In last week's class, Lidia eloquently refuted the socially-constructed view of the white wedding gown as a symbol of virginity. She told us that the white color actually arose amidst the class consciousness of European society and the white dress symbolized that one had the means to afford a dress that could be worn only once; otherwise, wedding gowns were often of darker hues, blues or browns, that wouldn't show dirt or stains, and would, most likely, be worn again.
THEIR HOME
Consider home decor, as Kress and van Leeuwen do in Chapter 7. While they discuss how the rich color palettes and saturation impart the personality of the residents, one might argue that these colors make a house quite livable. By contrast, the white carpet, glass tabletops, white-washed walls and eggshell, ecru, beige, and ivory fabrics clearly point to a house where the very wealthy reside in leisurely repose -- no "living" being done in this space!
MY HOME
My career in communication and brand management in the not-for-profit sector has made me keenly aware of the perceived "value" of color. Until very recently, printing in color was expensive. And printing a four-color document on coated paper stock was considered taboo in non-profit organizations, especially in fund development materials. Color demonstrated a disregard for budget concerns, and sent an impression that this organization probably really didn't need the funds they were seeking. Pretty much a double-edged sword one had to wield when trying to create visually attractive and appealing documents in black and white, or in black plus one color. A strategy was to use saturation/hue as a tool. By choosing a dark color instead of black, you could screen colors to give the appearance of a multi-colored document, although monochromatic.
Colors also have monetary value. I love the horrible scene from the movie Frida, the trolley accident, where the gold dust being carried by a passenger/painter coats the tragic aftermath of broken bodies and blood. It reminds me of how an artist's choice of color, especially in the past, depended on the availability and affordability of the natural dyes and minerals used to create the medium. I once commissioned a stained glass artist to create a window in my gazebo, matching it to the fabric of my dining chairs. We shopped for glass together, and I wanted a deep rich red. Burgundy, she said, is very expensive as it is made with gold. It sure was! The pieces were very sparingly incorporated into the design and the remaining shards are stored safely underneath my bed for a later project.
Finally, I am thinking about the rich colors of the Post Impressionists. Never a fan of the pastels and muted tones of Impressionistic painters, I was drawn to the rich palettes of Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gauguin. However, at the Art Institute of Chicago, in an exhibit featuring the work of these two artists side by side, it was apparent that Gauguin's Tahitian color palettes could not compete with Van Gogh's French countryside -- not because of the color itself, but by the sheer volume of paint laid onto the canvas. Next to Vincent, Gauguin's work looked flat, something the viewer doesn't see in prints or online images. Nonetheless, I'm sure Gauguin had more money with which to buy paint than Van Gogh!
No comments:
Post a Comment