Some colors tend to make objects appear to advance. These are colors that are warmer, that have fuller intensity, and/or shades. This is helpful in bringing focus to a subject within a work. It can also make things appear closer, as can be seen in the cafe within this painting by Vincent van Gogh. As any interior decorator will attest, the use of advancing color is also helpful in giving a room a more intimate feeling to it.
Although it is a more subjective comparison, an advancing color might best correlate to a brass timbre as it is more aggressive - compared to other timbres.