MELBOURNE, Feb 23, 2026 — It wasn’t until her 20s that Donna Cameron realised her experience of the world was not universal. For the 61-year-old Melburnian, letters and numbers have colours — a phenomenon she assumed everyone shared.
“I just assumed everyone saw colour in numbers and letters,” Cameron says. For her, names take on dominant hues. The name “Gary”, for example, appears crimson because the letters ‘G’ and ‘r’ register in that shade. The associations are stable and enduring — the same colours she perceived decades ago remain unchanged today.
Cameron has synaesthesia, a hereditary neurological condition in which stimulation of one sense automatically and involuntarily triggers another. Derived from the Greek for “joined sensations,” synaesthesia is the opposite of anaesthesia. People with the condition — known as synaesthetes — may see music, smell colours or experience flavours when hearing words. Each case is highly individual; where one synaesthete sees crimson, another may perceive an entirely different hue.
A cultural moment
The phenomenon is enjoying renewed public attention. Actor Paul Mescal portrayed a synaesthete in the 2025 film The History of Sound, while the television thriller All Her Fault uses synaesthesia as a central plot device. Musicians including Pharrell Williams, whose 2024 Lego-animated film Piece by Piece visualises the colours he hears in music, as well as Billie Eilish and Lady Gaga, have spoken about how the condition informs their creative processes. Actress and singer Cynthia Erivo also drew viral attention after describing colour associations for sounds made by Jennifer Lawrence, prompting scepticism online despite synaesthesia being well-documented in scientific research.
Dr Solange Glasser, senior lecturer in music psychology at the University of Melbourne and a synaesthesia expert, says it is no coincidence that many synaesthetes work in the arts. Studies estimate that between 3 and 5 per cent of the general population have synaesthesia, but the proportion may rise to as much as 25 per cent among artists.
More than 80 recognised forms
Researchers recognise more than 80 types of synaesthesia. Among them are ticker-tape synaesthesia, in which individuals see spoken words as though subtitled in front of them, and spatial sequence synaesthesia, where dates or months are mapped spatially around the person.
In rare and acute cases, the overlapping sensations can cause sensory overload, contributing to crossover with autism spectrum conditions. Glasser suggests workplaces can make reasonable adjustments where necessary. However, most synaesthetes report that the condition does not disrupt daily functioning. Many describe subtle colour washes accompanying music or speech — difficult to articulate, “like trying to describe a sunset to someone who has never seen one.”
For some, it forms a central part of identity and may measurably enhance cognition. British savant Daniel Tammet, for example, perceives numbers up to 10,000 as distinct colours, shapes and textures. He has harnessed this ability to memorise pi to 22,514 digits and learn Icelandic within a week.
Memory, pattern recognition — and purpose
For Cameron, synaesthesia acts as a powerful memory aid. “While studying history, it was very useful for remembering dates because I’d remember them as a series of colours,” she says. She applies similar colour-coding to recall names and phone numbers.
Glasser notes that enhanced memory and heightened pattern recognition are among the most frequently cited advantages. “It provides extra scaffolding for cognitive tasks,” she explains. Many synaesthetes describe the experience as enriching and joyful — though Glasser cautions against framing it as a “superpower.” “It’s simply a difference,” she says.
The condition has also shaped Cameron’s career. Now working as a colour analyst, she advises clients on what hues best express their identity and presence. “I never get bored of it — it’s my passion,” she says. In previous office environments dominated by fluorescent lighting and beige walls, she found her energy drained. Today, she curates her studio with vibrant tones that sustain her focus and creativity. “If I’m not around colour, I really crave it,” she says.
Fantastical, romantic — and scientifically verified
While synaesthesia can sound fantastical, Glasser emphasises that it is among the most robust phenomena in perception research. Since the 1980s, neuroimaging has demonstrated measurable differences in how synaesthete and non-synaesthete brains respond to stimuli.
She views the current cultural fascination as part of a broader neurodiversity movement. “Those stories allow us windows into different forms of perception,” she says, highlighting the beauty in the varied ways people experience the world.
