Orange vs. Orange: An Exploration of the Color

The Orange Color vs. Orange Fruit Mystery: An Artist's Guide to Orange

Was this English word the color or the fruit first? Orange you happy I'm here to tell you!

Welcome to my blog. I'm Heather Divoky, an artist from Asheville, NC, interested in visual arts and the history of art. I thought I'd celebrate fall by spotlighting one of my favorite autumn-flavored colors: orange.

As someone who lived in the Netherlands, the color orange is deeply embedded in my personal history. The House of Orange, the royal family of the Netherlands, left their name and the color in many traditions associated with the Netherlands. I can still remember watching football matches at the local pub, completely covered in orange and cheering on the team (I can also remember accidentally wearing a rival team's colors to a match...whoops). I can also remember attending Koningsdag, or Kings Day. Of course we all wore orange to celebrate the Dutch royal family, although, I think it is more of an excuse to party!

A fun orange fact: in 1673, New York was briefly renamed New Orange when the Dutch occupied it in the Third Dutch-Anglo War. Big Apple would've been the Big Orange!

Orange food can give you super powers! Oranges, apricots, carrots, and pumpkins are just a few foods that contain carotenoids, which convert to Vitamin A. Vitamin A is needed for good vision in the dark.

Orange is also a color of warning: cones, jump suits, and a level below red in many warning systems. This owes to it's ability to jolt. Orange is a color that runs, it is a color that catches the eye. Kandinsky once described the color as 'red brought nearer to humanity by yellow,' which brings us back to the initial question: what came first, color or fruit?

The answer: fruit. China probably cultivated the fruit first, where it spread from the East to eventually Europe. English speakers first described it as a color in the 16th century. Prior to that, when keen eyes saw the color they would often name it yellow-red or the now-no-longer-used word, giolureade.

In my own art, I am a huge fan of orange. I use chrome orange and orange frequently, especially for shading. I love a good jolt, and am in good company: one of my favorite high-fashion houses use the color to package their beautiful scarves. Why? During WW2, the company could only find this color to make their packaging, and after they stuck with it. Can you guess the company?

For more information: The Brilliant History of Color in Art by Victoria Finley and The Secret Lives of Color by Kassia St. Clair