The so-called 4 color type system in accordance with the four seasons is the classic among all systems used by color consultants. All our products can be used for 4 color type consultations.
The basis for today’s color analysis systems was created by art teacher Johannes Itten. An experiment with his students in the 1920s revealed that a certain group of colors matches the appearance of every individual person. Itten named these color groups according to their occurrence in nature – i.e. after the four seasons – and so the system of Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter colors was born, although it had not yet been applied to clothing, make-up and accessories. The color consulting concept was formulated much more recently in the United States.
Spring: Plants begin to bloom freshly and powerfully and the days become warmer and brighter. Accordingly, Spring colors are light, bright and warm – i.e. they have a strong undertone of yellow.
Summer: The long, bright days of summer are sometimes hazy and soft, which is reflected by bright but subdued colors. N.B.: These colors also have a cool tinge to them – i.e. they have strong blue undertones – which is why we like to speak of an analogy.
Autumn: “All the colors of autumn leaves” is a good way to describe the warm colors of autumn. The days are getting shorter, so the colors are also darker and more subdued.
Winter: Blue sky, icy temperatures – a bright winter day, in spite of the long nights. The colors of winter are characteristically cool, luminous and dark.
The three dimensions of the classification system that we apply to our products consist of brightness (light and dark), temperature (warm and cold) and saturation (clear and subdued). Every color family thus has three characteristics.
