Pink

Pink has always been my favourite colour.

I couldn't tell you exactly why. According to (HunterLab 2024), pink is commonly associated with compassion, nurturing, romance and optimism. Perhaps that explains part of its appeal. Perhaps it is because pink refuses to apologise for being noticed. Whatever the reason, pink has been a constant throughout my life, appearing in memories, objects and moments that have somehow stayed with me. I think of the bright pink jacket that always makes me feel happy. I think of dyeing my hair pink for my thirtieth birthday. I think of fairy floss, musk sticks, bubblegum and countless pink objects that have found their way into my life over the years, including my Pretty in Pink Barbie. Pink has always felt playful, confident and a little rebellious. It is a colour that stands out and seems perfectly comfortable doing so.

The more I learnt about pink, the more interesting it became.

One of the first things I discovered was that pink has not always meant what it means today. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, pink was often considered more suitable for boys because it was viewed as a stronger version of red, while blue was considered softer and more appropriate for girls (Chrisman-Campbell 2017). The colour associations we take for granted today are quite recent (Corneliussen 2014).

Thomas Gainsborough, Young Francis Nicholls (the Pink boy), 1782. Oil on canvas, 167.5 × 117cm. https://arthive.com/thomasgainsborough

I also discovered that the word pink originally referred to a flower. The colour takes its name from a group of flowering plants in the carnation family known as "pinks" (HunterLab 2024). Somehow that feels fitting. Pink has always felt more like a flower than a colour on a chart.

One of the things I find most fascinating is that pink does not technically exist as a single wavelength of light. Unlike red, blue or green, pink is what scientists call a non-spectral colour.

There is no single wavelength that creates it. Instead, the brain combines information from different parts of the visible spectrum and produces the sensation of pink (Moyer 2018).

As someone whose art explores memory, perception and Aphantasia, I find that idea particularly compelling. Pink only exists because the brain creates it. In many ways, memory feels similar. I cannot revisit my past through mental images. Instead, memories survive as fragments, stories, facts and objects that my mind pieces together into something meaningful.

Did you know that pink has also had an unexpected role in psychology? During the 1970s, researchers claimed that a particular shade called Baker-Miller Pink could reduce aggression and anxiety (Perryman 2021). The colour became so famous that prisons, sporting facilities and holding cells were painted pink in an attempt to calm people down. It even earned the nickname "Drunk Tank Pink" (Remo Tulliani 2023).

The colour also appears in some surprising places in nature. Flamingos are not born pink at all. They begin life grey and gradually develop their colour from pigments found in the algae and crustaceans they eat (Meyer 2024). Australia is also home to several naturally pink lakes, including Lake Hillier in Western Australia, where microorganisms and algae create the lake's remarkable colour (Cassella 2016).

As a Western Australian, I was particularly pleased to discover that the Argyle Diamond Mine in the Kimberley region produced more than ninety per cent of the world's pink diamonds before closing in 2020 (Becker 2024).

Pink diamonds are among the rarest gemstones on Earth, making them highly sought after by collectors.

Even Barbie's relationship with pink is more recent than many people realise. The first Barbie doll, released in 1959, wore a black-and-white striped swimsuit rather than pink. The strong association between Barbie and pink developed over the decades that followed (Lang 2023).

Around the world, pink carries different meanings. In Japan, the pink blossoms of cherry trees symbolise the fleeting nature of life. Their beauty is celebrated not because it lasts, but because it doesn't (Fitzgerald 2016).

For me, pink is more than a colour. It is a favourite jacket. Pink hair. Fairy floss. Confidence. Optimism. A reminder that standing out is not always a bad thing.

Perhaps fittingly, my favourite colour is one that only truly exists because the brain creates it.

To view artworks featuring the colour pink click or tap here.

Sources and Further Reading

Becker, V 2024, Pink Diamonds, Argyle Pink Diamonds, viewed 9 June 2026, https://argylepinkdiamonds.com.au/diamonds/.

Cassella, C 2016, Australia's Pink Lakes, Australian Geographic, 20 December, viewed 9 June 2026, https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2016/12/australias-pink-lakes/.

Chrisman-Campbell, K 2017, When Pink Was for Boys, Textile Ranger, 20 July, viewed 9 June 2026, https://textileranger.com/2017/07/20/when-pink-was-for-boys/.

Corneliussen, E 2014, The Many Manifestations of the Color Pink, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 February, viewed 9 June 2026, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/many-manifestations-color-pink-180950336/.

Fitzgerald, T 2016, The Fleeting Beauty of the Cherry Blossom, Thomas Fitzgerald Photography Blog, 18 May, viewed 9 June 2026, https://blog.thomasfitzgeraldphotography.com/blog/2016/5/the-fleeting-beauty-of-the-cherry-blossom.

HunterLab 2024, The Color Pink, HunterLab, viewed 9 June 2026, https://www.hunterlab.com/en/blog/the-color-pink/.

Lang, C 2023, How Barbiecore Took Over Fashion and Pop Culture, Time, 18 July, viewed 9 June 2026, https://time.com/6290606/barbiecore-trend-history/.

Meyer, J 2024, What Color Are Flamingos When They're Born?, The Popular Flamingo, viewed 9 June 2026, https://thepopularflamingo.com/en-au/blogs/posts/what-color-are-flamingos-when-theyre-born.

Moyer, M 2018, Stop This Absurd War on the Color Pink, Scientific American, 7 March, viewed 9 June 2026, https://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/observations/stop-this-absurd-war-on-the-color-pink/.

Perryman, L 2021, The Colour Bible: The Definitive Guide to Colour in Art and Design, Octopus Publishing Group, London.

Profusek, EJ & Rainey, JB 1987, 'Effects of Baker-Miller Pink and Red on state anxiety, grip strength and motor precision', Perceptual and Motor Skills, vol. 65, no. 3, pp. 941–942.

Remo Tulliani 2023, Drunk Tank Pink: The Colour That Calms Aggression, Remo Since 1988, viewed 9 June 2026, https://remosince1988.com/blogs/stories/drunk-tank-pink.