Emotional Revitalization of Traditional Cultural Colors: Color Customization Based on the PAD Model and Interactive Genetic Algorithm—Taking Liao and Jin Dynasty Silk as Examples

Amid evolving consumer demands, product design increasingly emphasizes the deeper needs for emotional resonance and cultural identity. Taking Liao–Jin dynasty silk as a case study, this study explores a digital regeneration pathway for traditional cultural colors, evolving from “form–color restoration” to “emotional awakening.” The study focuses on transforming the emotional imagery—such as “mighty” and “dignified”—embedded in the colors of Liao–Jin silk into perceptible, customizable color experiences for modern consumers. To achieve this, an emotional color customization system was constructed through the integration of Interactive Genetic Algorithms (IGA) with the PAD emotional model. Within this system, cultural emotional semantics (e.g., “Powerful,” “Victory”) were quantified as target anchor points in PAD space. The matching degree between color schemes and target emotions is calculated based on user feedback, and is utilized as a fitness function to drive evolution. An experiment was conducted with 48 volunteer evaluators using Liao–Jin silk. Results demonstrated that, compared to traditional IGA, this method achieved significant improvements in emotional matching accuracy: average fitness increased by 34.00%, maximum fitness rose by 10.76%, and the spiritual essence of Liao–Jin culture was more effectively translated into color schemes that evoke positive user emotions. This research offers an innovative solution for cultural heritage digitization, advancing from “form–color restoration” to “emotional and spiritual regeneration.” It also provides a viable approach for intelligent emotional design in fields such as apparel design, cultural creativity, and digital cultural heritage preservation.