Abstract：Nowadays，with the deepening of social aging，the number of "empty nest" elderly people is increasing，and their physical and mental health problems have attracted many scholars&apos；attention. Some scholars explore the use of art therapy to solve the psychological problems of the "empty nest" elderly people. Color therapy，as one of the art therapy methods，can alleviate the psychological disorders of the "empty nest" elderly.Based on the concept of color therapy，combined with the related knowledge of color psychology and the special needs of the elderly in physiological and psychological aspects，this paper studies the color design of the elderly living indoor space，trying to use color to cure the physical and mental problems of the elderly，so as to create a comfortable，safe and warm living environment for the "empty nest" elderly.
　　key word：Color therapy concept，"empty nest" elderly，color psychological effect，color design
　　1. Color healing concept
　　The concept of color healing originated from the ancient Indian health theory，which means that each color has its own special energy. The energy of color will affect the whole body after being absorbed by cells，and it will affect people&apos；s health from multiple levels of body emotion and spirit.
　　2. Color design of "empty nest" old people&apos；s indoor space under the concept of healing
　　Color can affect people&apos；s emotions，color has no emotion，but color often evokes some association and emotional resonance.How to create a vibrant color atmosphere is very important to stimulate the positive association of the elderly.
　　2.1How to grasp the overall color of interior
　　In the color design of the old people&apos；s living room，the main tone should be determined first，just like the main melody in the music.Considering that most of the elderly have high blood pressure，blood lipid and weak heart function，it is appropriate to choose a mild color to avoid the discomfort and anxiety caused by strong contrast and high brightness color.Combined with the visual changes of the elderly analyzed above，we should ensure that the overall color of the living room should not be too dark，and the lightness is higher than that of users of other ages. Warm colors are recommended as the main tone of the elderly space to set off the intimate and peaceful mood.And the color matching of the whole space should not be more than four colors，excluding no color，so as to avoid the visual trivial feeling of the elderly. 　　2.2Configuration of interface color
　　The color of the top surface should be light（white is the best），on the one hand，it is to reduce the visual and psychological depression of the elderly；on the other hand，the light colored ceiling can diffuse the ceiling light and natural light to increase the brightness of the living room space，and white has the highest reflection efficiency for the light.In the old people&apos；s room，the color with high brightness and low purity is the best.Generally，light green with calming effect or light beige or beige with warm feeling can be selected，which is more in line with the characteristics of elderly people who like quiet.At the same time，the light color tone of high brightness can set off the outline of door leaf and furniture，which is convenient for the elderly to identify.From the safety point of view，the old people&apos；s living room floor should choose the color with large contrast with the wall and more stable，but avoid using black，white，gray and high brightness color，so as to make the wall and floor joint have obvious color contrast，which is more conducive to the elderly recognition.
　　2.3Selection of special colors for furniture
　　Although the area of furniture and other objects accounts for a medium proportion in the area of the elderly indoor space，they can often directly reflect the character of the space.In the selection of furniture for the elderly，the color preference of the elderly should be considered as far as possible while meeting their specific space use needs.Reflective materials should not be selected for furniture materials，so as to avoid glare on the surface of materials when the old people use them. Furniture color should be distinguished from ground and wall color.According to different aging stage，gender and color preference，the following color systems are recommended：high brightness furniture（milky white，milky yellow），which gives people a bright and light psychological feeling，and creates a quiet and elegant atmosphere，which is loved by young women and the elderly.Medium brightness furniture（orange，yellow）gives a lively and lively visual experience，which is very suitable for elderly people who like to meet.Dark color furniture（coffee，tea brown）because of its dignified and stable style，is very popular color system for the elderly，but also the most widely used color for the elderly furniture.
　　epilogue
　　In view of the current situation of color design for the elderly living indoor space in China，it is particularly important to create an aging indoor visual environment for the elderly.In the future，the number of the elderly population in China is bound to continue to increase，and the housing problem of the elderly is still a hot issue of concern from all walks of life.How to treat the color design of the old people&apos；s indoor space and ordinary people&apos；s indoor space differently，and create a more safe，comfortable and convenient living environment for the elderly is the responsibility of each designer.
　　reference
　　[1]  Zhang Geng. Research on popular art therapy design based on visual psychological effect after epidemic [J] design，June 2020
　　[2]  Yang Xiaojun. Discussion on color design of indoor space for the elderly [J] design，April 2017
　　作者簡介：孟凤梅，女，汉族，甘肃武威，齐鲁工业大学（山东省科学院）艺术设计学院，在读研究生，硕士学位，专业：设计学，研究方向：环境艺术设计。