Gender Colors

Pink for the girl and blue for the boy—ever wonder why? Well, it seems to be a complex issue that no one can quite pinpoint to a certain time. Although things are getting pretty neutral in terms of gender-specific colors, there are a few interesting things that you might like to know:

• Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women has a part in which the youngest sister, Amy, ties a blue ribbon on Meg’s son Demi and a pink ribbon on his twin sister Daisie so that everyone could tell them apart. In the book, this is called a French tradition, and the book dates back to 1868.
• In the Victorian period, there were many works of arts that attributed pink to men and blue to women, with the Virgin Mary robed in navy blue.
• The first school uniforms in England were blue because the dye was cheaper than the others—and the uniforms were meant for boys.
• Audrey Hepburn starred in the film Funny Face (1950s) in which she plays a feminine character dressed in pink
• There is scientific enquiry going on that stresses the fact that women tend to lean towards the warmer colors, while men like cooler colors
• A neuroscientist researcher claims that there might be biological differences that cause women to prefer pink and men to prefer blue.
• "If you like the color note on the little one's garments, use pink for the boy and blue for the girl, if you are a follower of convention." [The Sunday Sentinal, March 29, 1914, an American newspaper article]
• After world war one, in which blue uniforms where used for the male soldiers, blue became a firmly masculine symbol
• There was a “Think Pink” movement in the 1940s that encouraged women to be proud of their femininity
• By the end of the 20th century, the genders had been firmly assigned specific color

In this Section

• Colors and Design
• Introduction
• Color Harmony
• Colors in Interior Design
• Colors in Art
• Colors in Advertising
• Gender Colors