As we round up all the reasons why seasonal colour analysis is incorrect, this is what we are left with:
Seasonal colour palettes:
- Are incomplete within (part 1) and without (part 3);
- Contain a lot of inconsistent colours (part 4) as a result of an incorrect assumption about undertone (part 2);
- Are skewed to contain more pastels or darks (part 5), while in reality they have the potential for a full rainbow of hues in all tonal classes (part 6);
- Lack their complete neutral ranges (part 7), while the softer tonal classes are misrepresented entirely (part 9);
- Are inconsistent with how colours behave in nature (part 10); and unnecessarily dictate a pre-curated aesthetic (part 12), which makes seasonal analysis prone to analyse for affinity and tolerance, rather than actual colour harmony (part 11);
- Are handed to the client in the form of colour fan, the design of which is unsuitable for communicating colour harmony (part 8).
What does this mean for me?
Now I’ve tracked the science behind colour harmony, I’m still surprised, even a bit sorrowful, at how different it is from what I used to know. I loved the Seasons – still do, in fact – and wasn’t expecting any dramatic changes. I merely hoped I would be able to slightly improve the palettes I was used to.
Instead, I arrived in a radically different place. Part of writing this series of articles is me coming to terms with that. Thank you for reading along with me!
On the positive side, it has been very rewarding to see colour harmonies come together that I previously could only dream of. It has been so thrilling to test, and try, and gradually discover all these new possibilities. I learned so much. What a privilege! And what a rollercoaster!
All in all, I feel mostly grateful to the 12Seasons. For their time, they were an impressive step in the right direction. What’s more, the Seasons became the foundation that allowed me to keep learning, which eventually led to building Sphere. It’s like Isaac Newton said; ‘if I have seen farther, it is only because I stood on the shoulders of giants.’
But for the sake of my clients, I can’t go back. I cannot in good conscience offer seasonal colour analysis ever again – you deserve an analysis that actually works. Although I am totally fine with telling you your Season as part of a Sphere colour analysis (it’s very easy to translate a Sphere result to a corresponding Season). It will be the only way your friends will understand what palette you received, after all.
And how about you? How do you feel about learning colour harmony and what’s really in seasonal colour analysis? I would love to hear it.
If you’re curious about having a Sphere colour analysis, here is the information.
If you are an (aspiring) colour analyst and you are interested in becoming a licensed Sphere colour analyst, I have in-person colour analyst training under development. (Those with 12Blueprints or Sci/Art qualifications have a great basis for draping already and can suffice with remote training.) If you are interested, I am taking inquiries via email.