Color Symbolism

In class, we discussed the myth that the Renaissance was colored in browns and overall neutral tones, in regards to the clothing that people wore. However, the opposite is true. Color played a vital role in Renaissance culture, because what you wore symbolized how you felt and your status in society. Royalty and upper class, for example wore rich reds and purples to showcase their wealth and authority. The picture below depicts princess Elizabeth Tudor in all her grander. Notice that she is colored head to toe in red and ornamented in jewels- another obvious indicator of wealth.

Portrait of Elizabeth I as a Princess
c. 1546, attributed to William Scrots

Some color symbolism from the Renaissance is still used in society today. When we go to funerals, we wear black. Why? Because it is tradition. The same is true for why we wear certain clothing to formal events, such as a tuxedo on your wedding day, or formal blacks for a concert. We do  this out of tradition. In the Renaissance, black was a color associated with mourning, seriousness and sophistication. 

Here is a key to other color symbols in the Renaissance

Orange-  used my middle to lower class citizens to mimic the upper classes reds

Yellow- first worn by wealthy men and merchants, but quickly became color to wear for prostitutes 

Green- youth, chastity, love and joy (remember the Arnolfini portrait we looked at?)

Blue- marriageable women, servitude, jealousy (turquoise)  

Browns- religious modesty, poverty 

White- purity for women and chastity for men, symbolic of humanities in universities