Picture This: How Pictures Work

In Picture This, Bang explores the fundamental principle that a picture’s basic elements such as shapes, colors, and their arrangement, have the power to evoke specific emotional responses in the viewer. She demonstrates how this understanding can be harnessed to create more effective and meaningful visual communication.

One of the key ways Bang illustrates the emotional power of visual elements is through her discussion of color in evoking specific moods and associations. For instance, in commenting on the color of Little Red Riding Hood, she says, “We call red a warm color, bold, flashy; I feel danger, vitality, passion” (4). She contrasts red with purple by comparing the emotions that each evokes: “Purple is a milder, less aggressive color than red” (37). Bang also explores the psychological impact of black and white, noting that “both black and white are ‘noncolors,’ and both represent death” (88); black often symbolizes the unknown and the fears associated with it, while white signifies brightness and hope. She often lists contrasting emotions for each color, noting that cultural or narrative contexts can affect how colors are perceived. The clearest example of this is mourning colors—in Europe and the United States, black is used for mourning, while many East Asian cultures use white.