Tuesday, October 27, 2009

A Color Heaven

Three weeks ago, I presented a seminar about color in Bermuda. I’ll admit that I’m quite spoiled by living in the color paradise of Hawaii. I’m not easily swept off my feet, but the colors of Bermuda - everything from sand to architecture - were stunning and classy, at that.

Real men wear pink - pink shirts and even pink shorts. In fact the logo on the airport terminal is a pair of pink Bermuda shorts. Aside from wearing apparel, many of the beaches are pink and so are the homes and many of the commercial buildings.

Buildings are also painted shades of blue that melt into the sky; others are lemony tints or startling salmon oranges. In fact, the buildings are every color of the spectrum - and every shade of pink.

I wonder why we tend to be so color-phobic about architecture in the U.S.? Even in tropical places like Hawaii, it’s mostly a sea of grey or beige pablum. Traditionally (and historically), the closer you get to the sea, the more colorful the buildings. It’s time for a change!

3 comments:

WTF Store said...

I'd love to see some cities add a splash or two of color! I always think that the one pink house on the block always looks the happiest.

Unknown said...

I agree! the Painted Ladies in SF are a great example of breaking out of the box, colorwise. It would be fantastic if other cities followed!

Color Matters said...

FYI... a typical and recent example on chromophobia in the US: "A pink house in Louisiana has some people seeing red" - http://alturl.com/vr9t