What exactly is colour psychology?
It is important to understand that there is a great difference between colour psychology and colour symbolism. Historically, what is often described as colour psychology is actually colour symbolism – the conscious associations that we are conditioned to make. Cultural responses to colour derive from a variety of causes: for example, green is the sacred colour throughout Islam, being the colour of the Prophet’s robe; in Ireland it is considered lucky, perhaps because when the world around us contains plenty of green this indicates the presence of water and therefore little danger of famine; in England it is considered unlucky, possibly because of its association with decay and disease. There are many examples of colour symbolism: purple is associated with royalty for the simple reason that, until relatively recently in our history, it was an extremely expensive dye and only royalty could afford it; red is the colour of blood and has associations with war. These associations often coinc
