‘Colours in Asean’ for creative design
MAHIDOL UNIVERSITY’S Centre for Creative Economy yesterday announced a “Colours of Asean” project, aimed at documenting the true meanings of colours so Asean designers can understand and effectively implement them in their design works.
Assistant Professor Dr Surapong Lertsithichai, director of the centre, said colour was an intangible asset in any design work. Colours reflect distinctive values in culture, perception, and identity.
Psychologically, colours have meanings that affect our emotions and preferences, but these meanings can be different depending on the culture or country they are applied to. Especially in Asean countries, people tend to have a vibrant collection of colours they use to identify their cultures, ranging from colours of natural materials to those of plants or animals.
In design or the creative industries, colour has long been used as a tool for branding identities that create enormous value in terms of public perception. Using the right colours at the right time can help enhance commercial success for products and services.
Surapong said that in Asean countries, the use of colour was widespread in every aspect of people’s daily lives. It has been embedded in the very fabric of culture through the ages, yet it is hardly documented and promoted among young designers. The challenge lies in creating a platform through which this knowledge can reach younger generations so they can truly exploit the colours of Asean as they have been valued throughout time.
Colour utilisation
Designers can now understand how to utilise traditional colours and patterns in products, media content, advertising campaigns and design services incorporated in print and digital formats. With such knowledge, designers can now create their own identities and uniqueness to distinguish themselves from the rest of the world.
“Understanding the cultural differences in each nation can be an important proposition for creating more suitable and preferable products and services for local consumers in each country. On the other hand, avoiding the possibility of offending consumers because of certain beliefs and values inherited in their culture, whether intentional or not, is also knowledge that must be considered seriously,” Surapong said.
For example, the colour green in a certain Vietnamese belief is associated with jealousy and lust and is considered inappropriate for individual clothing and cannot be used in spiritual or joyful ceremonies.
Other cultures also have similar do’s and don’ts, but it is not apparent whether designers are concerned about how and when Asean colours are used in value-added design. The Colours of Asean project intends to create a better understanding of these issues in an encyclopaedia book and interactive mobile application.
With the correct knowledge and concern for colours in design, the process of trial and error and market surveys can dramatically be reduced for designers. More time can then be spent on developing innovative and creative ideas for more consumers.
Surapong said the main objective of the Colours of Asean project was to create a basis on which any designer can understand the true meaning of colours that is inherited in each Asean country and culture in order to utilise the knowledge correctly and effectively implement Asean colours in their designs of products and services.
The Colours of Asean project is scheduled be completed in August. The completed encyclopaedia will be distributed along with a colour swatch book as a package to university libraries throughout Thailand. The Colours of Asean application for both Android and iOS devices will be globally available to anyone interested in the extra interactive features beyond the encyclopaedia, such as the colour-seeking function through built-in cameras of mobile devices.
Designers will be able to use the Colours of Asean encyclopaedia as a reference book for creating visually stunning products and media suitable to the tastes of their Asean clients. Meanwhile, travelling with the Colours of Asean app could reveal a valuable instant research tool for designers who may be foreign to the Asean community.
Nop Dharmavanich, managing director at Tomogram Studio and project director of Colours of Asean, said the project also included a set of product-design case studies inspired not only by the use of Asean colours but by Asean patterns as well.
“The possibility of implementing Asean colour is limitless, especially for product and graphic design. Therefore the project is reaching out for third parties to get involved in this process, and has had much good feedback from product owners in the houseware, fashion and spa product categories.
“One of the collaborators is Cotto Thailand, which will produce tile products using combinations and patterns of Asean colours. In the fashion category, there are many variations of collaboration possible for fabric pattern designs, bags, shoes and other accessories,” Nop said.
