Color Preferences: Nature or Nurture

Yesterday I came across both a photo research project and a color preference study I found fascinating...especially after pondering my own family.

My daughter's birthday is next month and so far I know she will be receiving some Thomas trains, a wooden barn, a Madeline doll as well as a heap of Boden clothes (and not pink ones). My son received a joint gift for Christmas with my daughter of a doll house and school house, he has a doll he requested two years ago that he cares for and he daily checks on the strawberry plants he started two weeks ago.

So you could say that my children are about as gender-neutral as they come. But you wouldn't be surprised if you knew my husband and me...he's the 4-H graduate who is passionate about plants and I'm less than a froo-froo girl!

But given all of this, my son's favorite color is blue, turquoise blue. And my daughter's favorite color is orange, at least from what her brother and I can gather from her 23-month-old mouth. And those favorite colors fall in line with the Newcastle University study which states that color preference can be broken down into two elements: red-greenness and blue-yellowness. The study also explains that evolution may drive color preferences dating all the way back to the hunter-gatherer days.

Females were the primary gatherers and would have benefited from an ability to hone in on ripe, red fruits. And males may be driven to blue because a clear blue sky signaled good weather as well as a good water source.

So there is a nature argument for color preferences...but after viewing the photos here, I certainly think that there is an argument for a nurture explanation as well. Culture certainly exploits and compounds these natural preferences!

I've found that I spend more money on clothing for my children since they (as well as my husband and I) are not drawn to the frilly pink clothes for our daughter and the cheesy blue clothes featuring sports apparel on them available for our son at major retailers. But again, I don't know that our family represents your stereotypical male and female preferences...and I suppose those stores stock their shelves with what sells to the masses. After all, just look at these photos!

If these children's possessions strike a chord with you and look all too familiar, you may want to ponder your purchases as South Korean artist JeongMee Yoon did with her 5 year old daughter Seowoo...she started this documentary-esque photo study of children and their possessions.

So what do you think? Is your daugther naturally pretty in pink or has your son been nurtured to buck for blue? The answer may surprise you.

JeongMee Yoon's work is on view at the Jenkins Johnson Gallery in New York City through April 26th.