International Colour Day 2024: Know The History And Why It Is Celebrated

International Colour Day is celebrated every year on March 21, to celebrate the beauty and diversity of colours, their role and their impact on our lives. This day was first proposed in 2008 by the Portuguese Color Association and has since been celebrated by people all over the world. March 21 was particularly chosen as it is around the spring equinox. Around the equinox, the night and day are approximately equally long, symbolically relating to the complementary nature of light and darkness, light and shadow expressed in all human cultures.

The day is observed with several activities and events including art exhibitions, architectural projects, design, decoration, meetings, debates, scientific events, workshops on the use of colour and light and contests on colour and light design.

History of International Colour Day

In 2008, the Portuguese Color Association's president, Maria Joao Durao first presented the idea to the International Colour Association (AIC). The proposal was agreed upon in 2009 among the members of the AIC which is composed of national colour organizations and members representing over 30 countries.

In 2012, an international competition for the design of the International Colour Day logo was held in Taipei, Taiwan. As expressed by designer Hosanna Yau, from Hong Kong, "two circles form an eye, with an equal half of rainbow colour and black representing light and darkness, day and night, everyone feasts one's eye on the international colour day.''

Significance of International Colour Day

Needless to say, colours play a significant role in how we perceive and experience the world around us. The day is celebrated to raise awareness about the importance of colour in our daily lives and its impact on our emotions, culture, and communication. The event also urges us to appreciate the colours around which make our lives beautiful. 

An International Colour Day (ICD) has been considered appropriate since colour is, thanks to visual perception, one of the most influential phenomena in people's lives and also one of the channels that contribute most greatly to the perception of reality, AIC writes on its website.