Who has never heard the famous expression "Blue for boys and pink for girls"? This sentence is nowadays considered to be sexist, but the clichés around the colour pink still stand. Indeed, the colour is linked to femininity, romance, seduction, happiness, tenderness and youth.
However, as pink is a derivative of red, a colour symbolizing power, it was worn as much by men as by women in the 18th century. As red was one of the most expensive dyes of the time, it was a symbol of opulence and wealth. And by extension, it was the same for pink.
In fact, if blue was to be attributed to a gender, it was even more for girls, since it referred to the Virgin Mary, traditionally depicted in blue in Christian imagery. The colour pink, derived from the powerful red therefore, was rather put forward in men.
In his book “Le Petit Livre des Couleurs”, Michel Pastoureau explains that pink can however be seen as a bland version of the colour red – a red that has been stripped of its power. A colour that therefore corresponds better to women, much less considered than men. It takes on a new symbolism, that of gentleness and tenderness, hence the expression "seeing life in pink".
At the end of the 19th century, in the era of department stores and commerce, this feminine side was more asserted by marketing as we see it through the logos of major brands using mainly the colour pink: Closer, Cosmopolitan, Barbie , Tati, Etam, Victoria's Secret, Eden Park...
When we consider the colour pink, we can also think about “Octobre rose”, an annual communication campaign aimed at raising awareness of breast cancer screening and raising funds for research. The symbol of this event is a pink ribbon.
Another thing that could come to our minds would be the AIDS epidemic, which was called “peste rose” (“pink plague”) in France when it started, as it mainly affected homosexuals. Today, after having, for a time, claimed the colour pink as a symbol of their community, gay people have gathered around the rainbow symbol, to underline their diversity and assert their right to their sexual orientation.
Photo on Unsplash by Annie Spratt
Comments