red color
Red is the color next to orange at the end of the visible spectrum. Red is the color of blood, and because of this it has historically been associated with sacrifice, danger and courage. Modern surveys in the United States and Europe show red is the color most commonly associated with heat, activity, passion, sexuality, anger, love, and joy. In China and many other Asian cultures, it is the color of happiness. Red was the first color, after black and white, to have a name, and was the first color known to have been used in prehistoric art and decoration. Since the French Revolution, the red flag has been the symbolic color of revolution, and in the later 19th and 20th century, the symbolic color of socialism and communism.
- History -
Inside cave 13B at Pinnacle Point, an archeological site found on the coast of South Africa, paleoanthropologists in 2000 found evidence that, between 170,000 and 40,000 years ago, Late Stone Age people were scraping and grinding ochre, a clay colored red by iron oxide, probably with the intention of using it to color their bodies. Red, black and white were the first colors used by artists in the Upper Paleolithic age, probably because natural pigments such as red ochre and iron oxide were readily available where early people lived. Madder, a plant whose root could be made into a red dye, grew widely in Europe, Africa and Asia. A red dye called Kermes was made beginning in the Neolithic Period by drying and then crushing the bodies of the females of a tiny scale insect in the genus Kermes, primarily Kermes vermilio. The insects live on the sap of certain trees, especially Kermes oak tree near the Mediterranean region. Kermes is also mentioned in the Bible. In the Book of Exodus, God instructs Moses to have the Israelites bring him an offering including cloth "of blue, and purple, and scarlet." In ancient Egypt, red was associated with life, health, and victory. Egyptians would color themselves with red ochre during celebrations. Egyptian women used red ochre as a cosmetic to redden cheeks and lips, and also used henna to color their hair and paint their nails. But, like many colors, it also had a negative association, with heat, destruction and evil.
Inside cave 13B at Pinnacle Point, an archeological site found on the coast of South Africa, paleoanthropologists in 2000 found evidence that, between 170,000 and 40,000 years ago, Late Stone Age people were scraping and grinding ochre, a clay colored red by iron oxide, probably with the intention of using it to color their bodies. Red, black and white were the first colors used by artists in the Upper Paleolithic age, probably because natural pigments such as red ochre and iron oxide were readily available where early people lived. Madder, a plant whose root could be made into a red dye, grew widely in Europe, Africa and Asia. A red dye called Kermes was made beginning in the Neolithic Period by drying and then crushing the bodies of the females of a tiny scale insect in the genus Kermes, primarily Kermes vermilio. The insects live on the sap of certain trees, especially Kermes oak tree near the Mediterranean region. Kermes is also mentioned in the Bible. In the Book of Exodus, God instructs Moses to have the Israelites bring him an offering including cloth "of blue, and purple, and scarlet." In ancient Egypt, red was associated with life, health, and victory. Egyptians would color themselves with red ochre during celebrations. Egyptian women used red ochre as a cosmetic to redden cheeks and lips, and also used henna to color their hair and paint their nails. But, like many colors, it also had a negative association, with heat, destruction and evil.
In Ancient China, artisans were making red and black painted pottery as early as the Yangshao Culture period. (5000-3000 BC). In India, the rubia plant has been to make dye since ancient times. It has been used by Indian monks and hermits for centuries to dye their robes. Red also featured in the burials of royalty in the Maya city-states. In ancient Greece and the Minoan civilization of ancient Crete, red was widely used in murals and in the polychrome decoration of temples and palaces. The Greeks began using red lead as a pigment. In Ancient Rome, Tyrian purple was the color of the Emperor, but red had an important religious symbolism. Romans wore togas with red stripes on holidays, and the bride at a wedding wore a red shawl, called a flammeum. Red was used to color statues and the skin of gladiators. Red was also the color associated with army; Roman soldiers wore red tunics, and officers wore a cloak called a paludamentum which, depending upon the quality of the dye, could be crimson, scarlet or purple. In Roman mythology red is associated with the god of war, Mars. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, the princes of Europe and the Roman Catholic Church adapted red as a color of majesty and authority. Red was the color of the banner of the Byzantine emperors. In Renaissance painting, red was used to draw the attention of the viewer; it was often used as the color of the cloak or costume of Christ, the Virgin Mary, or another central figure. Red has been an important color in Chinese culture, religion, industry, fashion and court ritual since ancient times.
During the French Revolution, Red became a symbol of liberty and personal freedom used by the Jacobins and other more radical parties. Many of them wore a red Phrygian cap, or liberty cap, modeled after the caps worn by freed slaves in Ancient Rome. During the height of the Reign of Terror, Women wearing red caps gathered around the guillotine to celebrate each execution. They were called the "Furies of the guillotine". As the Industrial Revolution spread across Europe, chemists and manufacturers sought new red dyes that could be used for large-scale manufacture of textiles. One popular color imported into Europe from Turkey and India in the 18th and early 19th century was Turkey red, known in France as rouge d'Adrinople. Beginning in the 1740s, this bright red color was used to dye or print cotton textiles in England, the Netherlands and France. Turkey red used madder as the colorant, but the process was longer and more complicated, involving multiple soaking of the fabrics in lye, olive oil, sheep's dung, and other ingredients. The fabric was more expensive but resulted in a fine bright and lasting red, similar to carmine, perfectly suited to cotton. The fabric was widely exported from Europe to Africa, the Middle East and America. In 19th century America, it was widely used in making the traditional patchwork quilt. The 19th century also saw the use of red in art to create specific emotions, not just to imitate nature. In the 20th century, red was the color of Revolution; it was the color of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 and of the Chinese Revolution of 1949, and later of the Cultural Revolution. Red was the color of Communist Parties from Eastern Europe to Cuba to Vietnam.
- Shades and varieties -
Pink, tamarisk, salmon, coral, scarlet, imperial red, spanish red, desire, lust, carmine, ruby, crimson, rusty red, fire engine red, cardinal red, cornell red, fire brick, red wood, maroon, barn red, vermilion, wine red/burgundy etc.
- Pigments -
Hematite, or iron ore, is the source of the red color of red ochre. Red ochre is composed of clay tinted with hematite. Ochre was the first pigment used by man in prehistoric cave paintings. The mineral cinnabar, the ore of mercury, is the source of the color vermilion. In Roman times, most cinnabar came from mines at Almadén in Spain, where the miners were usually prisoners and slaves. Mercury is highly toxic, and working in the mines was often a death sentence for the miners. Vermilion pigment, made from cinnabar. This was the pigment used in the murals of Pompeii and to color Chinese lacquerware beginning in the Song Dynasty. Despite its yellow greenish flower, the roots of the Rubia tinctorum, or madder plant, produced the most common red dye used from ancient times until the 19th century. Red lead, also known as minium, has been used since the time of the ancient Greeks. Chemically it is known as lead tetroxide. The Romans prepared it by the roasting of lead white pigment. It was commonly used in the Middle Ages for the headings and decoration of illuminated manuscripts.
Pink, tamarisk, salmon, coral, scarlet, imperial red, spanish red, desire, lust, carmine, ruby, crimson, rusty red, fire engine red, cardinal red, cornell red, fire brick, red wood, maroon, barn red, vermilion, wine red/burgundy etc.
- Pigments -
Hematite, or iron ore, is the source of the red color of red ochre. Red ochre is composed of clay tinted with hematite. Ochre was the first pigment used by man in prehistoric cave paintings. The mineral cinnabar, the ore of mercury, is the source of the color vermilion. In Roman times, most cinnabar came from mines at Almadén in Spain, where the miners were usually prisoners and slaves. Mercury is highly toxic, and working in the mines was often a death sentence for the miners. Vermilion pigment, made from cinnabar. This was the pigment used in the murals of Pompeii and to color Chinese lacquerware beginning in the Song Dynasty. Despite its yellow greenish flower, the roots of the Rubia tinctorum, or madder plant, produced the most common red dye used from ancient times until the 19th century. Red lead, also known as minium, has been used since the time of the ancient Greeks. Chemically it is known as lead tetroxide. The Romans prepared it by the roasting of lead white pigment. It was commonly used in the Middle Ages for the headings and decoration of illuminated manuscripts.
Dragon's blood is a bright red resin that is obtained from different species of a number of distinct plant genera: Croton, Dracaena, Daemonorops, Calamus rotang and Pterocarpus. The red resin was used in ancient times as a medicine, incense, dye and varnish for making violins in Italy. The tiny female cochineal insect of Spanish Mexico (on the left), was crushed to make the deep crimson color used in Renaissance costumes. Extract of carmine, made by crushing cochineal and other scale insects which feed on the sap of live oak trees. Also called kermes, it was used from the Middle Ages until the 19th century to make crimson dye. Now it is used as a coloring for yoghurt and other food products. The Sappanwood tree, native to India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, and later the related Brazilwood tree (shown here), from the coast of South America, were the source of a popular red pigment and dye called brazilin. The red wood was ground to powder and mixed with an alkaline solution. The brazilwood gave its name to the nation of Brazil. Alizarin was the first synthetic red dye, created by German chemists in 1868. It duplicated the colorant in the madder plant, but was cheaper and longer lasting. After its introduction, the production of natural dyes from the madder plant virtually ceased.
- Associations -
Travel: Red Square in Moscow, Red-light district in Ansterdam, a Shinto torii at Itsukushima in Japan, Red sea, red London bus
Nature: poppy, red rose, ruby gemstone, sunset, coral, autumn leaves, lobster, bullfinch, ladybug
Religion: Cardinal dress, Buddhist monk's dress
Food: red pepper, strawberry, cranberry, raspberry, cherry, red apple, tomatoes, red wine, red caviar
Life: matador, laser, Mars (red planet), fire, blood, Valentine's day, Christmas, red lipstick, Asian wedding dress, Red Cross, Red book, traffic light
- Symbolism -
Courage, sacrifice, love, anger, heat, war, danger, sexuality
Travel: Red Square in Moscow, Red-light district in Ansterdam, a Shinto torii at Itsukushima in Japan, Red sea, red London bus
Nature: poppy, red rose, ruby gemstone, sunset, coral, autumn leaves, lobster, bullfinch, ladybug
Religion: Cardinal dress, Buddhist monk's dress
Food: red pepper, strawberry, cranberry, raspberry, cherry, red apple, tomatoes, red wine, red caviar
Life: matador, laser, Mars (red planet), fire, blood, Valentine's day, Christmas, red lipstick, Asian wedding dress, Red Cross, Red book, traffic light
- Symbolism -
Courage, sacrifice, love, anger, heat, war, danger, sexuality
- Art -
Painting: ''Bathing of a Red Horse'' by the Russian symbolist painter Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin, ''The Dessert – Harmony in Red'' by Henri Matisse
Books: ''Little red riding hood'' by Charles Perrault, ''The red and the black'' by Stendhal
Movie: dark fantasy ''Red riding hood'' by Catherine Hardwicke, ''Three colors: red'' by Krzysztof Kieślowski, ''Red dawn'' by Dan Bradley, ''Red Shoe Diaries'' by Zalman King
Music: ''Lady in red'' by Chris DeBurgh, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Source: Wikipedia and Pinterest
Painting: ''Bathing of a Red Horse'' by the Russian symbolist painter Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin, ''The Dessert – Harmony in Red'' by Henri Matisse
Books: ''Little red riding hood'' by Charles Perrault, ''The red and the black'' by Stendhal
Movie: dark fantasy ''Red riding hood'' by Catherine Hardwicke, ''Three colors: red'' by Krzysztof Kieślowski, ''Red dawn'' by Dan Bradley, ''Red Shoe Diaries'' by Zalman King
Music: ''Lady in red'' by Chris DeBurgh, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Source: Wikipedia and Pinterest