Color Blindness in Art

Color blindness, or color vision deficiency, affects about 1 in 12 men and 1 in 200 women. It is most commonly caused by a gene mutation on the X-chromosome but can occur due to accidents, age, medication, or a variety of other factors. Blue and yellow are considered color blind friendly, in most cases, as color blindness most often affects red and green hues. And yet, there are an astonishing number of celebrated artists who have been color vision deficient.

They may even owe their success to their deficiency, often utilizing colors in interesting or unusual ways, whether they realize it or not. Color blind artists include Claude Monet, Alexander Calder, and children's book illustrator Loren Long. Some even make the case that Vincent van Gogh was color blind, due to his unmatched ability to convey starlight, as color vision deficient individuals are much more sensitive to luminosity. Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg has always used blue for his social media interface since it is one of the few colors he can identify different shades of. While there are plenty of artists who are color vision deficient, there remain some international universities that reject these students, even sometimes requiring a doctor's note ascertaining their vision upon acceptance.

So how do they do it? Some artists utilize help from those around them to get a grasp on what colors they're using. Others, like Peter Milton, use a limited color palette, just working in black and white. Others use good old-fashioned intuition, while some are meticulous in labeling and mixing their colors. Some channel their passion into other media, like sculpture.

The art of the color vision deficient is yet another reminder that once art has left the hands of the artist, its interpretation and how it is viewed, in the most literal sense, is entirely individual. Many artists argue that their deficiency is in fact an advantage, giving them a leg up in conveying fine detail or in a more general sense, giving them direction in their career. As Edgar Degas once said, "I am convinced that these differences in vision are of no importance. One sees as one wishes to see. It's false, and it is that falsity that constitutes art."

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