Color History: Red

Red is the archetypal color, the first color humans mastered, fabricated, reproduced, and broke down into different shades. Made from ochre, which is a natural clay earth pigment including a mixture of iron oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. Red is the color of fire and blood. Hebrew words for blood and red have the same origin: “dm” means red and “dom” means blood. Blood and fire have both positive and negative connotations: bloodshed, aggression, war, and hate are on one side, and love, warmth, and compassion on the other side. Ancient Egyptians and Mayans colored their faces red in ceremonies and Roman generals had their bodies colored red to celebrate victories. In Chinese philosophy, red is one of the colors associated with the five elements of the world: red for fire, yellow for earth, white for metal, black for water, and green for wood. The fire element (red), is linked to dynamism, leadership, confidence, aggression, and hypersensitivity.

http://www.webexhibits.org/pigments/intro/reds.html

https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-history-red

https://artsandculture.google.com/theme/the-secret-history-of-the-color-red/GwLyao99SLXVKg?hl=en

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