In literature and art, the color pink is used to represent sexual allure and it was frequently associated with the female body. Said association is derived from the color of a woman's vaginal flesh, as well as the naked human body (for people of light skin tones). In Japanese parlance, "pink" (pinku) is used to describe things with erotic or sexual qualities. For example, "Pink film" refers to pornography in Japanese. Similar connotations are also found in French, with phone sex hotlines referred to as téléphone rose ("pink phone").
In Europe, the color pink was originally seen as a masculine color while blue was seen as a feminine color because of its association with the virgin Mary. Blue was considered feminine because it is a calm and passive color, while pink was considered an active and masculine color due to being a lighter shade of red. Over time, however, pink began to lose red's association with energy and began to be associated with sweetness and tenderness.
After World War II, pink became iconic with sex icons in the United States, Jayne Mansfield loved pink and not only wore the color but she drank pink champagne, decorated her house pink and called it "The Pink Palace". Elvis Presley was also a sex symbol in his prime and not only wore pink outfits, but he also drove a pink Cadillac and slept in a pink bedroom.
After An Affair to Remember was released in 1957, pink champagne was popularised and became a symbol of hedonism and sensuality after the quote "Pink champagne — that's the kind of life we've both been used to." Musicians like Ariana Grande, The Tyrones, Georgie Fame, Shakin' Stevens, and many more musicians use pink champagne as a metaphor in their songs for lusting for life and a metaphor for sex-positivity.
Terry: I like pink champagne.
Nickie: Yes, that's the kind I mean –- pink champagne. Now, is there any reason why from now on, this trip shouldn't be pink champagne?
In the 1950s, Richard Nixon branded his opponent, Helen Gahagan Douglas, the "Pink Lady" because he accused her of being a communist sympathizer who was "pink right down to her underwear", implying she was in a sexual relationship with the communist party. In 2017, the Women's March for President Trump's inauguration had its members wear pink hats that were called "Pussyhats" in reference to the president's comments about grabbing women's genitals.
Pink has been given negative connotations with eroticism as well by showing the consequences of unprotected sex and uncontrolled lust. These creations often referenced sexually transmitted diseases and infections. For example, pink was used to represent prostitution, a profession that frequently involved carrying and transmitting sexual diseases and infections. In Germany, male sex workers were called Rosarote ("pink-red") and the term was the inspiration for the pink triangles that were used to identify gay and lesbian inmates at Nazi concentration camps.
Pink was also involved in the representation of syphilis as early as 1545. Before its association with the iconic red ribbon, AIDS was referred to as "The Pink Plague" in the 1970s by the French because the LGBT community were unfairly blamed for the high transmission rate through unprotected sex. In actuality, AIDS can be transmitted through any form of bodily fluid—from blood transfusions to organ donorship, it can even be transmitted to a baby through breast milk.
Pink has been associated with feminism and reproductive rights. In Mississippi, the last abortion clinic is nicknamed "The Pink House". However, pink has been seen with controversy because some feminists, like Gayle A. Sulik and Scarlet Curtis, believe the color pink trivializes female health issues or other issues women face by making their problems sound less serious than they are. Their opinions on the matter are shown in their respective books Pink Ribbon Blues: How Breast Cancer Culture Undermines Women's Health and Feminists Don't Wear Pink (and Other Lies): Amazing Women on What the F-word Means to Them.
