Living Dreams: My Color Ballet

Visitation, Mark Morris

The other night some friends came over for dinner and the conversation turned to creative projects that we had conceived but never realized.  One of my guests knew about my color ballet and encouraged me to share my vision. 

Mark Morris

Years ago someone gave me a book about Mark Morris.  I had his seen his dance troupe perform at UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall several times.  Reading about the young choreographer with the piercing eyes, wild hair and mildly outrageous behaviors intrigued me.  Weirdly enough I was walking down the street in San Francisco a few days later and ran into him.  I told him that I loved his work and found his creativity inspiring.  He was warm, engaging, and perfectly open to talking with a complete stranger.  A seed was planted…

A very generous friend took me to the San Francisco Ballet for six years.  During this time, Michael Smuin was the Artistic Director.  We saw revivals, newly commissioned pieces and the premiere of The Beatles ballet.  The response to the Beatles premiere split the audience demographic down the middle.  While some attendees walked out, others gave the performance a standing ovation with cheers.

Beatles, Michael Smuin

Critics of the Smuin era said the dancers were sloppy but advocates felt the boundaries of conventional ballet programming were expanded.  Patrons were exposed to the classics, the forgotten and the new.  Francis Ford Coppola was brought in to do sets.  The art component of ballet seemed to open for me.  I thought why couldn’t a color specialist dive into this world where musicians, and filmmakers, were adding excitement to the form.

New York City Ballet Set, Santiago Calatrava + Peter Martins

A Color Ballet based on the major hues would be a complete sensory delight. Music would be incorporated to elicit the mood of color.  Sets would communicate the psychological associations humans have subconsciously to specific colors.  The dancers’ costumes would be one uniform color using shape, texture, and form to convey meaning. 

Issey Miyake Design

The red movement would pulse with dramatic music like a beating heart and the red costumes would be provocative as a bullfighter’s form fitting couture.  The blue movement music and choreography would be hypnotic like ocean waves and the blue costumes would billow like clouds floating effortlessly in the sky. 

Pacific, Mark Morris

The visual receptors and the biological response to color stimulus paired with the mood triggering power of music, interpretive movements and gestures of the human body would reinforce the ballet concept. Imagine how a stage filled with movements in red would move an audience in a different way than a stage filled with blue movements. 

Italian Concerto, Mark Morris

Although a Color Ballet would not require a traditional story line the performance would still have the power to convey an entire range of emotions to the audience.  One could compare this to the genre of expressionist painting verses the pictorial old masters.  In this case, color meets dance on a primal level.

Mark Morris Dance Troupe

It was now time to engage Mark Morris.  I sent several color themed gifts to his studio in Brooklyn.  The staff referred to me as “The Color Ballet Lady.”  One color gift involved a Todd Oldham French grosgrain ribbon handbag from the South Beach Florida boutique, filled with green paint chips, green gloves, green feathers, and green rubber frogs. Another gift included a royal blue push broom with a matching over sized dustpan.  Each color quest was wrapped in the chosen gift color. He must have thought I was crazy.  

Color Gifts for Mark

Eventually, Mark agreed to meet me for a drink to discuss my idea. I left San Francisco and during my journey South, I visualized my color filled creation and saw myself taking bows at the triumphant finale with Mark.

Mark Morris + Jill Pilaroscia

We met in San Luis Obispo where his troop was performing at the time.  In my bag, I brought velvet squares in the major hues for cocktail napkins, and a careful selection of music.  The pale pink interior of the hotel bar spoke only of the 1980’s.  We sat at a high round top table on stools that immediately dwarfed my stature. I was carefully attired in black to not draw attention to myself.  I ceremoniously placed homemade polychromatic velvet squares on the table top as textural cocktail napkins.  I was setting the stage for the brilliant color ballet.

He was gracious and complimented my originality. He listened patiently as I discussed my big idea – each color would have music, costumes and sets that reinforced the inherent associative characteristics of the color.  We would contrast the colors in a way to create surprise and tension.  I referenced the work of Carl Jung on the collective unconscious, the origins of associative color and human evolution, and the metaphysical relationship of sound, specific notes and color. I also contrasted the concept to that of Balanchine’s Jewels ballet, spoke of Scriabin’s Color Music concerts in the late 1800’s - all this time stressing the originality of the Color Ballet idea. 

Jewels, George Balanchine

Mark responded with a clear statement, "I work from music not from ideas!" Having seen an abundance of Mark’s works I should have recognized his style. He finished his drink and invited me to his performance that evening. With a heavy heart, I drove back to San Francisco. My year long effort came to an end with Mark’s declaration that music rules his creativity.  Mine however, is ruled by color. We touched but we didn’t dance.

It was with mixed emotion that I watched his San Francisco Ballet production, The Sandpaper Ballet. Isaac Mizrahi created the bright green costumes, which vibrated against an electric red set.  Seeing the inclusion of powerful colors made me think that I had possibly influenced Mark’s appreciation for color on some level.

Sandpaper, Mark Morris

Sitting high in the hall closet is a red cardboard banker box full of notes, costume inspirations, color visuals for sets, and reviews of successful new ballet productions worldwide. The idea has not died, and my passion for color still lives strong. One day I will revisit the Color Ballet with a grand finale showcasing the dance of the seven hues.  

Photo Credits
Visitation Ballet: http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2009/oct/30/mark-morris-programme-2-review
Morris Portrait: http://www.jessefrohman.com/pages/portport_2.html
Beatles Ballet: http://www.cb-pr.com/press/smuinseason.html
NYCB Set: Architectural Record, September 2010, Photo by Paul Kolnik
Miyake Design: http://arttattler.com/designfuturebeauty.html
Pacific Ballet: http://markmorrisdancegroup.org/resources/photo_gallery/
Italian Concerto Ballet: http://blog.chron.com/peep/2010/01/mark-morris-lou-voodoo/
Mark Morris Dance Troupe: http://www.cornish.edu/summer/dance/courses/mark_morris_dance_group_pre-professional_dance_intensives/
Color Gifts: Jill Pilaroscia
Morris + Pilaroscia: Donald Jones Photography, 1999
Jewels Ballet: http://artsplace.blogspot.com/2009/03/jewels-at-boston-ballet.html
Sandpaper Ballet: http://articles.sfgate.com/1999-04-29/entertainment/17684581_1_joanna-berman-dancers-mark-morris

Color Branding of Corporate Interiors

It is a human evolutionary impulse to covet the new and improved. Curiosity has lead to innovations, discovery, and improvements on all levels of existence.  In terms of the environments where we live and work, we have come to embrace the idea that the new has a powerful impact on our experience.

In the 1990s, companies started branding their corporate environments.  The trend grew, as the idea that business identity could crossover from advertising media to interior space gained broad acceptance.  Many corporations used the same environmental cues to support their brand messages in all their workspaces, whether in London, Omaha, or New York.

Target, Cape Coral, Florida

Innovative companies desired interiors that defied the norm. At the Yahoo campus in Sunnyvale, California, slides were installed to connect an upper floor to the floor below.  Who needs stairs when gravity can work to your advantage? Freestanding conference rooms with canted walls in vibrant colors looked nothing like their traditional counterparts.  Ebay followed suit with interior colors that matched its logo.   New players like Facebook and Salesforce chose enthusiastic palettes reflecting their youthful worker demographic.  These environments are bold, fun, festive, and stimulating.

eBay, San Jose, California

Google changes its home page visuals daily. High tech companies of all kinds are constantly adapting their products to reflect new introductions or new services. But should the branded physical environment change as quickly? Does using the precise criteria for branding identity and product make sense in the built environment? Is it a sound return on investment?

Twitter, San Francisco, California

Cultural anthropology has become part of the prerequisite architectural curriculum at architectural institutions like University of Florida. Architects use science and art to design spaces while anthropology focuses on science and people.    People who have researched the link between humans and environment like Dr.Heinrich Frieling, Dr. Harry Wolfarth, Frank Mahnke have found that humans need variety in their environments to avoid monotony, visual fatigue and boredom.   Access to nature, good air quality, variable light levels, and comfortable and ergonomic furniture all enhance productivity.

Facebook, Palo Alto, California

The concept of one-upmanship in creating dramatic environments sometimes misses the human mark.  We all like new, and fun things, but there will be times when color for color’s sake will not carry the clients’ investment soundly into the future. Lets consider if that colorful package design, which visually leaps off a retail shelf will be as successful as a focal wall color in an office environment.   Let’s at a minimum question if a branded color solution works in an environment.

Yahoo, Tokyo, Japan

I would suggest that digging deeper into behavioral scientific response, geographic locations, climate conditions, and demographic profiles will yield a brand environment that will not be irrelevant when the next big color trend surfaces.

I completely support the idea that each organization has its own culture. The culture may prefer to work in quiet private spaces for specific tasks and then have the flexibility to roam a large floor plan to select informal group work situations. What I am suggesting is that the same amount of time spent on space planning, preparing furniture layouts, and using real estate efficiently should also be spent on determining what is the most beneficial aesthetic environment that will support human needs.  Color used indiscriminately to look innovative will not stand the test of time, nor will it serve the brand in a significant way.

Photo Credits
Target: http://www.ryancompanies.com/projects/supertarget-stores/
eBay: http://www.oneworkplace.com/ourclients/portfolio.asp
Twitter: http://viewhometrends.com/twitter-office-interior-designs/
Facebook: http://www.chilloutpoint.com/science_and_technology/google-office-versus-facebook-office.html
Yahoo: http://freshpics.blogspot.com/2009/09/yahoo-office-in-japan.html

Baghdad Erupts in Riot of Color

Photo: Jerry Levy

The quote from Marshall McLuhan in the late 1960s, "The Medium is the Message" is still relevant when considering the role of color in the environment.  McLuhan believed that a medium affects the society in which it plays a role.  He used the lightbulb as a metaphor - a lightbulb does not have content in the way that a newspaper has articles, yet it is a medium that has a social effect - the light bulb allows people to create spaces during nighttime that would be otherwise enveloped by darkness. I suggest that color has the same ability to change an environment by its presence.

Photo: Jerry Levy

Take the story published in the New York Times, by Michael S. Schmidt and Yasir Ghazi on May 15, 2011, As Baghdad Erupts in Riot of Color, Calls to Tone It Down, as an example that illustrates McLuhan's concept.

The authors state that downtown Baghdad has a new police headquarters painted two shades of purple - lilac and grape. The central bank has been painted in bright red candy cane stripes, the Trade Ministry is pink, orange, and yellow. Blast walls have been repainted hot pink. The article continues, "Baghdad has weathered invasion, occupation, sectarian warfare and suicide bombers. But now it faces a new scourge: tastelessness."

For decades Saddam Hussein's government ruled over aesthetics in Iraq's capital with the same grip he exercised over the people. A committee of artists, architects, and designers approved the color of buildings as well as the placement of landscape. With many beige brick buildings, and color used sparingly, most often on mosques, the city's appearance was uniform and restrained – and dull.  

When the Iraqis began rebuilding, the color police were gone.  Color was no longer controlled.  The New York Times writers state the color chaos is taking place because the regime’s artists, and arbitrators of taste had enough wealth to be able to leave the country.

Ferdinand Leger said, “Color is a human need like water and fire." I do not believe that color is being used solely because the wealthy and educated elite have left Baghdad, leaving only the uneducated lower classes behind.  This argument is based on chromophobia, a dismissal of color as a legitimate medium of human expression and human freedom.

Photo: Jerry Levy

Color has the power to influence experience that affects the observers on cross-disciplinary levels. Exuberant bright colors are stimulating, invigorating, enthusiastic, fresh, and different from what the citizens had seen during Hussein’s reign.  Given that studies have shown biological, psychological, and sociological response to color, I believe the culture is using color in a positive way, to pull itself up from a horrible set of circumstances.

Maybe these are not the most harmonic color combinations. Riotous color appears to reflect the strength it took this culture to overcome the perils and horror of oppression and war. I applaud the free thinking. Over time, the citizens will find their own balance.  I do not believe the elite intellectuals who pine for the days of Saddam's color control, really understand politics of change. This is a good kind of riot.

Link to New York Times article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/world/middleeast/15baghdad.html?scp=1&sq=As%20Baghdad%20Erupts%20in%20Riot%20of%20Color,%20Calls%20to%20tone%20it%20down&st=cse

Colour our Worlds - Cross Culturally

Color is often used as a form of expression in cultures worldwide. When I began my research on color in festivals, Heather Clawson posted Colour My World on her blog Habitually Chic (http://habituallychic.blogspot.com/). Clawson juxtaposed images from the Spring/Summer 2011 fashion collections with images of exterior and interior color design. Colour My World revealed an enthusiastic use of color in Western culture. The following images are a sampling from Clawson's post, Colour My World (http://habituallychic.blogspot.com/2011/01/color-my-world.html).

Marc Jacobs Spring/Summer 2011

Unknown

Gucci Spring/Summer 2011

David Hicks, 1954

Our passion for color, as displayed in the visuals above have a synchronous application in Eastern cultures. More specifically, I found proof of this color dialogue between East and West in the orchestration of the Hindu Holi Festival. 

The first marked celebration in the Hindu calendar is the Holi Festival. Each Spring, Holi, also known as the Festival of Color is celebrated in several countries. Thousands of people come together and participate in many activities, including the ancient ritual of putting colored powder on each other. 

The colored powder used during Holi was originally made from natural seeds, flowers and silt from the riverbed. Over time, the palette of powders has greatly expanded through the introduction of synthetic pigments.

Women, men and children from different social classes and backgrounds come together and are united through color.

 This Spring, be reminded of the famous Holi saying, "Let the colors of Holi spread the message of peace and happiness." 

Color in Preschools + Elementary Schools: Part One

Photo by Jerry Levy

What are the best colors for Preschool and Elementary Grades? According to Frank Manhke, President of the International Association of Color Consultants, color in your environment has a psychophysiological influence on you. Manhke combines hard scientific evidence with empirical studies in his book, Color, Environment + Human Response.

Children are particularly susceptible to environmental stimulus. Different ages accept and reject colors according to their development. For young children, leaving the security of the home environment is challenging. Thus, creating a sense of security in their educational environment is very important.

Dr. Heinrich Frieling of the Institute of Color Psychology tested 10,000 children around the world on color preference. Here are some of his research findings:

• Most children, ages five to fourteen rejected black, white, grey and brown.
• Children five to eight preferred red, orange, yellow and violet.
• Children nine to ten preferred red, red-orange and green-blue.
• Children up to fourteen preferred blue, ultramarine and orange.

Dr. Frieling acknowledged that the pure hues noted above were not appropriate for large fields of color in the school environment. Manhke converted the color preference test results into suitable colors to be used as a palette guideline. As Manhke always stresses, color guidelines are simply guidelines, and not to be used as formulas. It's important to recognize that each school and classroom has different architectural conditions, light characteristics, geographic and cultural situations to evaluate.

Manhke recommends a warm bright color scheme of light salmon, warm yellow, pale yellow-orange, coral, and peach  These colors compliment the nature of young children and help reduce tension and anxiety. Colors from the cool spectrum, blues and blue-greens can balance the palette and work as accents. A balanced palette of warm and cool colors reduces tension, nervousness and anxiety. Colour Studio has always had a strong interest in coloring educational environments. For school projects we have incorporated warm yellows, blues, and greens. These colors were successful in lifting the general mood and atmosphere of the schools to positively impact the students and faculty. 


Colour Studio selected the following palette specifically for an elementary school located in Northern California. This palette was developed with the specific site in mind and is not intended to be used as a formula for all elementary schools. Here is a sampling of the colors we used:

Dunn Edwards 341

Benjamin Moore 148

Dunn Edwards 5332

Benjamin Moore HC-150

Benjamin Moore HC-143

Dunn Edwards 5879

The idea that young children need primary colors dominating their environment and visual stimuli covering every surface of a classroom is not supported by science. Incorporating too much color can be as detrimental as having too little color.

When considering color for schools, lets be sure to analyze each environment to insure our color and design decisions support the welfare of our end users no matter what their age.

Color Forecasting - Anticipating Public Taste

Color forecasting is based upon the idea that public taste can be anticipated. Whether it's due to current events or a natural oscillation, we see changes in the color forecast each year.

Pantone Mugs

Color Marketing Group produces forecasts for clients who pay large sums of money to be in the know. Pantone has determined it can raise its brand recognition by sharing its forecasts with the general public.

2011: Honeysuckle

Pantone 18-2120 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 2078-30

Pantone revealed Honeysuckle as the color of the year for 2011. Honeysuckle is a positive color that is found to be uplifting in a time of stress. As Leatrice Eisemen noted, “Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues.” (http://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/pantone.aspx?pg=20821&ca=4)

We’ve taken a look back at the last 11 years and have found possible cross currents of events and color associations that inform each year’s color trends.

Here is a brief synopsis:

2000: Cerulean

Pantone 15-4020 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 822

Cerulean is a dreamy and peaceful color. This blue was chosen to be the color of 2000, the start of the millennium for it’s calming and peaceful attributes.

January 14: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes at 11,722.98 (at the peak of the Dot-com bubble). The Dot-com era begins its decline and collapses.

November 7: Hillary Rodham Clinton is elected to the United States Senate, becoming the first First Lady of the United States to win public office.

2001: Fuchsia Rose

Pantone 17-2031 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 1349

2001, was the year that many of us remember as the Dot-com collapse and the tragedy of 9/11. The color Fuchsia Rose is optimistic and enlivening. This color was chosen wisely for 2001, as sadness was felt throughout the country.

2001: Multiple dot.com firms and online companies collapse.

January 20: George W. Bush in sworn in as the 43^rd President of the United States.

September 11: 9/11 Attacks: The World Trade Center is hit.

2002: True Red

Pantone 19-1664 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 2087-10

The year following the attacks of 9/11 encouraged patriotism and building community. True Red inherently speaks to the country’s population as a color that is both energizing and patriotic.

April 19: The Senate defeats President Bush's plan to authorize oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

October 9 - October 10: Congress passes the Iraq Resolution authorizing the Iraq War.

2003: Aqua Sky

Pantone 14-4811 – Cross Over: Sherwin Williams 1750

Aqua Sky, the color of 2003 is comforting and soothing. The color Aqua reminds us of the sky and sea and is often associated with being an ‘escape color.’

March 20: The Iraq War begins.

June 4: Martha Stewart and her broker are indicted for using privileged investment information and obstructing a federal investigation.

September 17: President Bush admits that there is no evidence linking the Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to the September 11, 2001 attacks.

2004: Tiger Lily

Pantone 17-1456 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 021

Tiger Lily is a bold orange color that is energizing and stimulating. This orange is exotic and expresses a clear connection to the sun, signifying warmth.

February 3: The CIA admits that there was no imminent threat from weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

February 12: San Francisco begins issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

July 25: Lance Armstrong wins the 6th consecutive Tour de France cycling title.

December 26: The Sumatra-Andaman earthquake occurs, resulting in the Indian Ocean tsunami. The devastating tsunami killed over 200,000 people and is one of the deadliest natural disasters recorded.

2005: Blue Turquoise

Pantone 15-5217 – Cross Over: Pittsburgh Paints 256-5

It’s only been a year, and we witness a return to another ‘escape color’ with Blue Turquoise as the color of the year for 2005. The serene qualities of Blue Turquoise seem fit for a year hit with a major and unsettling natural disaster.

January 20: George W. Bush is sworn in for his second term as president.

August 2005: Hurricane Katrina takes form on August 23^rd and strikes the Gulf Coast on the 29th, causing severe damage and many deaths. On August 30^th, Katrina disperses leaving many homeless and mourning the dead.

2006: Sand Dollar

Pantone 13-1106 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 1080

Sand Dollar is a neutral color, both calm and relaxing.

January 26: General Motors reports an $8.6 billion loss for 2005. This is their biggest loss since 1992.

November 6: Democrats gain control of both houses of the Congress. Nancy Pelosi becomes the first female Speaker of the House of Representatives.

2007: Chili Pepper

Pantone 19-1557 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 1322

Chili Pepper, the color of 2007 is outgoing and confident. This intense red color screams passion and is a color that cannot be ignored.

May 3: The U.S. House of Representatives passes the Matthew Shepard Act. This is the first time that a gay rights bill is brought to the floor for a vote.

August 7: Barry Bonds breaks Hank Aaron's home run record and hits his 756th home run.

October 9: The Dow Jones Industrial Average hits its all time high of 14,164 before beginning to decline into the recession.

December: The recession officially begins.

2008: Blue Iris

Pantone 18-3943 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 1407

Blue Iris is a rich color that has calming and spiritual effects. This stable color offers reassurance in a time of complexity and uncertainty.

January 21: Stock markets plunge amid growing fears of a U.S. recession.

November 4: Barack Obama is elected the 44th President of the United States and Joe Biden is elected the 47th Vice President. Barack Obama becomes the first African-American President-elect.

December 1: The Dow Jones Industrial Average drops 680 points. This is its fourth worst drop in its history.

2009: Mimosa

Pantone 14-0848 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 313

Mimosa, a golden yellow signifies warmth and nurturing. This color embodies hopefulness in a climate of change.

January 20: Barack Obama is inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States. More than one million people attend the inauguration service.

March 13: The Federal Reserve reports that U.S. families lost a record 18% of their wealth in 2008.

June 25: The great entertainer and musician Michael Jackson passes away and triggers an outpouring of worldwide grief.

2010: Turquoise

Pantone 15-5519 – Cross Over: Benjamin Moore 663

In 2010, we revisit another ‘escape color,’ Turquoise. The color turquoise offers a sense of protection and healing during stressful times.

April 20: An explosion occurs on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. The explosion causes the rig to sink and initiates a massive offshore oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. This is the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history.

November 4: The US Federal Reserve announces that they will buy $600 billion in bonds to encourage economic growth.

November 9: San Francisco bans Happy Meal, served by McDonald's with regard to growing obesity concern.

November 28: WikiLeaks publicly releases thousands of confidential documents from the U.S. government.

Whirlpool Duet, 2009

We can be certain the 2012 forecast will introduce us to a new hue. People are fickle about color and color does not age well in our society. Both Color Marketing Group and Pantone will continue to influence the industries of apparel, automotive and product. Without new trends, people might not invest in that new outfit, the turquoise espresso machine, or the cranberry matching washer and dryer combo. Color Sells.