Pretty in Pigment: Pink through the artist's eye
Colour psychology has been very well-documented, with pink not being an exception. Studies indicate that pink interiors tend to create a calming effect that decreases aggression and creates relaxation. This understanding has led to particular shades being applied in institutional settings. The colour "Baker-Miller Pink" or "Drunk-Tank Pink" has been used in correctional institutions to calm prisoner tempers .
Pink is sometimes employed in healthcare architecture to create relaxing spaces, which are believed to release some of the stress and help heal. Well-chosen pink shades can add to comfort and well-being, effectively showcasing the potential benefits of pink as a therapeutic colour when applied with caution.
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Jean-Honoré Fragonard's The Swing (1767)
In quite a number of classical paintings, pink was closely associated with femininity, romance, and purity. The pale pink was used by the artists to denote the ideal type of female beauty, in particular, the Renaissance and Rococo periods. Unique to the Rococo period was an explosion of pastel colours, with pink dominating the scene. It was the time of aristocratic magnificence, during which pink was used to denote softness, pleasure, and playfulness.
In his Rococo paintings, Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732–1806) frequently employed pink, emblematic of love, flirtation, and leisure. His work The Swing (1767) portrays a damsel in voluminous pink, a symbol of love and indulgence in freedom.
Pink decorated religious and mythological painting that indicated the divine, grace, and ethereal. Raphael's Madonna of the Pinks (c.1506), which showed the Virgin Mary holding pink carnations, symbolized, as was supposed, Christ and the Virgin's love for her son.
The real skin tone was frequently rendered in classical portraiture and nude paintings with a pink hue. Renaissance and Baroque artists used primary layers of pinks and reds to create a lifelike representation of the flesh.