Searching

for the
Rainbow

SEARCHING
FOR THE
RAINBOW

A visual interpretation of basic colour terms

through the use of Google Image Search

Eleanor Maclure

Introduction

The philosopher Wittgenstein famously asked How do I know

that this color is red? It would be an answer to say: I have learnt
English. But how do we know what is red? In todays digital age
perhaps a more pertinent response would be: Google it.
For many the internet has become our primary source of
information, it is the foundation of our knowledge economy.
Largely inclusive and participatory, as an entity it represents the
culmination of everything that has been written, posted and
uploaded, with each new contribution slightly altering the shape
of the whole. But how does Google know what is red? Tags,
Search Engine Optimisation and complex algorithms now create
the precedence for the information we receive when we search
for something. Search engines are able to dictate the type of
information we consume, influencing our perceptions of what is
important with the ranking of their search results.
The use of Google image search as a tool to provide a visual
interpretation of colour terms began as no more than an exercise
in understanding, to enable me to progress with other research,
it was a means to an end. However, repetition of the process
began to reveal both the changing nature of the internet and the
similarities and differences between the colours in the images
retrieved by each search. Although translated through Googles
algorithms, collectively, the images represent the level of
understanding of colour and colour terms by those posting them,
tagging them or writing the accompanying text.
The methodology for this exercise involved inputting each of
the eleven basic colour terms, defined by Berlin & Kay, into
Google Image Search with the addition of the word colour.
This concession was an undesirable but necessary consequence
of the number of high profile celebrities with colour terms in

their names, such as the rapper Chris Brown and the singer
Pink. I then took (without exception) the first thirty images from
the search results, as a foundation to work with and analyse
using image manipulation processes. The images were indexed
using Colourphon, resulting in a 9 x 9 grid of colour. They were
blurred with a specific and constant amount of Gaussian blur in
Photoshop and finally, also using Photoshop, the RGB values for
the pixels in each image were averaged to give a solid block of
colour.
As a body of work this book presents a visual representation
of each colour term, mediated by Google, and functions as a
snapshot of colour on the Internet that due to its constantly
shifting nature, can never be replicated exactly. It shows not only
the variety of responses to the names of colours but also the level
of consensus across the range of images. It allows the reader to
appreciate how the colours and images transform and mutate
with each of the different processes applied, as they move from
defined forms, into indistinguishable shapes, to a solid, uniform
block of colour. This method is but one of the many possible ways
of exploring the relationship between colour and language but it
one that is truly a reflection of our digital age.

Searching
for the
Rainbow

Pink

PINK

SEARCH RESULTS

PINK

SEARCH RESULTS

PINK

SEARCH RESULTS

PINK

SEARCH RESULTS

PINK

PIXELATED

PINK

PIXELATED

PINK

PIXELATED

PINK

PIXELATED

PINK

BLURRED

PINK

BLURRED

PINK

BLURRED

PINK

BLURRED

PINK

COLOUR AVERAGED

PINK

COLOUR AVERAGED

PINK

COLOUR AVERAGED

PINK

COLOUR AVERAGED

Red

RED

SEARCH RESULTS

RED

SEARCH RESULTS

RED

SEARCH RESULTS

RED

SEARCH RESULTS

RED

PIXELATED

RED

PIXELATED

RED

PIXELATED

RED

PIXELATED

RED

BLURRED

RED

BLURRED

RED

BLURRED

RED

BLURRED

RED

COLOUR AVERAGED

RED

COLOUR AVERAGED

RED

COLOUR AVERAGED

RED

COLOUR AVERAGED

Orange

ORANGE

SEARCH RESULTS

ORANGE

SEARCH RESULTS

ORANGE

SEARCH RESULTS

ORANGE

SEARCH RESULTS

ORANGE

PIXELATED

ORANGE

PIXELATED

ORANGE

PIXELATED

ORANGE

PIXELATED

ORANGE

BLURRED

ORANGE

BLURRED

ORANGE

BLURRED

ORANGE

BLURRED

ORANGE

COLOUR AVERAGED

ORANGE

COLOUR AVERAGED

ORANGE

COLOUR AVERAGED

ORANGE

COLOUR AVERAGED

Yellow

YELLOW

SEARCH RESULTS

YELLOW

SEARCH RESULTS

YELLOW

SEARCH RESULTS

YELLOW

SEARCH RESULTS

YELLOW

PIXELATED

YELLOW

PIXELATED

YELLOW

PIXELATED

YELLOW

PIXELATED

YELLOW

BLURRED

YELLOW

BLURRED

YELLOW

BLURRED

YELLOW

BLURRED

YELLOW

COLOUR AVERAGED

YELLOW

COLOUR AVERAGED

YELLOW

COLOUR AVERAGED

YELLOW

COLOUR AVERAGED

Green

GREEN

SEARCH RESULTS

GREEN

SEARCH RESULTS

GREEN

SEARCH RESULTS

GREEN

SEARCH RESULTS

GREEN

PIXELATED

GREEN

PIXELATED

GREEN

PIXELATED

GREEN

PIXELATED

GREEN

BLURRED

GREEN

BLURRED

GREEN

BLURRED

GREEN

BLURRED

GREEN

COLOUR AVERAGED

GREEN

COLOUR AVERAGED

GREEN

COLOUR AVERAGED

GREEN

COLOUR AVERAGED

Blue

BLUE

SEARCH RESULTS

BLUE

SEARCH RESULTS

BLUE

SEARCH RESULTS

BLUE

SEARCH RESULTS

BLUE

PIXELATED

BLUE

PIXELATED

BLUE

PIXELATED

BLUE

PIXELATED

BLUE

BLURRED

BLUE

BLURRED

BLUE

BLURRED

BLUE

BLURRED

BLUE

COLOUR AVERAGED

BLUE

COLOUR AVERAGED

BLUE

COLOUR AVERAGED

BLUE

COLOUR AVERAGED

Purple

PURPLE

SEARCH RESULTS

PURPLE

SEARCH RESULTS

PURPLE

SEARCH RESULTS

PURPLE

SEARCH RESULTS

PURPLE

PIXELATED

PURPLE

PIXELATED

PURPLE

PIXELATED

PURPLE

PIXELATED

PURPLE

BLURRED

PURPLE

BLURRED

PURPLE

BLURRED

PURPLE

BLURRED

PURPLE

COLOUR AVERAGED

PURPLE

COLOUR AVERAGED

PURPLE

COLOUR AVERAGED

PURPLE

COLOUR AVERAGED

Brown

BROWN

SEARCH RESULTS

BROWN

SEARCH RESULTS

BROWN

SEARCH RESULTS

BROWN

SEARCH RESULTS

BROWN

PIXELATED

BROWN

PIXELATED

BROWN

PIXELATED

BROWN

PIXELATED

BROWN

BLURRED

BROWN

BLURRED

BROWN

BLURRED

BROWN

BLURRED

BROWN

COLOUR AVERAGED

BROWN

COLOUR AVERAGED

BROWN

COLOUR AVERAGED

BROWN

COLOUR AVERAGED

Black

BLACK

SEARCH RESULTS

BLACK

SEARCH RESULTS

BLACK

SEARCH RESULTS

BLACK

SEARCH RESULTS

BLACK

PIXELATED

BLACK

PIXELATED

BLACK

PIXELATED

BLACK

PIXELATED

BLACK

BLURRED

BLACK

BLURRED

BLACK

BLURRED

BLACK

BLURRED

BLACK

COLOUR AVERAGED

BLACK

COLOUR AVERAGED

BLACK

COLOUR AVERAGED

BLACK

COLOUR AVERAGED

Grey

GREY

SEARCH RESULTS

GREY

SEARCH RESULTS

GREY

SEARCH RESULTS

GREY

SEARCH RESULTS

GREY

PIXELATED

GREY

PIXELATED

GREY

PIXELATED

GREY

PIXELATED

GREY

BLURRED

GREY

BLURRED

GREY

BLURRED

GREY

BLURRED

GREY

COLOUR AVERAGED

GREY

COLOUR AVERAGED

GREY

COLOUR AVERAGED

GREY

COLOUR AVERAGED

White

WHITE

SEARCH RESULTS

WHITE

SEARCH RESULTS

WHITE

SEARCH RESULTS

WHITE

SEARCH RESULTS

WHITE

PIXELATED

WHITE

PIXELATED

WHITE

PIXELATED

WHITE

PIXELATED

WHITE

BLURRED

WHITE

BLURRED

WHITE

BLURRED

WHITE

BLURRED

WHITE

COLOUR AVERAGED

WHITE

COLOUR AVERAGED

WHITE

COLOUR AVERAGED

WHITE

COLOUR AVERAGED