How colors can tell a story
Colors telling a story? What story does a rainbow tell?
Look at the picture above closely, like really close, can you see the full Harry Potter movie here? No? just colors? Well it's actually all frames of all the Harry Potter films. If you’re an avid fan like me you can probably tell which movie is which! The reason you’re able to do so is not because you’re a nerd or a die hard Harry Potter fan but rather because these colors tell a story. For example, when Voldemort is “dead” or “weak” in the beginning of the saga the colors are warm, livid and hopeful and as he is revived and gains strength the colors become cooler and darker to signify that all hope is lost but in the middle you can see some bright warm bits which shows that hope is still there and the fight can still be won. This is just the tip of the iceberg of how colors can tell stories.
But how? You may ask. How does #0000FF tell a story? Well this blue color is one example of many shades of blue. This color may evoke confidence and trust in branding but in storytelling, if used correctly may even make a person understand the sadness in the scene or the artwork. Combining colors such as #FF0000 a shade of red which evokes anger, passion or rage with blue can add to the list of emotions one may feel and really immerse the viewer of the artwork or movie much more in the scene.
All in all emotions one after the other or together even, weave to form the tapestry that tells a story in art. It's not just limited to movies this form of storytelling extends to video games and artwork as well. Let's take Red Dead Redemption 2 as an example. The game is great at visual storytelling using colors, for example when Arthur is in his reflective phases (the intermission stages between chapters) depending on his actions whether cruel and evil or kind and honest the colors of the said phases will vary. Orange and warm to showcase that deep within his sigma male exterior and demeanor he is still a kind-hearted man or Grey and blue to show that he is an evil man who did wrong by a lot of people.
Lastly, another great example of how color is also used to add to the visual storytelling can be seen by a painting by Vincent van Gogh called at Eternity's Gate. Let’s ignore the clear obvious story for now and focus on the colors that Vincent Van Gogh used. He dressed the old man in blue which again is an example of sadness and it's clear that this man is sad. Moreover, the overall colors lack vibrance and depth which is reflective of the old man in the picture as he is nearing his life’s end and usually towards the end of a person’s life he or she loses much interest in the world and its happenings.
Okay so this was a big explanation and a huge list of examples. However, the main idea here is that we really need to think and think hard about the colors we use in branding, designing or making works of art. Colors can tell beautiful stories of their own in a deeper evocative way. Most of us who watch movies, look at art rarely think twice about the colors that have been used but once you see it you really cannot unsee it. If color is used correctly, literally anywhere, even in your logo, it will be extremely memorable as it will make the person feel something and feelings are much stronger than just seeing.
Written by Muqaddim Jawad Noor
References
At Eternity’s Gate, 1890 by Vincent Van Gogh. (n.d.). https://www.vincentvangogh.org/at-eternitys-gate.jsp
All the Harry Potter frames from all the movies condensed into one picture. (xpost from /r/movies). (2013, February 24). Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/194gmp/all_the_harry_potter_frames_from_all_the_movies/
Color Psychology 101: A Beginner’s Guide to the Meaning of Colors. (2023, January 5). Color Psychology. https://www.colorpsychology.org/
Olivaris, V. O. (2021, August 27). Red Dead Redemption 2: What Do Arthur’s Dreams About the Wolf and Deer Mean? CBR.com. https://www.cbr.com/what-do-wolf-dreams-mean-rdr2/
