How Layers of Color Lift Your Spirits
- Mar 4, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: Jan 19
Why balance—not brightness alone—is what truly nourishes us
Let's talk green.
Did you know there are more shades of green than any other color?
Just one slow glance outside during a lush season reveals it—soft spring greens, mossy depths, yellow-greens catching the sun, blue-greens settling into shade.
No wonder green has long symbolized rebirth, refresh, and renewal.
It asks very little of us. And gives a lot in return.
Green is one of the easiest colors for the eye to process.
Because it creates less visual strain, the nervous system can relax while taking it in.
That gentle, almost sedative quality is one reason green feels so good in our homes.
It doesn’t shout.
It steadies.
Even masters understood this balance.
Vincent van Gogh often mixed intense greens using Alizarin Crimson and Viridian.
Dark beneath light. Depth beneath brightness.
That’s how color gains dimension.
Light Advances. Dark Recedes.
When layers work together, something subtle happens.
The darker tones recede. The lighter ones advance.
Not because the dark disappears—but because it knows when to step back.
This balance isn’t just visual.
It’s personal.
My own life is made of layers—light and dark woven together.
There were seasons when the darker layers felt overwhelming.
Returning to college to become an artist, I carried three things with me:
A broken heart.
Humiliation.
A zero bank balance.
Those darker tones mattered.
They shaped me.
But they didn’t get to lead forever.
I learned to let lighter layers come forward—small, sustaining joys like:
-a quiet cup of te
-a warm bath
-a shared laugh
-time with family
-time with art.
The darker layers didn’t vanish. They simply receded.
A Gentle Reminder
Dark layers help make us who we are.
But they don’t have to control the composition.
We can learn from them.
And then choose what we bring forward.
So step outside.
Notice the endless greens.
The way light and shadow coexist without struggle.
And if it feels right, consider bringing a bit of that balance indoors—perhaps through art.
Let the layers remind you that harmony isn’t about eliminating darkness.
It’s about letting light have room to breathe.
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