Lustful, Passionate and Scorching
Believe it or not, colour has a huge impact on our lives.
It can greatly affect our emotions and gives us a chance to express ourselves whether we’re aware of it or not. So, my aim in these ‘colour’ related articles is to open your eyes to this wonderful world of hue awareness.
Playing with colour in art, decor, fashion, etc. can be fun, daring, bold and stimulating. Let’s get cracking then!
The Power of Red
Today I’m going to explore the colour red. Red is normally associated with:
- warmth,
- passion,
- love (as in the red rose),
- burning fiery heat,
- blood,
- lust,
- prosperity and joy (in Chinese tradition),
- conflict or war (as in Mars — the red planet and Roman God or War)
Men and Red
Will it surprise you to know that, statistically, red is in the top 3 of men’s favourite colours?
What man doesn’t want that red Ferrari? Or how about that old Chris de Burg song ‘Lady in Red’ — a man’s fantasy. The ‘red dress’ is renowned for its sex appeal, as so aptly put in The Matrix movie. Remember when the geeky programmer ‘Mouse’ wrote a distracting code for a bountiful blonde with bursting cherry red voluptuous lips and a skin-tight red number to distract Neo in training?
Red can also denote danger as in getting burnt or having blood shed, so it’s a hugely provocative colour — extreme pleasure or certain death, what a dichotomy!
Women and Red
Yeah, okay, you probably know whats coming. Menstruation. When I think of red I definitely think of love, lust and passion but I also think of blood. It is the essence of life and vitality.
Red is the colour representation for our root chakra (at the base of the spine — what I like to call the ‘poop’ chakra and, let’s face it, who doesn’t see red when they haven’t had a decent shit?).
Red symbolizes life at the level of practicality, survival as well as heat and circulation in the body.
How Do I Put Red to Good Use?
Practically, you can use red when you want to:
- boost your vitality and energy levels,
- protect yourself from anxiety, fear or nerves (excellent for job interviews),
- set a sexy, passionate mood (ooh-la-la!),
- feel sexy, bold or confident.
It’s up to you how you want to express yourself i.e. through wearing it (clothes or jewellery/accessories), decorating your home/office through art/paint/upholstery, using candles or crystals, using accents of it with make-up — use your imagination and flare!
Go on you Red Hot Chili Pepper! Fire up your life with a bit of red…
Don’t forget that all the pictures in this blog can be bought as prints, canvas prints, framed prints, greeting cards and so forth (just click on the relevant picture to take you to the store) — there’s something to suit every pocket.
For more red art, see my Pinterest board devoted to all things red HERE
Other articles you may enjoy:
Can Using Yellow in Art Enhance Your Mood?
How to Get Your Creative Space Working For You
3 Sound Reasons to Dispel the Myth that You Can’t Afford Art
Books you may enjoy by this author:
Cherie Roe Dirksen 