The Invention Of Blue

Now widely polled as the most popular color in the world, there was a time in which there was no blue — at least not the way we see blue now. Sure, the sky and water haven’t changed colors, but without the ability to easily create blue dye or pigments, we had no use for the word “blue.”

And it turns out that we need words to identify, think, and talk about things for them to exist in our minds. Journey with Kevin as he tells the strange story of how humans discovered the color blue, which existed right in front of them the whole time.

The deeper the blue becomes, the more strongly it calls man towards the infinite, awakening in him a desire for the pure and, finally, for the supernatural… The brighter it becomes, the more it loses its sound, until it turns into silent stillness and becomes white.
-Wassily Kandinsky

Curiosity Box: https://www.curiositybox.com/

Written, Produced, Edited and Hosted by Kevin Lieber
Instagram: http://instagram.com/kevlieber
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kevinlieber
Website: http://kevinlieber.com

Contributing Researcher & Editor Matthew Tabor, Koala Fight Media

Home

VFX by Eric Langlay
https://www.youtube.com/c/ericlanglay

Select Music by Jake Chudnow
https://www.youtube.com/user/jakechudnow

Special Thanks Paula Lieber
Tweets by pixichuu

Vsauce2 Links
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/VsauceTwo
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VsauceTwo
Website: http://www.Vsauce.com

**** LINKS AND SOURCES ****

The Brilliant History of Color in Art by Victoria Finlay

Blue: The History Of A Color by Michel Pastoureau

Secret Language Of Color by Joann Eckstut and Arielle Eckstut

SPECIAL THANKS

Virginia Postrel
https://vpostrel.com/

Victoria Finlay
https://victoriafinlay.com/

Joshua J. Mark
http://www.ancient.eu/user/JPryst/

Kidmograph
http://www.kidmograph.com/

Outro Song “I Came Back For You” by Trevor Something
https://trevorsomething.bandcamp.com/album/soulless-computer-boy-and-the-eternal-render

ARTICLES

Pigments Through The Ages
https://goo.gl/ytfGV3
https://goo.gl/D6nwMs

Color In Art
https://goo.gl/4Bu7pD

Harvard Color Vault
https://goo.gl/Q86ixm
https://goo.gl/Y43xCb

Little Snow White
https://goo.gl/Lsm8Xt

A Story Of Blue
https://goo.gl/4GsVFB

The Material History of the Color Blue
https://goo.gl/TT5vMS

True Blue Stands Out in an Earthy Crowd by Natalie Angier
https://goo.gl/wiFy7g

Why Is The Sky Blue?
https://goo.gl/KzoAcb

Blue Through The Centuries
https://goo.gl/Eh2og1

History Of Blue
https://goo.gl/pq5BDC

William Gladstone And The Odyssey
https://goo.gl/J8dDD5

No One Could See The Color Blue Until Modern Times by Kevin Loria
https://goo.gl/tUqph6

Why Is Blue The World’s Favorite Color?
https://goo.gl/GkoLyg

It’s Not Easy Being Blue (For Plants) by Eric Dillalogue
https://goo.gl/h763Hq

Color Wavelengths
https://goo.gl/3D67Lw

The Science Of Blue Flowers
https://goo.gl/N74ySm

First Blue-Eyed Human
https://goo.gl/B5gYsw

Humanity’s Favorite Color
https://goo.gl/Kzef6s

Color In Market Research
https://goo.gl/TsaMcs

What’s Your Favorite Color?
https://goo.gl/eEJW9K

Islamic Poetry
https://goo.gl/zAEYMm

Starry Night, Edvard Munch
https://goo.gl/HVsZ24
https://goo.gl/9Tyjpt

Newton And The Color Spectrum
https://goo.gl/Hg5omA

Blue And Green Language Distinctions
https://goo.gl/aCk9NQ

Rainbows In Art
https://goo.gl/AXwkCD

True Origin Of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
https://goo.gl/QrYZuB

STUDIES

Russian Blues Reveal Effects Of Language On Color Discrimination
https://goo.gl/CQHWHn

Ancient Color Categories
https://goo.gl/EQgLE4

Philip Cohen
https://goo.gl/f77dzZ

Scott Design Inc. Color Poll
https://goo.gl/dHGt6p

ASSETS

Namakura Gatana 1917 restoration by sumerias1
https://goo.gl/uBFKro

Egyptian Blue Eye at The J. Paul Getty Museum
https://goo.gl/KvC6N1

Indigo by Shisha-Tom
https://goo.gl/zmekJX

Archaemenid Bowl from David Aaron
https://goo.gl/9ZzXVX

Lapis Lazuli Eyes photo by Marie-Lan Nguyen
https://goo.gl/rTCJj8

Lapis Lazuli Buddha
https://goo.gl/uUYpfw
https://goo.gl/zopx9g
https://goo.gl/yxiYpo

CSIC
https://goo.gl/TX7P3r

Indus Valley Diorama by Biswarup Ganguly
https://goo.gl/GzS4U6

Rainbows
https://goo.gl/w8LFVk
https://goo.gl/mf5Dce

Denim by Nikodem Nijaki
https://goo.gl/jBqbsH

Blue Cat The British Museum
https://goo.gl/N8pwiW

Woad by H. Zell
https://goo.gl/mXuryL

Lazurite by Didier Descouens
https://goo.gl/RLQd3w

Cochineal by Dick Culbert
https://goo.gl/ejkzc3

Cochineal by H. Zell
https://goo.gl/Whkh8x

Portrait of Edvard Munch from National Library of Norway
https://goo.gl/DBUoz6
https://goo.gl/GQAJF8

Tekhelet by Mnavon
https://goo.gl/eY94C6

Pixabay
https://pixabay.com/