Secret #23 I Have Synesthesia; 15 Questions- Question 10
For 15 days, from March 16 to my birthday, March 31, I am planning to answer questions given to me by the viewers of this photostream. I am copying my friend Todd, who is doing it on Flickr and his blog on live journal. I think it’ll be fun, and interesting, hopefully others will think so, too.
Secret #23: I have Synesthesia
Question 10: What’s your favorite color?
I am a designer, so answering that question is both difficult and easy. I like all colors and use them as desired in whatever my creative work is, whether costumes, interior design, or some other crafty/artsy project. I especially like jewel tones, and the glint of silver and gold- I really like ruby red. I also like contrast of metallic tones against organic ones- very cool.
But- I have to say I like the color green most of all to surround myself with- I love the greens of forest glades, and spread-out lawns, of mossy walls and luxurious carpets. I like to see the sun shine through a broad leaf; I have painted my study forest green because I find it such a soothing color.
Mint greens, avocado greens, chartreuse- they have their value, but they aren’t favorites
Now I have a condition known as “Grapheme → color synesthesia,” whereby in my mind colors are associated with numbers and letters, so that adds an extra gloss on the colors question. I have been planning to write about that for a long time as one of my “30 Secrets in 30 Days” (that I have been writing for nearly two years now), so there is no time like the present:
As long as I can remember, I have associated colors with numbers and letters. I thought it was because when I was a baby, we had a play pen with letters and numbers around the edge and I supposed that the numbers and letters had been those colors in plastic, but as I grew older I realized the colors didn’t match what would be on a play pen.
The colors associated with numbers and letters are always the same- I can ignore it, but if I consider it closely in my mind it always comes back. The photo chart for this entry approximates what I "see" when I see the letter or number. 1s are white, 2s green; 3s yellow; 4s blue; 5s red; 6s brown; 7s orange; 8s, black; 9s ochre; 0s white or clear. 15 is white and red, 27 green and orange, 82 black and green.
Letters have many more duplicates and subtleties in shading: A green; B blue; C yellow; D red; E pale yellow; F brown; G dark green; H dark ochre; I white; J lighter ochre/tan; K tan or sand color; L light orange; M maroon/magenta; N brown, O light orange or white; P purple; Q off white, like eggshell; R orange; S black; T tawny/tan; U flesh/peach; V light purple or vermillion; W orange/rust; X black; Y pale tan, like a “k;” Z black, but lighter than “X” or “S”.
Because of these letters I “see” (sense) the months of the year in certain colors, too: January, July and June are all ochre-colored, with hints of white or yellow; February and November are brown; March and May are maroon and magenta, respectively, April is a lighter shade of green than August, September is black (with some blue from the “b”), October is orange (Halloween?), December is red. When I kept an online diary in html from 1999 to 2005, the color backgrounds for the months were always slight variations of the same colors because using any other color for a month's background just didn't seem to "fit."
Do I use this personal color symbolism in my design work? No, at least not so far- it usually doesn’t intrude upon my design demands. For a long time I thought I was the only person who “saw” colors in letters and numbers, but now I see it is quite common, especially among families. Though when I explained it to my immediate family they all had blank looks on their faces, except my brother who thought I was simply crazy!
Is anyone else out there a synesthete, too? You will know what I mean about letters and numbers immediately. Or do a search on everyone's downloads about synesthesia- about 1 in 23 people have the condition in some form!
Secret #23 I Have Synesthesia; 15 Questions- Question 10
For 15 days, from March 16 to my birthday, March 31, I am planning to answer questions given to me by the viewers of this photostream. I am copying my friend Todd, who is doing it on Flickr and his blog on live journal. I think it’ll be fun, and interesting, hopefully others will think so, too.
Secret #23: I have Synesthesia
Question 10: What’s your favorite color?
I am a designer, so answering that question is both difficult and easy. I like all colors and use them as desired in whatever my creative work is, whether costumes, interior design, or some other crafty/artsy project. I especially like jewel tones, and the glint of silver and gold- I really like ruby red. I also like contrast of metallic tones against organic ones- very cool.
But- I have to say I like the color green most of all to surround myself with- I love the greens of forest glades, and spread-out lawns, of mossy walls and luxurious carpets. I like to see the sun shine through a broad leaf; I have painted my study forest green because I find it such a soothing color.
Mint greens, avocado greens, chartreuse- they have their value, but they aren’t favorites
Now I have a condition known as “Grapheme → color synesthesia,” whereby in my mind colors are associated with numbers and letters, so that adds an extra gloss on the colors question. I have been planning to write about that for a long time as one of my “30 Secrets in 30 Days” (that I have been writing for nearly two years now), so there is no time like the present:
As long as I can remember, I have associated colors with numbers and letters. I thought it was because when I was a baby, we had a play pen with letters and numbers around the edge and I supposed that the numbers and letters had been those colors in plastic, but as I grew older I realized the colors didn’t match what would be on a play pen.
The colors associated with numbers and letters are always the same- I can ignore it, but if I consider it closely in my mind it always comes back. The photo chart for this entry approximates what I "see" when I see the letter or number. 1s are white, 2s green; 3s yellow; 4s blue; 5s red; 6s brown; 7s orange; 8s, black; 9s ochre; 0s white or clear. 15 is white and red, 27 green and orange, 82 black and green.
Letters have many more duplicates and subtleties in shading: A green; B blue; C yellow; D red; E pale yellow; F brown; G dark green; H dark ochre; I white; J lighter ochre/tan; K tan or sand color; L light orange; M maroon/magenta; N brown, O light orange or white; P purple; Q off white, like eggshell; R orange; S black; T tawny/tan; U flesh/peach; V light purple or vermillion; W orange/rust; X black; Y pale tan, like a “k;” Z black, but lighter than “X” or “S”.
Because of these letters I “see” (sense) the months of the year in certain colors, too: January, July and June are all ochre-colored, with hints of white or yellow; February and November are brown; March and May are maroon and magenta, respectively, April is a lighter shade of green than August, September is black (with some blue from the “b”), October is orange (Halloween?), December is red. When I kept an online diary in html from 1999 to 2005, the color backgrounds for the months were always slight variations of the same colors because using any other color for a month's background just didn't seem to "fit."
Do I use this personal color symbolism in my design work? No, at least not so far- it usually doesn’t intrude upon my design demands. For a long time I thought I was the only person who “saw” colors in letters and numbers, but now I see it is quite common, especially among families. Though when I explained it to my immediate family they all had blank looks on their faces, except my brother who thought I was simply crazy!
Is anyone else out there a synesthete, too? You will know what I mean about letters and numbers immediately. Or do a search on everyone's downloads about synesthesia- about 1 in 23 people have the condition in some form!