The Fun Home Color Palette
Many times through various different art works the color palette of a project is meant to convey or
psychological impact the emotions perceived and felt. Movies in the Batman franchise feature dark, moody color
schemes likely due to Bruce Wayne’s isolation and deep depression he feels. Barbie, featuring Margot Robbie
showcased bright pinks and vibrant paired colors mimicking the fakeness and performance expected from women in
the world. Filmmakers can add in or remove saturation, take advantage of lighting in many situations, or even use
the color of clothing the actors wear and are surrounded by.
In Fun Home by Alison Bechdel the entire story is color graded in a black and white color scheme with the exception of a faded or deep blue. In the beginning of the novel there is less black used, specifically in the background of the scenes. This could likely be due to the fact that these scenes were set in day time inside their museum of a house, but possible because of childhood lightness. As the book matures alongside Alison we see heavier topics introduced in fuller depth including her father's death which was potentially by suicide as well as her coming to accept/recognize her own sexual identity proudly. I think this darkness drawn in is no mistake and Bechdel did so to ensure a mental connection with the heavier parts of her life and memory of her father.
Diving even more specific into this color grading on one of the final pages, page 221, where Alison sits in her father’s car and is waiting for each moment that she strikes up a conversation with her father about the book he gave her and how she had felt a difference in her identity since a youth. His reaction didn’t seem to satisfy quite what she wanted to hear from him. Bruce told his portion of his story, identifying two men he was implying he once had relations with. Then, after he expressed his past desires to dress as a girl Alison chimed in by stating how she once wanted to dress as a boy, but after that Bruce gave no response. No support was given to Alison’s experience, no reassurance, no apology, and no continued thought from Bruce that he appeared to give. In a natural response she could feel hurt, or once again alone, giving the dark color palette even more reason to take place. It is just as possible the light was dark due to the scene taking place at night, but even so, the last scene she had with Bruce was one under deep mood and colors included.
Hi Annika! I think it was really cool that you chose this as a topic. One thing that always stood out to me was the relative lack of movement in that scene in the car. The small panels that all look nearly identical make it seem extremely confining to me, when most other pages in the book use a variety of panel sizes.
ReplyDeleteYour description of the increasing darkness of the novel makes me think of peeling layers off an onion, or going deeper into a cave.
Bechdel also used a monochromatic color palette (this time in red) for "Are You My Mother?", but her later autobiographical book "The Secret to Superhuman Strength" has these beautiful watercolors done by her wife Holly Rae Taylor. This is probably because she wanted the exercise book to be lighter in tone.
Hey Annika! I liked the focus on how the blue-gray palette in Fun Home shapes the mood of the memoir, especially the connection you made between the darker visual tone and Alison’s final conversation with Bruce. I also thought your comparison to movies like Batman and Barbie gave your post an engaging hook, even though Fun Home uses color in a quieter way. I do wonder though if you think the darker palette reflects Alison’s emotions more, or rather her dad’s presence in her memory. Overall, interesting blog!
ReplyDeleteHey Annika! I thought it was really interesting that you focused on the color palette because it is one of those things you kind of notice without really thinking about it while reading. The connection you made between the darker tones and that last car scene with Bruce was really good. It stuck out to me too how Bruce just went quiet after Alison opened up about wanting to dress as a boy, like he could share his own experience but couldn't actually meet her halfway on hers. I also think your comparison to Batman and Barbie was a fun way to start the post even though Fun Home does it in a much more subtle way. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteThis is a really interesting observation about the color palette of this book. I thought your example with the scene between Alison and Bruce in the car was a really great instance of this. I talked a little bit about the page layout of car scene in my blog, but I didn't really think about how the color palette also helps to create the mood of the scene.
ReplyDeleteHello Annika! Your comparison of the colors throughout the book and their change was really interesting. I honestly didn't pay that much attention to the colors besides one small mention to the minimal color scene in class discussion. It is really interesting, though, they Alison Bechdel chooses to use very few colors to share her story. At points, it feels like the only colors she could see in her day to day were black, white, and blue.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't noticed the "darkening" of the book's palette as the narrative proceeds, but that makes sense--the earlier scenes mostly depict childhood, when despite the underlying tensions, the setting is a chaotic and active household with a lot of people and a lot going on. There's a lot we need to SEE in these earlier frames, including the remarkable detail with which Bruce's interior design is rendered. I really like your reading of the crucial sequence near the end, the halting conversation in the car on the way to the movies. The darkness there isolates Alison and Bruce from each other (compounded by the fact that they aren't facing one another), and the darkness implies awkward silence, as if the words are consumed by the blackness.
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ReplyDeleteI think that the actual meaning of the use and application of the color palette is something that is really interesting and compelling. I personally read the part 129-131 about Alison's Dad ruining poetry and color and thought of that as the reason why the book is monochrome and just left it at that. I never really did do anywhere near as much exploration as you did. I think it is really good.
Hi Annika, this is a great blog! The illustrations in this book were really cool, and I agree with your observations that Bechdel seems to have chosen a very specific color palette to effectively communicate her feelings and emotions about her situation. I thought it was really interesting how the "darker" colored parts of the book relate to Alison's increasing exposure to heavier and more mature content, which wasn't present at the beginning of the book (that had a bluer hue).
ReplyDeleteHi annika, I completely agrees with you on the somber mood established by the black, white and blue color choice of the book. I've always related the muted, hazy, gray-ish blue color to the memory aspect of the book. Memories, like the color, can often feel hazy and vague.
ReplyDeleteHi Annika, I really liked this analysis of Fun Home through the colors used in the illustrations! Its such a cool idea that it could be possible to use colors to subtly introduce ideas or narratives subconsciously, and I'm glad I could read this blog post on it. I wonder also what her choices of framing in certain scenes could represent or try to show, like the conversation in the car or the full two pages of the babysitter. Great job!
ReplyDeleteHi Annika, it's good to appreciate more subtle elements about Fun Home such as the color pallete. Personally, I always thought that the blue just represents the sad undertone of the book, which goes along with the dark subject and ironic title. But your tracking of the increase of color makes a lot of sense and underlines a key theme in the book.
ReplyDeleteHey Annika,
ReplyDeleteI like that you chose to write about this because I haven't seen anyone else do that. It just now occurred to me that the dull and monochrome color choice for the graphic novel is not just about showing distance and coldness within her home, and especially from her father, but it could also be an aesthetic choice she made to spite him, perhaps. As someone who wanted her to be "beautiful" and feminine and extravagant (as depicted perfectly when he asked her if she was afraid to be beautiful because she didn't want to wear a pearl necklace), her father really annoyed her by projecting his style onto her. In turn, she might have chosen the most dull colors possible in part to express her desire to be different from him. Also thanks for pointing out how the colors shifted because I didn't notice that and it was definitely intentional!
Hi Annika! I was very intrigued by your post because I wondered about the color scheme of the book a lot throughout reading it. I couldn't quite place my finger on what it was about the style that made the mood change but you nailed it! I agree that the beginning of the book was lighter because of childhood. I also imagine it could because those memories are more faded than some more recent ones? I'm not sure... but your blog is amazing!
ReplyDeleteHi Annika!! I really enjoyed your blog post. To be honest, I never really thought much about the color scheme of Fun Home, but I think it is an interesting topic to analyze. I think the choice to use a black-and-white color scheme for the graphic novel was to easily show the emotion Alison was feeling at that time. You made some great points in your blog. Good Job!!!
ReplyDeleteHi Annika! I think it's super cool that you caught on to this: there's already a lot to be said about Bechdel's varying artistic styles and genres that are introduced throughout the novel, but the color scheme is largely unspoken about. Now that you explicitly point it out, I can see that the gravity of the car situation is made all the more clear by the dark tones, whether or not that completely registered in my mind when I first read it or not. I can imagine, being in Bechdel's shoes, that it would have indeed been tempting to try and place some kind of artistic emphasis on the most impactful scenes. Great post!
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