SCHUMACHER COLLEGE
An International Centre for Ecological Studies
Holistic Science MSc 2000/2001, module:
Introduction to Holistis Science
A Goethean Approach to Colour
by Robin de Carteret
This paper presents my thinking and feelings around my colour presentation. Appendix A, B and C contain the questionnaire used, the basic script for the presentation and items used in the questionnaire. There is an audio tape of the presentation.
Primary colours?
What initially started me off on this project was what seemed to be a wide spread misunderstanding of the primary colours. If we define primary colours as those that can be mixed to make all the other colours and cannot themselves be made by mixing of other colours, then the common understanding of the primary colours of paint including what we are taught in school is not quite right. The common understanding is that the primary colours of paint are RED, BLUE, and YELLOW. My understanding was that the primary colours of light were RED, GREEN, and BLUE (additive colours, like on a television screen) and the primary colours of paint were the subtractive complimentaries — CYAN, MAGENTA and YELLOW (like on magazine print or a colour printer). In doing this project I’ve found that this still holds but I have a better understanding of why there is a mismatch:
Cyan and Magenta are not commonly found in nature or in common English language. Many people would describe them as light blue and bright red or just blue and red. In the questionnaire I found that this ‘translation’ (from colour to word) only works one way. When asked to pick out the primary red and blue people did not pick cyan or magenta, but the more normal red and blue. An interesting story that demonstrates the importance of the names of colours it that cartographers suggest using no more than six different colours on maps. Although we can distinguish between hundreds of different colours we might think ‘red’, for instance, when we look from the map to the key (legend) and if there are two types of red we find it difficult to remember which one it was.
Other reasons are given in the presentation (see page 6).
Goethe vs. Newton
The main difference between Newton’s and Goethe’s theories is that Goethe thinks in term of light and dark and that colours arise at boundaries, while Newton thinks of dark as the lack of light. For Goethe colours “came into being out of a relationship between light and darkness” [Bortoft, p.20]
Often in promoting Goethe’s theory of colour the conventional theory is presented as being scientifically wrong. I think many of these criticisms are misplaced and take away from the merits of Goethe’s approach i.e. phenomenological. A phenomenological approach allows us to experience colour from the experiential reality side, which fundamentally includes our feelings and emotions and the meaning of colour for us and our world. I think a distinction needs to be made between Goethe’s method that embodies a phenomenological approach and Goethe’ theory of colour, which is presented as an alternative scientific theory. The reason for looking at Goethe’s ideas should not have to be because the conventional theory is scientifically wrong but because it is limited in its relevance to our life experience.
Examples of alleged errors in conventional colour theory used to back up Goethe’s theory:
Proskauer [p.61] suggests that Newton thought all lenses caused coloured fringes saying that “refraction and color-genesis do not, as Newton believed stand in a causative relationship” though Rankin [p.96] says “Newton tried grinding lenses with various other curves to get rid of the unwanted colours”. It is the fact that lens are very difficult to make parabolic that gives coloured fringes. The fact that you can make good lenses does not prove that refraction does not cause the appearance of colour.
Goethe “believed Newton erred in thinking colourless light was compounded of coloured lights because coloured light is darker than colourless light, and this would mean that several darker lights were added together to make a brighter light. Bortoft[p23] Exactly this was tried during the presentation mixing RED, GREEN and BLUE (coloured torches) to give a much lighter colour close to white.
It seems to be often presented that Goethe worked purely phenomenologically not intellectually and therefore what he says is a pure descriptive truth. I believe that although Goethe did examine phenomenon intellectually — saying that colours arise from the interaction between light and dark is just as intellectual a statement as saying that white light is a mixture of coloured lights that reflect differently. The point I’m trying to make is that we should learn from Goethe’s method, but not take his personal conclusions dogmatically just as we shouldn’t take Newton’s.
In this project I wanted to show that it doesn’t have to be Newton vs. Goethe. Both Newton and Goethe are misquoted and attacked for things they never said. I have my understanding of colour, and I am trying to further it with a phenomenological approach. I realised that the best way to do this was to mention Goethe and Newton as little as possible! What matters is people’s current understanding. I aimed to find out as much as possible about the current scientific ideas about colour and other people’s ideas through the questionnaire and fit these into a more phenomenological approach.
Major things I learnt
My original understanding was that the three types of cone receptors in our eyes are separately stimulated by the wavelengths of the three primary colours — RED, GREEN, and BLUE. I learned that each receptor has a response curve and does not just respond to one ‘colour’. The so-called ‘red’ cone has a maximum response at a wavelength that looks greenish-yellow.
Rather than each of the three receptors being ‘connected’ to the brain through three separate pathways there is actually a postreceptoral process in which red and green are opposed i.e. green excites and red inhibits the neurological pathway. There is another pathway with blue and yellow opposed. This may indicate why yellow is seen as a primary colour but magenta and cyan are not. This also adds weight to Goethe’s insight of yellow and blue as being the two main colours — yellow being closest to light and blue being closest to dark.
Short wavelength ‘blue’ light stimulates the ‘red’ receptor.
Unique red (not containing blue or green) is not a spectral colour. Some short wavelength ‘blue’ light is needed to give a unique red. The red seen in the spectrum contains yellow (or green). It seems Goethe’s insight is again justified — he called what we typically call red ‘yellow-red’ and magenta (which contains blue) ‘pure red’.
The spectrum of colours has comparatively little relevance compared to how our receptors respond to mixtures of wavelengths and how we then experience this colour in the context of our lives.
Magenta and many other colours like brown and grey do not have their own wavelength and are only made by a mixture of wavelengths.
When asked “What is colour?” people in the questionnaire gave more analytical answers, whereas when asked to “Tell me something about colour” they talked about its effect on our mood and emotions.
I learned how biased I am when reading and that the meaning I get from reading is based on whether or not it fits in with what I believe. The completely different experience of reading Saunders before and after being convinced of the opponent process was remarkable. He says, for instance “there are four unique hues: red, green, blue, yellow”. The first time I dismissed the article as being wrong and confused. The second time it was fine! Just because a theory that one understands works very well it doesn’t mean that it’s right, even if other theories seem more complicated.
I came to understand the incredible complexity of colour vision. The postreceptoral opponent processes have following opponent processes operating on them! It becomes clear that we can’t separate the eyes and postreceptoral processes from the brain.
Understanding colour emphasises the interconnectedness we have with light and the world around us.
The aim of this project was to increase understanding of colour in a way that would enrich people’s experience rather than detract from it. I started off the presentation by getting everyone to walk through to a window where they could see incredible colours in a real sunset. I wanted to emphasise that that is what colour really is. Colour is what it means to us. It is often said that a subjective description of colour implies that colour is just an illusion. Analytical explanations then seem to explain away the meaning, detracting from our living experience. It is not an illusion if we believe that the experience of colour is the real thing. I believe colour is real while understanding that my perception of it is subjective. Phenomenological experiences with colour and an analytical understanding bring me increasing joy — and (especially through playing with bubbles!) I am glad to have shared this with others.
Appendix A — Questionnaire
This questionnaire helped me to get a better picture of people’s understanding of colour and why it was often different to mine. It was used to get more ideas for the project. And was also intended to intrigue people and get them thinking so that they would be more interested in the presentation.
What is your favourite colour?
Why?
How does it make you feel?
Name ten colours. Write them down in order.
Name ten more colours. Write them down in order.
What are the primary colours? Get them to pick the best matching colour from the pastels.
What colours do you get when you mix combinations of these colours?
What are primary colours?
Are the primary colours for paint or for light?
What are the others?
What is colour?
What is light?
Can you think of a question that would be good for this questionnaire?
Look at triplets of colours for one minute. How do they make you feel?
Which is your favourite? Which is your 2nd favourite?
In which one do the colours seem most to belong together? 2nd most?
Which one seems to include the widest variety of colour? 2nd most?
Which one seems to include the least variety? 2nd most?
Draw your own set of three that give the widest variety of colour.
Do the 4 lists of coloured words. I’m going to show you a list of five coloured words – you have to say colours of the ink of each word in order. So if you see the word “pencil” written in red ink and below it “scissors” written in green ink you say “red, green” How difficult 1-10?
[look at for 20 sec]Which of the two A4 pictures do you like best? Seems most balanced?
Which seems to contain more colours?
What have you gained from Goethean colour?
The edited results of the questionnaire are included in the presentation script (Appendix B)
The coloured triplets with results written on, the ‘A4 pictures’ and an example of the coloured words are included in Appendix C.
Appendix B — Script for presentation
These are the notes I used for the presentation not a transcript. See (hear!) audio tape.
What is your favourite colour?
What kind of scientific study starts with what is your favourite colour, it’s more like something a 5-year-old would ask you. When Anne over-heard it she laughed. I started with this because I believe this is the Real, most important thing about colour: what it means to us. Green tree nice!
What’s you favourite colour?
Why?
How does it make you feel?
Green
It has so many different shades — reminds me of being outside.
Comfortable.
Green — Different shades of. Earthy
Nature.
Looks good.
Safe, grounded, comfortable, peaceful.
Green
Quiet and safe. Colour belongs to nature.
Depends on mood.
Blue
I like the sense of peace, expansiveness and openness.
Dark purpleAlways have. Rich velvet.
Goddess. Nurturing. Co-operatives have it.
Strong, calm, deep, unordinary. Happy
Dark green (changes a lot)
Very earthy. Makes me think of pine forest.
Calm.
Red
Suits me.
Alive
Aqua marine (likes them all)
Makes me go wild. Neither green nor blue.
Sense of magic, refreshing and stimulation at the same time. Vitality.
Green. (Earth tones)
Always liked it. Later realised colour of nature.
At home, at peace, at ease. Nourished.
Name ten colours.
First five colours given
4 out of 9 said red first.
3 out of 9 said ROYGB first.
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, black.
Second five colours given.
Purple, black, brown, cerulean, cobalt. Indigo, turquoise, teal, magenta. Green, pink. Violet, maroon. White. Orange. Red, lemon, dark green. Blue, grey, aqua-marine. Tan, burntcianna.
Last ten colours given.
