A vivid example can be found in the numerous shop signs with bold scarlet calligraphy lining the streets of Hong Kong, attracting business while carrying people's aspirations for fortune and prosperity. This unveils a widespread dimension of Chinese cultural implications hidden behind red.

Many of these signs are brushed by calligrapher Fung Siu-wah, also known by his pen name Wah Gor, who wrote the title for China in Hues.

Subsequent episodes of the documentary examine how the Chinese portray deities and celestial realms; women's self-expression through a kaleidoscopic palette; the graceful hues favored by literati; and the robust tones of farming life.

In the final episode, however, the production team shifts its lens to focus on some "unusual" hues that took strength and wisdom to obtain with traditional techniques — purple, for example.