Pink is one of those colors that conjure up immediate connotations, In terms of my childhood, the color was a color deemed only for girls, seen in packaging for Barbie and most toys for girls. Wikipedia says: In Western culture, the practice of assigning pink to an individual gender began in the 1920s. From then until the 1940s, pink was considered appropriate for boys because being related to red it was the more masculine and decided color, while blue was considered appropriate for girls because it was the more delicate and dainty color, or related to the Virgin Mary. Since the 1940s, the societal norm was inverted; pink became considered appropriate for girls and blue appropriate for boys, a practice that has continued into the 21st century.
When I think of pink commercially, I personally think of Hubba Bubba bubblegum, Barbie, The Pink Panther, Snagglepuss the Lion, Elvis’s Pink Cadillac and P!nk the singer, but pink can be one of those misunderstood colors, quick to put in a box, pink has been over branded. The color Pink itself is basically a combination of red and white. Other hues of pink may be combinations of rose and white, magenta and white, or orange and white, it’s here that we get our blushes and apricots and peaches. Pink can be subtle if allowed!?
Moving away from the more obvious, I love the graduating tones of pink ruffles on a Valentino gown, the intensity of a pink peony rose, the quality and purity of neon pink paint, pink felt, go grain ribbon and stitching, as seen on www.purlbee.com
I have featured in my previous “yellow post” The clever design for the Theatre Agora by UNStudio in Lelystad, Amsterdam, whose exterior is a bright yellow, but parts of it’s interior are actually shockingly pink. In Karishma Shahani’s final-year collection at the London College of Fashion this year, Her collection “Yatra” (“pilgrimage” in Hindi) is beautiful representations of her native India, the land of saturated color, pink being one heavily featured.
Thinking pink in a new way while appreciating it’s potentially cheesy predictable side is the way to go, for me as a Stylist, I use it sparingly but also try to use it unexpectedly, I personally live with “dots” of pink and love it, but a whole room would send me into a sugar high and teenage identity crisis, In that case, I am happy it be one for the gals! : )
