Saw a red emergency exit door painted pale mint at a clinic in Reno, and I can't decide if it's a mistake or a smart move | Color Theory in Practice

Tessa Webb · 2026-09-11T07:25:05.805557+00:00

Was at a walk-in clinic in Reno on Tuesday and the emergency exit door was painted pale mint green, plus it had a potted plant in front of it. Part of me thinks this breaks a basic rule, because emergency stuff should stand out, not blend into a soft pastel wall. The other part thinks it might be fine since fire codes require lit exit signs anyway, and the sign above the door was bold red with big letters. But if the power goes out or smoke fills the room, that sign is useless and all you see is mint. I keep going back and forth on whether color here is a safety tool or just decoration. Where do you all land on this, does color still carry a job even when codes and signs do the real work?

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Saw a red emergency exit door painted pale mint at a clinic in Reno, and I can't decide if it's a mistake or a smart move | Color Theory in Practice - The Design Community Hub