Chinese opera is one the oldest dramatic art forms in the world, and is now a traditional art form in China. It combines music, art and literature into one performance on stage. Each performer has makeup painted on their face in exaggerated designs to symbolize a characters personality, role and fate. You can understand the story by looking at the colours and designs painted onto each characters face, and also by looking at their costumes.
Colour meanings in Chinese opera mask art:
Red: Shows the performer is a postive character. Can represent loyalty, bravery, courage, prosperity, heroism and intelligence.
Black: Shows that the character is neutral. Can show impartiality and integrity.
Yellow: Shows the audience that the character is cruel , and can also show that they are sly, evil, hypocritical or ambitious.
White: Has a similar meaning to yellow, shows that the character is evil and hypocritical.
Gold and Silver: Shows that the character is a God or a demon, or a spirit or ghost. Symbolizes mystery.
Pink: Shows that the character is happy, funny.
Purple: Can sometimes be used as a replacement for red, although it can represent justice and sophistication.
Blue: Blue indicates that the character is neutral. Can also mean stubboness and fierceness.
Green: Shows that the character is violent, impulsive and lacks restraint.
