Matter and surface
Color
housingschoolretailpublic space
It is the hue of the building’s surfaces, given by the material itself or by a coat of paint.
Solves
What it solves
A light color on roofs and walls reflects more sun and heats the interior less. It also guides, gives the place identity and protects the surface.
Today
Use light tones on roofs and facades that receive strong sun and save dark ones for details. On earth walls prefer lime or vapor-permeable paints.
Common mistake
Painting an uninsulated metal roof dark in a hot climate.
Tomorrow
Light-colored roofs and pavements can lower the heat of a whole neighborhood if they are painted together. A neighborhood painting day with colors chosen by the community looks after both temperature and the sense of belonging.
Fact A dark roof reflects about 15% of sunlight, while a white membrane can reflect 80% or more.
Where it comes from
- 1Babylon Mesopotamia, around 575 BC
The Ishtar Gate keeps its color because its walls are of glazed brick. - 2Greece and Rome Mediterranean, Antiquity
Temples and sculptures were painted in bright colors that time erased. - 3Ndebele people South Africa, since the 18th century
Women paint the houses with black-edged patterns on a white background that communicate identity and values. - 4Josephine adobe house San José, Costa Rica, early 19th century
The walls were plastered with mud, straw and dung and then whitewashed.
Masters
- Luis Barragán Gilardi House, Mexico City, Mexico, 1976
He uses pink facades and blue and yellow walls that change with the light and are reflected in the indoor pool. He teaches that color can create the atmosphere of a space as much as form.
See also
Also in Matter and surface
Diagrams and texts by LDB Arquitectura. They are shared under the CC BY 4.0 license, which allows them to be used and adapted with credit to the source.