Color in Design Lecture Note

Colors are something that designers work with every day, and the importance of colors in a graphic design cannot be overstressed. The colors chosen for a design can have cultural significance and can affect the mood of the viewers, so it is imperative that the colors chosen fit within a brand’s messaging.

Studies have shown that while a black and white image can hold someone’s attention for less than two-thirds of a second, an image with color can hold attention for more than two seconds.

Similar to music and art, color can create powerful emotions and people, and are intrinsically important to daily life – helping us to understand our environment. From the red color of stop signs to the vivid hues of poisonous animals, color plays an important role in the way we perceive our surroundings, and as such, our subconscious minds can be greatly influenced by the colors around us. Studies have shown that most people make a subconscious judgment about a brand or product within the first 90 seconds and that 90% of this judgment is based solely on color. This ties into the fact that 92,6% of people who make purchases say that the visual appearance of the product is the number one deciding factor in which product they buy.

Designers must be well aware of the science of colors in design as well as the science behind colors in marketing to create meaningful designs.