The idea for the topic of this thesis came from my own interest to colors in general. The target was to reflect the symbolism of the colors and their ability to illustrate emotions.

Tove Jansson’s picture book Who Will Comfort Toffle? (Vem ska trösta Knyttet?) published in 1960 was used as the material for this thesis. Panofsky’s semiotic picture analysis model was applied to this thesis. The colors are reflected on a general level without specific meanings. Tove Jansson’s background and cultural-specific bonds were studied thoroughly.

The text and images of Who Will Comfort Toffle? picture book are tightly integrated together. The story is about a shy Toffle looking for love and eventually encounters a Miffle. Grayscaled and colored images tell about loneliness, fear, love and joy. I focus on reflecting the meanings of the colors in the context of the text and in the light of Josef Albers’ chromatic studies and Johannes Itten's color theory.

Alongside the thesis a production consisting of five paintings was implemented. The paintings are based on Saima Harmaja’s poems. The knowledge base of the thesis was utilized in the painting process. The production experience increased my criticism towards the interpretation of colors. I felt in practice how the environment affects the selection of colors in the paintings.

The thesis demonstrated that even a narrow color scale may illustrate a wide range of emotions. An important factor in emotional expression is the interaction of colors despite of the number of colors used.

This thesis can be used in art teaching. Although the subject of the thesis is a children's picture book, the knowledge base is also useful in designing other applications.