Rainbow of Feelings

By: Lauren Crown

Last Updated on: November 28, 2021

Image by: BEA

Emotions are a very simple thing to have, one at the core of all human beings. Are you tired? Are you happy? Are you crying? These are questions you have no doubt heard before from friends, colleagues, family, even strangers when they see you bawling your eyes out on the side of a road. Now you might be telling yourself right now: “Psh, I would never embarrass myself like that,” but the truth is, you’ve also gone through that as well. Everyone knows emotions, everyone’s experienced them.

Based on facial expressions, it is easy to tell how someone is feeling. For instance, if I asked someone: “Can you show me what sadness is?”, they’d probably start fake-crying, the simplest and most efficient way of showing what sadness is.

Then, if I asked them: “Can you show me joy?”, they’d jump with joy with their arms spread wide open and shout “WHOOOOOO!!” A perfect description, don’t you think?

It would be so easy to play charades with the theme “feelings”, because we’re all familiar with them (now you have a game you can play during those awkward online meetings you go to).

Now, if I asked you to draw something, but to incorporate emotions most of you might not know where to start; however, this is actually quite easy to do. Even I can, and I have a hard time drawing a stick-man. Let me give you some advice: turn them into colours. I’ll explain.

Have you ever wondered what colour happiness is? Yellow, of course. There is no trick question here, it’s simple. There, now let’s paint yellow on our rainbow. But what about trust? Anticipation? Eagerness? Harder now, right? This is where things get more complex, but so do the colours: each colour has its own varying shades and hues, each with subtle or clear differences which make them stand out. Here, you will find out about where emotions can be placed on the wheel of colours, in a way that you can use them to create a rainbow. Of course, I’m doing my own interpretation right now, so you may have your own opinions.

We’re going to keep things simple, and do basic colours. I’m not an artist, ask anyone (actually, don’t). I can, however, add my own colours, though. A rainbow doesn’t have to be traditional, right? :)

Each colour that exists is different, and each one tells a unique story. When blended together, they are basically unstoppable. However, they can all be interpreted differently, depending on the person. Keep in mind that each person’s palette of emotions can change, this is my personal opinion. We’ll first go through the colours of a normal rainbow, starting with summer hues.

Red - a strong and powerful hue with a dangerous and risk-taking personality. The colour of blood represents anger, fury, annoyance, rage, and cruelty. It is also a well-known symbol for love.

Orange - between red and yellow, orange emits a warm aura with a hint of red’s adventure-loving side. However, unlike red, it is more cautious and uses its head more. Halloween’s favourite colour represents vigilance, anticipation, curiosity, and confidence.

Yellow - a warm and bright, bubbly tincture. The colour of the sun represents bright and positive feelings such as happiness, joy, ecstasy, kindness, excitement, and compassion.

Blue - a calm and serene hue. The colour of the ocean (darker tints) represents sadness, melancholy, and grief, calmness, pity, loneliness. The colour of the sky (lighter tints) represents amazement, and surprise.

Green - a rich and deep tint with its mischievous side. The colour of nature is well-known for its different shades and hues, each with their own distinct personality. In regards to feelings, it represents more negative feelings such as envy, jealousy, disgust, contempt, pride, fear, and anxiety. The lighter side represents acceptance, admiration, trust, determination, and patience.

Following the main colours are the neutral colours: white, grey and black. It may be argued that they are not colours, but I will still include them because they are very important shades.

White - a symbol of peace, is a dazzling but plain and simple tone. The colour of snow represents peace, friendship, and modesty.

Gray - between white and black, this hue gives off a mixed feeling. The colour of ash represents indecisiveness, monotone, dullness, gloominess, and neutrality.

Black - a mysterious and dark shade, with many hidden secrets and meanings. The colour of night can represent death, terror, and despair.

To finish off the list, we have purple and pink that will bring an extra burst of flavour.

Purple - a quiet and beautiful hue. It has a very signature element that separates it from other pigmentations, making it very popular. The colour of lavender represents nostalgia, awkwardness, guilt.

Pink - a paler version of red, pink can arguably have the largest contrast between its faded and vividly bright shades. The colour of cherry blossoms represents adoration, shyness, and beauty.

Put together, these tinctures can create a masterpiece. However, adding emotions brings out a whole new side to art, one that many artists take advantage of. The next time you draw or paint something, use your colours wisely and create a story using this “rainbow of feelings”!