Life in Color
Thoughts on color, or the lack thereof, and other things from February
February in Minnesota is gray and dreary. As a result, I’ve been thinking about color, or rather, the absence of it. Apartments, offices, classrooms, cars, clothes—everything is gray. How does the saying go? Is it life imitates art? Or art imitates life? In my opinion, it’s both—a symbiotic relationship.
Because, recently, my YouTube algorithm did its job and served me a video that baffled me. If you don’t have the time to watch, it basically examines how our film and television today seem to all be shot on a grayscale. The YouTube creator holds up iconic films of the late 90s and early 2000s (Parent Trap, Superbad) as vivid examples, rich in color and contrast and compares them against today’s films, the most recent example being Wicked.
I saw Wicked in theater, and loved it, but once I noticed the color in comparison to how films used to look it was like….oh my god…why did they shoot it that way? Everything looks muted. And dull. Like a cloud of smoke is cast over the lens.
Since this awakening, when faced with the option, I’ve been trying to make a conscious effort to choose color over gray. I can’t say it’s been going well—yesterday I was about to pull the trigger on a gray hoodie at a store even though there was a gorgeous cobalt blue option. Consequentially, I ended up leaving empty-handed and frazzled because I was overwhelmed by the pull I felt toward the gray option. Admittedly I find it easier to douse my living space in color than it is my style. Why is this? Why are we drawn to gray, muted tones?
The absence of color—white, gray, black—have become the answer to every question, whether its our cars, our homes, our clothes, our shoes. And I like each of them in respectable amounts, but the science tells us that too much has measurable effects on our mental health. “White, while often symbolizing purity, can overstimulate our senses in large amounts, causing discomfort, problems with focus and conversations, and even headaches for some. So why, is this the color we use in hospitals, psychiatric institutions, and schools. Gray is associated with neutrality. Can lead to emotional flatness or even depression over time as our perception of color becomes muted. And black, though seen as elegant or powerful, can evoke feelings of heaviness, isolation, or anxiety when overused,” said Dagny Thurmann-Moe, a renowned Norwegian color expert and designer (her TedTalk gave me the inspiration for today’s newsletter).
Thurmann-Moe reminds us we are mammals, after all—we are connected to the natural world. Greens of plants, blues of skies and waters, pinks, purples, oranges, and reds of sunsets and flowers—all intrinsically energize and motivate us. It’s no wonder so many of us feel tired, demotivated, and apathetic—everything surrounding us is gray, white, and black.
As warmer months arrive, my goal is to keep color in mind—and try to bring more of it into my living space, my clothes, and even my food. Don’t say anything if you catch me in a gray sweatsuit, though. I am only a mere mortal.
Wearable color
Now, it’s one thing to scour Pinterest, it’s another to ever actually replicate these—but now on the days I reach for a routine gray turtleneck I have something to pull me out of the depths of my gray pile of sweaters. To remind me of the vision. To say, “Look at the pop! of! color! A bit of whimsy. Some razzle dazzle.” I want that and need that in my life! If I see someone wearing color like this out and about — it makes me smile.
Listenable/watchable color
Rearrange My World - Rex Orange County & Daniel Caesar; Siento que merezco más (a colors show) - Latin Mafia; Die Trying - Drake & Partynextdoor & Yebba; Everything is Peaceful Love - Bon Iver
Not a song, but the Tettragammaton podcast, specifically the Esther Perel episode was mind-blowing. Additionally, Rick Rubin has really eclectic guests, from neuroscientists, therapists, musicians, artists— I always learn something new.
Companion. Spooky, funny, fun, refreshing. Well worth the theater-going experience.
Perhaps its corny to love an ad, but I loved this. Speaking of color, I saw Tyler the Creator early February and it was incredible. Lots of greens, yellows, pinks.
I will be sat in the theater for this movie come April.
I truly did not read anything in February that I feel good recommending here. A few memoirs (I truly do not know how I end up reading so many of these), Trust by Hernan Diaz, the Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis (don’t read this right now if you value your mental health).
That’s all I have today. As always, thanks for reading. Till next time.