Color in Fun Home
One of the very first things I noticed when I started reading Fun Home was Bechdel's grey and blue tone color palette. I was quite curious why she made the choice to draw her book in such a limited color scheme. Especially when she was describing her childhood home that her father decorated, she depicted all the rich colors he chose, but never showed us. It seemed to me that using color would have been the perfect way to "show not tell" what her home and childhood looked like.
When I reached chapter 5 and read through the scene where Bechdel's dad colors her coloring book because he thinks she is coloring it wrong (pages 130 and 131), it became much clearer as to why she doesn't use color. All through the book we saw the clear contrasting dynamic between Alison and her father. Alison is the hero; her father is the anti-hero. As Alison herself puts it, she's the butch to his nelly, utilitarian to his aesthete. They've always clashed with each other and now her choice of color scheme is no different. I don't think this is an intentional choice from her where she wants to deliberately be a contrarian to her father, but rather a natural choice that fits into this opposing dynamic they have between them. Her father directly and indirectly affected countless aspects that shaped Alison's life and her color scheme is one more result he impacted.
Her blue tint was especially interesting to me. She could have chosen to do it in all black and white (since her scheme would already be monochromatic that way), but instead she chose to add this slight blue tint. Blue is known to be a color generally associated with melancholy and bittersweetness which is why I think Bechdel used it. We hear about her father's death and the struggles she dealt with during her childhood which makes blue understandably the best color to use because it is able to affect the reader subconsciously. Without even knowing, we get a sense of slight sadness and a nostalgic and bittersweet feeling that helps us connect to Alison and put ourselves in her shoes.
This is such an interesting detail of the art in Fun Home, and I completely agree! The differences in Bruce and Alison's art and aesthetics is so prominent all throughout the book, and the scene on pages 130/131 shows that Bruce was very particular about the specific color and appearance, while Alison focuses more on what the concept is and on the scene as a whole. She seems more interested in painting the entire picture than it appearing completely perfect on the outside.
ReplyDeleteI found your analysis of the choice of blue especially compelling. Although it may seem like such an easy detail to set aside, it appears on every single page of the book and gives it its overall feel, like you mentioned. I also wondered if the blue had special significance or why Alison chose this color, but I couldn’t figure it out while reading. However, after reading your blog post, I understand much better now. Its association with melancholy and bittersweet memories completely makes sense and is such a great detail! I really love your analysis.
I had never really considered the meaning of the color blue until I read your analysis. As I think about Fun Home, I realize more and more that everything in the novel is intentional: from the drawings, to the colors, to the choices of words. It's interesting how you fleshed out meaning from one small but significant detail.
ReplyDeleteI think this is really interesting and I agree with what you're saying. Her father had a really big influence on her clearly, and mostly in a negative light, so it makes sense that she would use blue-scale tones. I also think that using a drab color scheme makes the content the focal point of the story, rather than the art in a way, and clearly she wanted the ideas and words to be more important, as she describes all these colorful rooms, but doesn't choose to color them.
ReplyDeleteThe color scheme in Bechdel's second book, _Are You My Mother?_, is similarly monochromatic, although this time it's in shades of light red (not pink, more of a rose/brick/maroon kind of shade? I'm bad at naming colors). I'd be interested to hear your impressions of this color scheme and how it reflects this book's complex relationship with her *living* mother, an ongoing negotiation that isn't as shrouded in melancholy as the blue-tinged memories re-created in _Fun Home_.
ReplyDeleteI liked your take on the blue tint to the whole book. You said that it wasn't intentional to be contrarian, but I do think it was meant to show that the little details really don't matter. In the scene you mentioned the focus isn't on the color of the picture it is on her fathers reaction to her and her creativity.
ReplyDeleteWow, I didn't even notice the message Bechdel painted with her color choice when reading. Your points make perfect sense - the choice of grey and blue perfectly reflects utilitarianism with a tinge of melancholy. I find the idea of Alison complementing her father's style (as opposed to contrasting with it) to be a fascinating one. It is an excellent representation of how she could acknowledge their relationship while simultaneously acknowledging its imperfections.
ReplyDeleteI agree! to me the blue seems almost eerie as well, the colors feel like a ghost movie. In some way, that could almost be foreshadowing to her father's death. All in all, I think it was a good artistic choice, I think the memoir would've felt weird in full color
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