Green: The History of a Color

Histoire d'une couleur #3

by Michel Pastoureau

In this beautiful and richly illustrated book, the acclaimed author of Blue and Black presents a fascinating and revealing history of the color green in European societies from prehistoric times to today. Examining the evolving place of green in art, clothes, literature, religion, science, and everyday life, Michel Pastoureau traces how culture has profoundly changed the perception and meaning of the color over millennia—and how we misread cultural, social, and art history when we assume that colors have always signified what they do today.

Filled with entertaining and enlightening anecdotes, Green shows that the color has been ambivalent: a symbol of life, luck, and hope, but also disorder, greed, poison, and the devil. Chemically unstable, green pigments were long difficult to produce and even harder to fix. Not surprisingly, the color has been associated with all that is changeable and fleeting: childhood, love, and money. Only in the Romantic period did green definitively become the color of nature.

Pastoureau also explains why the color was connected with the Roman emperor Nero, how it became the color of Islam, why Goethe believed it was the color of the middle class, why some nineteenth-century scholars speculated that the ancient Greeks couldn’t see green, and how the color was denigrated by Kandinsky and the Bauhaus.

More broadly, Green demonstrates that the history of the color is, to a large degree, one of dramatic reversal: long absent, ignored, or rejected, green today has become a ubiquitous and soothing presence as the symbol of environmental causes and the mission to save the planet.

With its striking design and compelling text, Green will delight anyone who is interested in history, culture, art, fashion, or media.

Genres: Art, History, Nonfiction, Art History, Design, Cultural, Microhistory

240 pages, Hardcover

First published October 17, 2013

About the author

Pastoureau was born in Paris on 17 June 1947. He studied at the École Nationale des Chartes, a college for prospective archivists and librarians. After writing his 1972 thesis about heraldic bestiaries in the Middle Ages, he worked in the coins, medals and antiquities department of the French National Library until 1982.
Since 1983 he has held the Chair of History of Western Symbolism (Chaire d'histoire de la symbolique occidentale) and is a director of studies at the Sorbonne's École pratique des hautes études. He is an academician of the Académie internationale d'héraldique (International Academy of Heraldry) and vice-president of the Société française d'héraldique (French Heraldry Society). When he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Lausanne in 1996, he was described as an eminent scholar who has made a radical contribution to several disciplines.
Professor Pastoureau has published widely, including work on the history of colours, animals, symbols, and the Knights of the Round Table. He has also written on emblems and heraldry, as well as sigillography and numismatics.

Reviews

[verbava · Rating 3 out of 5]

з одного боку, пастуро вкрай захопливо – і захоплено – розповідає про кольори, а по зеленому ще й видно, що він сам його любить. він підкреслює деталі, на які я раніше не звертала уваги: наприклад, що вода на середньовічних мапах найчастіше зелена (це чудово вписується в іншу символіку кольору – він, зокрема, про юність, свіжість і мінливість) або що для середньовічних людей папуги були «зеленими пташками» – і в манускриптах справді трапляються самі зелені папуги; вочевидь, інших тоді в європу не привозили. пастуро показує багато цікавих дрібничок, за які запросто можна пробачити повтори – не тільки на перетинах із іншими частинами кольорового циклу, а й усередині книжки (про воду я добре запам'ятала, бо вона згадана щонайменше тричі).

а з іншого, він бере й ілюструє тезу про липу як любовне дерево – «до наших днів дійшли численні мініатюри хііі-хіv століть, на яких зображені побачення під липою» – отакою сторінкою. я, звісно, багато чого не знаю про середньовічні побачення, але ж не аж так. і після цього довіряти різним цікавим дрібничкам, особливо там, де посилань нема або вони на інші тексти самого пастуро, стає зовсім непросто.

[Michael Finocchiaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each of Pastoureau's books on colors (Blue, Black, Green, Red, and most recently Yellow/Gold) are fascinating studies of history, art and sociology. There is a bit of overlap between them, so it is better to space out your reading rather than read all of them in one go. I read Blue and Black back-to-back and as great as they were, I waited a good year before reading Green which was truly excellent. I learned a wealth of things and you will too. It is fascinating how the perception of color has changed over time and what qualities have been associated with certain colors variously over time. Green has been the color of nature but both a positive and a negative color. It is the color of money as well. More later...

[Vuk Vuckovic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sve knjige istoričara boja Mišela Pastura: Crna, Plava, Zelena, Žuta i Crvena su neverovatne, a Službeni glasnik je stvarno izdao to šmekerski i u luksuznim tomovima (sa Brankom Kukićem kao specijalnim urednikom edicije, koji je poznat po svedenosti - koju obožavam - svih izdanja iz Gradca, ali eto, kad ima resurse i on ga izluksuzira)

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was really good. Less repetition than in the black volume (red and yellow still to come; then he will supposedly be done). Quite interesting history of painting, such as why certain colors were favored at certain times, and what artists had to do in order to get paints of various colors. Green has a very odd history. Considered bland and boring, it then became a "bad" color but now has a bit of a messianic complex. Pastoureau is again hard on the Reformers for their dislike of color, although at one point he quotes Calvin at length, and Calvin comes off as far more sensible and modern than his Lutheran counterparts.

Would have liked the book even better if Jane Fonda weren't on the cover.

[misael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Para o historiador, os problemas da cor são essencialmente problemas sociais. Por isso, para falar do tema de forma pertinente, ele deve limitar-se a uma área cultural específica, e não enveredar por generalizações simplistas, nem cair num cientismo redutor, apoiado em considerações neurobiológicas mal assimiladas. O homem não vive sozinho, mas em sociedade.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Green corresponds to what represents, in human society, the bourgeoisie; it is an immobile element, self-satisfied, limited in all directions. This green is similar to a fat cow." [Kadinsky on the colour green in 1911] (p. 202)

"Formerly neglected, rejected, unloved, green has become the messianic color: it is going to save the world." [Pastoureau on the changes of attitudes to green] (p. 221)

Above all this book shows the changes in attitudes over the centuries to the colour green in Western society, from ancient times up until today. Both for green in itself, but also in comparison with colours in general - what they symbolized (when such signals were much stronger than they are today, even if they do still exist), how they were used and how they were perceived. It is a fascinating journey for a colour which really has had to come to stand for quite different things. There is everything from the people (against the ruling classes), fickleness and bad luck, poison, nurturing and nature. Some of this is just strange to a modern mind (how many now connect Judas with the colour green, for example?), others are still with us.

This is quite an intriguing study on the changes of how the world is perceived and how everything changes over time - including how to view a colour. It is really disproving the statement made by Johannes Itten addressing Bauhaus students in 1922:

"The laws of colors are eternal, absolute, timeless, as valid in the past as at the present moment." (p. 203) Pastoureau does not agree, nor can any reader of this book.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pastoureau has made no secret of the fact that green is his favorite color, so his study of "Green" does, at moments, feel a little indulgent. He seems to repeat himself a bit more than he did in his amazing cultural history of "Blue," or the equally compelling "Black." But Pastoureau is so insightful into the cultural significance of color, and the books are so beautifully designed and illustrated, that I'm inclined to be indulgent, too. As usual, he manages to reveal details from the history of colors that provide new insights into both specific historical periods (like the proliferation of new color names in the so-called Age of Enlightenment, as a proliferation of grays, pinks, and beiges became popular - my favorite is "Paris crap") as well as clarifying certain aspects of art history (the struggle that mid-19th-century artists had with achieving green, because mixing Prussian blue and chrome yellow yielded a fugitive pigment that turned brown over time). Anyone who has read Pastoureau's other works will want to have this continuation. I hope he'll eventually write the book about green's complimentary color, red.

[Gala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Остання книга літнього челенджу (і я повертаюся до планів і обов'язків) - позиція "книга, що з'являлася в стрічці новин".

Почитати про історію улюбленого кольору бул цікаво, я дізналася багато нового. Проте місцями автор дуже багатосівний, хоча по суті нічого не повідомляє. Мені подобається, що він підкреслює, що його гіпотези - лише гіпотези, а не однозначна істина і вказує, коли не має достатніх фактів для того щоб встановити те, чи те.

[Yevheniia S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

В целом все хорошо, но как будто конкретно эта работа меня меньше увлекла, чем про синий и чёрный, и будто больше появляется моментов "а мы этого не знаем", которое меня так раздражало в истории полосок.

[Marion · Rating 2 out of 5]

beaucoup de répétitions
j'ai juste appris que le vert peut avoir comme signification tout et n'importe quoi, que certains l'aiment, d'autres le détestent

[Therese L. Broderick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cover photo of this book is tantalizing, the author's discussions are tantalizing, the color illustrations throughout this coffee-table-sized book are tantalizing. Written by a scholar, this 240-page historical treatment is nevertheless lively and appealing to the general reader; you can fruitfully enjoy its somewhat chronological chapters even if you browse them non-sequentially. Certainly, as you would expect, the art history of paint pigments is unfolded within these pages, but so too is the story of green within other realms of religion, folk lore, warfare, poetry and stage plays, the fabric industry, medicine, national flags, chemistry, fashion, sports competitions, and ecology. This book delighted me with so many instances of delicious and little-known facts, with so many moments of intellectual glee, that I hesitate to raise two, perhaps frivolous, complaints: One -- this 2013/2014 publication makes no mention of what role is now played by green in the world of cyberspace, photo altering, website design, or digital colorization (in fact, the book includes nearly no website or other internet citations). Two -- the book largely neglects the gigantic world-wide automobile industry which, it could be argued, has manufactured cars in almost every color imaginable, EXCEPT, curiously, a wide range of greens (acknowledging, of course, the forest green of Subaru, the jungle green of Jeep, and the flagrantly yellow-peagreen of a 2015 Kia.) My final note -- MANY THANKS to Jody Gladding, the translator of the author's original French.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the other books in the series more. Green seems some how insignificant when compared to the other colors that I have read so far. It is a color that seems closely related to blue, both in my mind, and historically according to the book. Maybe it would have been possible to treat green as a sub-part of "Blue". Still worth a read, particularly since the books go quickly. I should warn the books are expensive and short. Best to get from your library, if they have circulating, not reference, copies.

[Yoruichi · Rating 5 out of 5]

d'instinct, ce n'est pas la couleur dont l'histoire m'intéressait le plus. mais il s'avère qu'elle est aussi passionnante que pour le noir. d'ailleurs, ce livre contient moins de jugement de valeurs sur la fin que pour noir: histoire d'une couleur.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous book about how green was viewed throughout the ages, what the color signified, and why it went in and out of favor. Very interesting tidbits throughout the book but also a LOT of obscure detail that might lose the everyday reader.

[Jérémie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Après avoir lu le bleu, le noir (passionnant) je suis passé au vert. Encore une fois l'impression d'être moins bête une fois le livre fini.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Formerly neglected, rejected, unloved, green has become the messianic color. It is going to save the world” (211).

[lucile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michel Pastoureau a du beef contre la classification couleur primaires vs couleurs secondaires

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I'm starting to write my review I'm not quite sure how to rate this book but maybe if I talk it out, perhaps I'll know by the end.

To start, when the title says "History" and it's really not joking! Sheesh, I mean, the author dropped the word historiography multiple times in the opening pages and generally went about his scholarly way from there. To put it another way, this book is not like the popular micro-histories I've enjoyed in the past. The author is, above all else, a historical scholar, and this is written in a very, very scholarly historical way. Despite that (somewhat stuffy style), it was dripping in fabulous tidbits. I learned so much about the history of the color green!

Actually, that brings me one of my biggest petty annoyances with the book. The author clearly delineates in the introduction that this is going to be the European history of the color green. Fine, I respect sticking to an area of expertise and not overreaching. But I admit that I almost stopped reading at that point because I felt this author never even had a stray thought to consider calling it Green: The European History of a Color [The author is lucky that it reminded me of Eddie Izzard's joke about Europe being where the history comes from.]. There were a few other bits of Euro-centrism that tried my patience (e.g. Babar the elephant dude in green) but I tried to be patient.

To re-emphasize, this really was a deep dive into the European history of green. A continent which may have been the focus of various "world" history classes from my high school and college years but whose history is way, way beyond me [I confess, I'm not your typical history-loving librarian]. LOL, the author would mention the Duke of Chutney or the Red Barony or something and I would stop and ponder if I was supposed to have any familiarity with that person. I'd look it up in the index and verify some of those details - but wait! There is no index in the book so I'll leave you to speculate who he was talking about.

But I guess it's worth repeating; I really did learn a lot about green across the history of Europe. And if one wants an interesting lens in which to explore the history of a continent, color is actually a great vehicle as it crossed paths with religion, business, society and more. Plus, the book is an aesthetic delight filled with beautiful illustrative examples.

Hmmm, guess that sounds like a four-star review. Maybe I'll even read one of the other colors by the author.

[Violet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Comme d'habitude, j'aime absolument tout ce qu'écrit Michel Pastoureau et ce livre ne fait pas exception: un traité sur le vert, "couleur ambivalente, sinon ambiguë: symbole de vie, de chance et d'espérance d'un côté, attribut du désordre, du poison et du diable" de l'autre. Michel Pastoureau commence par en étudier son utilisation chez les Grecs et les Romains, avant de passer au Moyen Âge et aux Lumières puis à l'époque moderne et son re-branding en couleur de l'écologie. Il mêle les sciences, les arts (son utilisation par les peintres au fil des époques), les sciences sociales (comment fait-on le vert et qui le porte et dans quel contexte). Tout simplement fascinant.

[Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Comme le Bleu, ce livre est incroyablement intéressant, captivant et riche en rebondissements. Le vert tantôt apprécié, tantôt détesté, a évolué avec la société et certaines croyances sont restées. Le vert, couleur de l’espérance et du mauvais œil, n’a pas dit son dernier mot. Aujourd’hui, il est bel et bien ancré dans notre société. Il est couleur de l’écologie, du sport, de la médecine, de l’administration, d’un parti politique et surtout, la deuxième couleur préférée des personnes interrogées. Longue vie au vert !

[Sashko Valyus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Цікаво, доступно і динамічно. Не встиг я оговтатись як я пройшла уся історя зеленого кольору перед очима: і варварський, і молодіжний, і отруйний, і врешті-решт культурний період зеленого кольору.
Я завжди скептично ставився до трактувань кольорів і в ХХІ столітті годі прл це говорити. Але це не було так колись коли на сприйняття кольору впливав історичний, культурний, технологічний і економічний аспект.

[Myriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

J'ai lu plusieurs livres sur les couleurs de Michel PASTOUREAU et c'est toujours un grand plaisir et une source de découvertes.
L'auteur nous invite à partager son immense culture et à decouvrir l'histoire des couleurs. C'est passionnant ! Jamais ennuyeux car il a aussi beaucoup d'humour. Je recommande très vivement la lecture de tous ses ouvrages !

[pianogal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm working my way through Pastoureau's color books, and so far I think green is my favorite. (I still have to read blue and red.) Green is a sneaky color - sometimes poisonous, sometimes hopeful. It's not my favorite, but I did have a Crayola Green kitchen for a while and do kind of miss it. These are such fun books, I can't wait to read the next one.

[Barbara Phillips-Farley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is just what the title states, the history of a color. The author previously wrote on the histories of blue and black. He is French and pretty much limits his evidence to European attitudes. An interesting read.

[Alexandria McMahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth it. The history of the cultural feelings surrounding green will be a good read for any art history or fashion lover. While a bit repetitive, Green is overall a fascinating look at something we all interact with on a daily basis but haven't spent a lot of time contemplating.

[Mills College Library]

155.91145 P2936g 2014

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

a little better, leaving aside copypasted passages from the Blue book

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

quite good - learned some s+*%t

[Morgane Bonade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Très intéressant. Ca donne envie de lire les autres livres sur les couleurs de Pastoureau.
Je recommande

[Dariana]

La fel de frumoasă ca studiul despre Albastru, pe care l-am citit cândva anul trecut, istoria culorii Verzi prezintă, spre surprinderea nimănui, pentru că e în titlu, o istorie a felului în care a fost receptată și interpretată culoarea verde în Europa, din Antichitate și până azi.

În 211 pagini e un studiu succint, dar răspunde la întrebări pe care nu mi le-am pus niciodată: „vedeau grecii antici culoarea verde?” - da, deși a existat o perioadă în care, din cauza lipsei adjectivelor care să desemneze verdele în poemele lui Homer, oamenii chiar credeau că grecii antici sufereau de ceva discromie, „pisau romanii pietre de smarald pentru a-și crea un balsam pentru ochi?” - tot da, deși ai zice că cioburi de orice piatră prețioasă mai degrabă ți-ar irita ochii, dar erau alte vremuri, „Napoleon a murit otrăvit intenționat cu arsenic, sau s-au degajat vapori toxici de arsenic din verdele de Schweinfurt cu care erau vopsite felurite obiecte prin reședința lui de pe Sfânta Ana?” - nu se știe, dar makes you think, etc. Asta îmi și doresc de la o astfel de carte, să mă învețe curiozități pe care să le uit și să am doar senzația că „ahh, știam ceva despre asta, dar nu mai știu sigur ce”.

Până la urmă, cartea e o istorie a felului în care oamenii (europenii) s-au raportat atât de diferit în diverse perioade la o culoare care a existat dintotdeauna și au valorificat-o în funcție de contextul socio-cultural în care își duceau viețile de zi cu zi, and I think that's beautiful 🥹