing • fashion consultants recommend wearing blue to job interviews because it symbolizes loyalty • people are more productive in blue rooms • studies show weightlifters are able to handle heavier weights in blue gyms. Colours

8. Physcological and Cultural Associations • 1. Cultural associations: the colour of money, traditions, geography, celebrations, etc. • E.g. green is associated with heaven by the Muslims and with luck in Ireland and the USA2. Political and historical links: the colour of flags, political parties, royalty, etc. • E.g. white is a color of England’s flag – symbolises purity; red is the colour of the Communist Party in China and in the U.S., the Green Party • 3. Religious and mythical associations: the colours associated with spiritual or magical beliefs • E.g. the green man was the God of fertility in Celtic myths, blue associated with Pisces and believed to keep away bad spirits • 4. Linguistic associations: color terminology within individual languages • E.g. South Pacific languages refer to shades of green by comparison to plants in various stages of growth. In Scottish Gaelic the word for blue ('gorm') is also the word used for the color of grass. • 5. Contemporary usage and fads: current color applications to objects, sports, and associations generated by modern conventions and trends. • E.g. red is used world wide for traffic lights signifying “stop." In Scandinavia, green has been a popular color for many decades, silver was the most popular car colour in 2006. Black is popular in fashion – makes people look thinner.

9. The End