Colour functions: blending
When selecting colours for buildings, the site becomes important.
There are two basic strategies: to harmonise or to contrast the architectural form. We begin with blending.
Before you decide upon colours, consider the function of the building in relation to its setting. Basically, there are two strategies: to attempt to harmonise the building form with its surroundings or to create an architectural centre of attention. The attempt to blend a building into its setting is a strategy usually used in rural settings. It relies upon employing colours that are sympathetic to the background, eg. the colours of local vegetation, surface geology, or areas of soil exposed by agricultural activity. Although a perfect match will never be achieved, colours that harmonise with the setting can reduce both the visual impact and the mass of a building.
In urban settings the diversity of materials in the architecture of towns and cities creates its own setting and a greater scope for colour integration is provided.
In towns and cities, architecture creates its own backdrop and there is a richer variegation of colour and texture. Therefore, urban and suburban blending strategies tend to involve a greater diversity of materials which, as shown here, can be used to counterpoint the nature of different colour and surface qualities.
