BLACK Design: Color Denotes Quality
Color is the fun part of the world of design because it presents so many options to invoke emotions and moods. I have grown to appreciate a variety of saturated hues, but one of my favorites is BLACK. The primary colors, which are red, blue, and yellow, create a plethora of personas, but black is a deeply rooted, unbothered color; it is a solo hue that boasts the most depth and anointing; I tend to feel the most powerful, sexy, and sophisticated when I’m wearing it! The downfall of black is that it can represent a symbol of grief for others. Authoritative and mysterious, historically, the color has invoked overwhelming feelings of insecurity and distress for many; as humans, we have a tendency to fear what we don’t understand or what is not within our realm. As I heard someone once say, “we’re down on, what we’re not up on.”
Systemic oppression, through low quality design and customer service, has been used since segregation as an ill fitted solution to cope with this perverted admiration. This strategy, which is rooted in inadequacy, was designed to control the self-esteem of black people. Its purpose was and is to break the spirit in order to yield to a lesser spirit of defeat and to glorify its oppressors.
Hospitality Design
Black people were not allowed to walk through the front door of many restaurants; which is a subtle way to communicate inferiority.
Fashion Design
Black patrons were prohibited to try on clothing and shoes at retail stores. Nevertheless, black people had and still have a very strong buying power.
Interior Design
Black teachers used desks, chalk boards, and books that were previously used by white students; this was another subtle form of bullying perpetuated against vulnerable black children.
Urban Design
Currently, Title Loan businesses are built in predominately inner city neighborhoods for financing options; these companies are facilitated by financial institutions such as Wells Fargo and Bank of America.
I can relate to the color black because I have been a mystery to many since my establishment in 1983, but one can only prescribe to being who they are by nature. I have not always understood how my being could lead to the conjuring of such complex strategies, but I have learned that bullies only pursue you concerning the things that they admire the most! What they fail to understand is that “black is a deeply rooted, unbothered color; it is a solo hue that boasts the most depth and anointing.” Its root is invisible, but it is watered and nurtured by the hand of God.
No worries BLACK, the origin of thing is always criticized before it is duplicated. Pun Intended.