Exploring the theme: Purple Haze

  In this blog post I will be looking at the specific theme for the major project, Purple Haze was originaly a song written by Jimi Hendrix but however the goal is to explore and research ideas about the hue of purple itself and what idea it generally posesses.

What does color purple represent?

 Bourne (2011) has defined that purple is the combination of calm and soothing of blue with fierce and severe energy of red. Purple represents the symbol of luxury, extravagance, royalty, creativity and magic. In many ways the hue has the ability to be represented in many aspects partly because it is a neutral based color, Bourne (2011) also added that purple naturally is a rare occuring color so its main element of emotion is not linked to any particular theme or emotion.

 Examples of Purple:

 Here are some of the examples that uses purple as its dominant color or theme:

The Cat in the Hat (2003)

 The Cat in the Hat is a movie that uses purple its main overall theme, though, other colors are used to contrast the hue such as yellow, but this movie clearly represents the usage of the hue and how it can be incorporated into a movie.

 Another example about the use of purple can be seen in the background drawing for the cartoon series Ed Edd n Eddy:

Ed, Edd n Eddy (1999)

 Here we can see the color purple contrasting with the green and giving more depth to the theme of the show. Although the drawing for the background is loosely drawn, and the coloring is mostly flat, it is undeniable the color purple still pops.

 And the last exampleI would like to discuss about is the character Dick Dastardly from Wacky Racers.

Dick Dastardly, Wacky Races (1968)

 Among the main fleet of characters from Wacky Races, Dick Dastardly is the more prominant 'antagonist' style character who is always making plans to take any advantage he could to win a race. Although the color on his jacket may appear to be blue, his early designs had the purple incorporated. Pairing up with the red contrast with the hat and the glove, gives a more appealing design that does not go unrecognized.

 Along with the character himself, his car is also painted purple to fit the persona and the theme of the character.

 Once again, purple is the more dominant hue however on this occasion the yellow color on the details of the car is given to further contrast and compliment the purple even more.

 From what I can learn from these examples is that the hue can be easily manipulated to fit the theme's need, be it with the background design, the mood or the character, purple appears to be a very versatile color. This was one of the reasons why I chose the theme 'Purple Haze' partly because the theme can be very fitting with the progression route I have taken and can be bent with any needs necessary. 

Reference List:

Ed, Edd n Eddy (1999) Cartoon Network

The Cat in the Hat (2003) Directed by Bo Welch [Feature film]. US: Universal Pictures

Wacky Races (1968) Cartoon Network