Colors in Graphic Design

Introduction

Graphic design is the art or process of combining pictures and composed texts to form visual representations of messages. Colors in graphic design are used to represent different feelings. For example happiness, passion, calmness, and sadness among others.

Vikova, Vik, & Minava (2015), state that color is very important for graphic designers because it can remarkably affect the relationship of artwork. Using the correct color helps in giving the correct directions. For example, the directions for hot or cold water in a water dispenser are shown by colors. Different people have different perceptions regarding color based on personal preferences and cultures. Graphic designers use color according to their feelings or emotions and therefore there is no standard rule for the correct color use. Color is capable of affecting someone’s mood and even impact them psychologically. Color changes people’s perception of the environment, for example, décors can change the look and the feeling of a place. The stop symbol used in the road signs puts more emphasis when the color red is added, increasing attention. Color choices in graphic design influence the choices to be made for lighting and the materials to be used. For example blue and red can be active and passive, meaning that red will be active since it draws attention and blue will be passive since it is less noticeable.

According to Vikova, Vik, & Minava (2015), graphic designers use pictograms to enable the exchange of information between people with different cultures and languages. A pictogram is designed to use shapes but when the color is added to the shapes it gives the shape a more elaborate meaning. This makes the user to easily understand the pictogram. Different cultures associate themselves using different colors, for example in the flags different colors are used to represent different countries and each of the colors has different meanings. For example, white would mean peace and green would be the environment. In the Czech Republic, people from the northern region use red color to represent the words stop, danger and hot. Meaning that color red represents a feeling of fear. A man is represented by a bright shade of blue. A bright shade of green represents the word go. A pale shade of blue represents the word cool and white represents clean. These colors are used for communication and being very precise they give the necessary attention.

Conclusion

Color has a powerful effect on the life of people. It affects how people perceive things, changes the mood of a person, and also makes symbols more meaningful. It creates personal feelings for individuals and it is the reason why most have their favorites. Graphic designers use color to enhance and add more meaning to their work.

References