Color Analysis (art)

Color Analysis (art)

Color analysis, also called skin tone color matching, personal color or seasonal color, is the process of finding colors of clothing and makeup to match a person's skin complexion, eye color, and hair color. It is often used as an aid to wardrobe planning and style consulting.

Color analysis is the process of determining the colors that best suit an individual's natural coloring. There are a wide variety of approaches to analyzing personal coloring. The most well-known is "seasonal" color analysis, which places individual coloring into four general categories: Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn. Many different versions of seasonal analysis, first practiced by Suzanne Caygill in the 1950s, have since been developed and promoted by image and color consultants worldwide.

Other color analysis systems classify people by time of day or color “temperature” (cool blue vs. warm yellow), rely on determination of high or low personal contrast, or use other references to determine color such as feng shui or other reading of energy levels.

There is evidence the colors a person wears can affect how others perceive him or her; according to a British study, red and pink are thought to signal sexual attractiveness, particularly when worn by women. Dark colors like black or navy may convey authority or simply make the wearer seem less approachable. The theories of color analysis also teach that certain colors are capable of emphasizing or, conversely, de-emphasizing an individual's attractiveness to others. Unflattering colors may make a person look pale, for instance, or draw attention to such flaws as wrinkles or uneven skin tone. Flattering colors are thought to have the opposite effect.

One practical application for color analysis is that by limiting wardrobe color choices a person will probably find it easier to coordinate his or her clothing and accessories, thus possibly saving time, space and money.