> Problem we had was that the grains of sand that were weather exposed where
> a distinctly different color than the tinting in the cement matrix. If you
> stood close to the wall your eye could not blend the two colors, but if 
> you
> stood in the street the two colors would blend.


My first project at the Kamloops Museum in 1999 was to have the three story 
building
painted.   It stood prominently at a bent street intersection, viewed easily
from all directions, but for decades had been a drab grey stucco with drab
blue trim.    I chose a colour (Farmhouse Yellow Ochre) that blended 
harmoniously with colours of
buildings in the foregrounds and backgrounds when viewed from a block away
in each direction, but that also stood out a bit from them all to call
attention to itself.   The effect of the colour focal point created a
neighbourhood that had not been visually present before.

Immediately after the paint was on the walls, public reaction began in
earnest.   Interestingly, it was equally positive and negative, but the 
strong vigour of the responses intrigued me.   Just then, I was reading 
about brain
chemistry and perception, and came across an article about how light effects
the emotional center of the brain, with increased light causing increased 
emotional activity.   Perhaps increased light from the greater reflectivity 
of the new paint was causing the great reaction in individuals, leading to 
sometimes emotional outbursts, both positive and negative, from normally 
staid personalities.   Even though the colour was the "right" colour for the 
neighbourhood, the wind-born sand blast effect of all the aged paint on the 
neighbours made the new paint stick out like a sore (or happy) thumb.   To 
help with public relations and to deflame the issue, I suggested to the 
concerned that good paint was like good wine, requiring time to age, and 
that they should be patient for six months before making their judgements. 
Sure enough, months later the comments dwindled off and after a year there 
was not a single comment again about the colour.   It became accepted as the 
patina developed to match the neighbours.   The architect owners of the big 
office building down the street even repainted its street facade and lobby 
to match our building colours, trying to capture the marketing value for 
themselves.

In retrospect, and after more brain science reading, I am more convinced 
than ever that it was the increased reflected light compared with the older 
neighbours that caused the high emotional response at first.

cp in bc

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