What do you think?
Rate this book
Color Curious: Find Color Inspiration All Around You for Art, Design, and Life
A creative's guide to how to observe it in your surroundings, combine it into unique palettes, and apply it fearlessly in art, craft, and design.
Artist Ana Bianchi is on a mission to help people use color confidently in any creative practice. This playful and highly visual book invites you to refresh your relationship to color by observing the world around you.
Each chapter takes a deep dive into a different color scheme—from monochromes to the famous "pop of color"—and helps readers find inspiration in art history, travel, household objects, and more.Hands-on projects feature a wide variety of media and applications, from painting a still life to making a gallery wall in your home.Quotes, stories, vibrant visual examples, and insightful guidance provide an accessible master class in becoming color curious and creating the consistent and rewarding habit of observing, analyzing, and creating with color.
This book is perfect for art students seeking to establish their personal voice, creative types hoping to integrate more color into their lives, and professional artists eager for a new perspective.
INTUITIVE Ana Bianchi eschews technical color theory and embraces an intuitive and playful approach instead. Whether you're an aspiring artist or a professional, whether you want to apply color in your paintings or your wardrobe, you'll find approachable and useful ideas in this book.
RAINBOW EYE The colorful photos and artwork are instructive and a delight for the eyes. Bianchi's signature images show flowers from her garden and everyday objects from her home arranged by color, highlighting the multitude of inspirations to be found in your surroundings and applied in your art.
FRESH PERSPECTIVE ON From the unique hues of vintage objects and faded flowers to the particular joy of kaleidoscopic, childlike palettes, the color explorations in this book will help you see the world with new eyes and approach your creative projects with refreshed energy.
Perfect Professional and aspiring artists in all mediaArt students and enthusiastsDesigners, home decorators, floral designers, and craftersAnyone who eagerly awaits Pantone’s Color of the Year announcementReaders of color exploration books like The Secret Lives of Color and a Natural History of the PaletteFans of inspirational creativity books like Find Your Artistic Voice and The Artist’s Way
Artist Ana Bianchi is on a mission to help people use color confidently in any creative practice. This playful and highly visual book invites you to refresh your relationship to color by observing the world around you.
Each chapter takes a deep dive into a different color scheme—from monochromes to the famous "pop of color"—and helps readers find inspiration in art history, travel, household objects, and more.Hands-on projects feature a wide variety of media and applications, from painting a still life to making a gallery wall in your home.Quotes, stories, vibrant visual examples, and insightful guidance provide an accessible master class in becoming color curious and creating the consistent and rewarding habit of observing, analyzing, and creating with color.
This book is perfect for art students seeking to establish their personal voice, creative types hoping to integrate more color into their lives, and professional artists eager for a new perspective.
INTUITIVE Ana Bianchi eschews technical color theory and embraces an intuitive and playful approach instead. Whether you're an aspiring artist or a professional, whether you want to apply color in your paintings or your wardrobe, you'll find approachable and useful ideas in this book.
RAINBOW EYE The colorful photos and artwork are instructive and a delight for the eyes. Bianchi's signature images show flowers from her garden and everyday objects from her home arranged by color, highlighting the multitude of inspirations to be found in your surroundings and applied in your art.
FRESH PERSPECTIVE ON From the unique hues of vintage objects and faded flowers to the particular joy of kaleidoscopic, childlike palettes, the color explorations in this book will help you see the world with new eyes and approach your creative projects with refreshed energy.
Perfect Professional and aspiring artists in all mediaArt students and enthusiastsDesigners, home decorators, floral designers, and craftersAnyone who eagerly awaits Pantone’s Color of the Year announcementReaders of color exploration books like The Secret Lives of Color and a Natural History of the PaletteFans of inspirational creativity books like Find Your Artistic Voice and The Artist’s Way
- GenresNonfictionArt
288 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 30, 2025
7 people are currently reading
46 people want to read
About the author
Ana Bianchi
2 booksOriginally from Mexico, Ana Bianchi is an artist, designer, illustrator, and twice published children book author/illustrator.
With degrees in both graphic design and fine arts, her 35+ years of creative work spans across disciplines ranging from printmaking and ceramics, to illustration, surface design and children-wear to graphic design and branding for clients small and big, from local restaurants to major airlines.
Her lifelong love of color is what connects it all and helps her comfortably move from one discipline to another and from one technique to another. Her upcoming book "Color Curious"
" (Chronicle Books, coming out Fall '25) illustrates her ideas and inspiration around a variety of color themes combining essays with her photography, illustrations and more, and as you read her texts, you will discover her deep interest in art history, world cultures and the pursue of creative ideas through the common thread of color.
When not working in her Bay Area studio, Ana loves to cook and bake colorful things, tend to her garden -her other color studio- and spend time with her tiny family and dogs.
With degrees in both graphic design and fine arts, her 35+ years of creative work spans across disciplines ranging from printmaking and ceramics, to illustration, surface design and children-wear to graphic design and branding for clients small and big, from local restaurants to major airlines.
Her lifelong love of color is what connects it all and helps her comfortably move from one discipline to another and from one technique to another. Her upcoming book "Color Curious"
" (Chronicle Books, coming out Fall '25) illustrates her ideas and inspiration around a variety of color themes combining essays with her photography, illustrations and more, and as you read her texts, you will discover her deep interest in art history, world cultures and the pursue of creative ideas through the common thread of color.
When not working in her Bay Area studio, Ana loves to cook and bake colorful things, tend to her garden -her other color studio- and spend time with her tiny family and dogs.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
December 3, 2025
Interesting Use of Color and how that represents design. This was a fun book to look through.
Inspiring, Creative, and Beautiful. Loved looking at each color scheme.
Thank You NetGalley and Chronicle Books for a copy of this book. I always leave reviews of books I read.
Inspiring, Creative, and Beautiful. Loved looking at each color scheme.
Thank You NetGalley and Chronicle Books for a copy of this book. I always leave reviews of books I read.
October 8, 2025
Color Curious was a wonderful surprise of teaching you how to see through artists eyes and how to discern the various hues of color we see outside of the basic rainbow colors.
The picture examples and swatches were beautifully put out and showed how to practice the technique of observation. All of this reminded me so much of art lessons I had with my Granny during summer breaks growing up. I feel like this is book is one she would have picked up and used for a reference in our lessons. I also enjoyed the examples of colors that are regionally specific to different cultures. It made me appreciate the colorful and diverse world we live in and enjoy.
Thank you Net Galley for this copy of Color Curious in exchange for my honest review.
The picture examples and swatches were beautifully put out and showed how to practice the technique of observation. All of this reminded me so much of art lessons I had with my Granny during summer breaks growing up. I feel like this is book is one she would have picked up and used for a reference in our lessons. I also enjoyed the examples of colors that are regionally specific to different cultures. It made me appreciate the colorful and diverse world we live in and enjoy.
Thank you Net Galley for this copy of Color Curious in exchange for my honest review.
May 31, 2025
A must for any color lover!
This book is gorgeous and inspiring. I love the photographs of color palettes, and especially the floral and plant combinations to showcase different types of color combos.
The book is divided into different chapters focusing on different ways of approaching color (e.g. monochromatic, using a “pop” of color, etc.).
Occasionally a bit more text heavy than is necessary. The “projects” in each chapter and the photos are more than worthwhile.
A significant misstep is (intentionally) setting the words of other artists in their favorite colors. While a cute idea, it’s surprising that a book about the functions of color would get this so wrong. Red or orange or olive green text is hard to read!
Digital ARC graciously provided by NetGalley and Chronicle Books. Opinions are my own.
This book is gorgeous and inspiring. I love the photographs of color palettes, and especially the floral and plant combinations to showcase different types of color combos.
The book is divided into different chapters focusing on different ways of approaching color (e.g. monochromatic, using a “pop” of color, etc.).
Occasionally a bit more text heavy than is necessary. The “projects” in each chapter and the photos are more than worthwhile.
A significant misstep is (intentionally) setting the words of other artists in their favorite colors. While a cute idea, it’s surprising that a book about the functions of color would get this so wrong. Red or orange or olive green text is hard to read!
Digital ARC graciously provided by NetGalley and Chronicle Books. Opinions are my own.
June 1, 2025
This was such a fun, interesting read. I loved getting to nerd out about art and color design. I really enjoyed how there were mini-interviews with other artists sprinkled throughout the book. I also loved that there were so many examples of the various color theories. Every time I saw a color palette that really spoke to me I immediately wanted to start designing something with those colors. I can see this being a book I return to again and again in the future.
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the ARC.
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the ARC.
September 5, 2025
I was drawn to this book as a consumer of art, more of a casual cultivator than a creator. I’m curious about beauty in the world around me and like to collect that beauty in photographs. Though I’m not a designer myself, this book was a beautiful, interesting read with some fun practical activities even I can play with to explore color.
Bianchi shares a brief history of how we refer to and understand color, then spends much of the book delving into particular colors and color usage, like monochromes, chromatic blacks, “pops” of color, and multicolor palettes. Each of these chapters ends with a prompt to apply the color(s) with a creative project, with some variations for less artistic folks like me. She closes with some brief interviews with other designers that I found less engaging but may be more interesting for an applied audience.
The photographs included throughout the book, primarily of harvested botanicals and flat lays, are crisp and stunning. In each chapter, in addition to her own work, Bianchi also references other artists whose work illustrates the color usage she describes. I’m not familiar with many artists, so I enjoyed looking up each one to see the concepts described in the book illustrated across different artistic forms, including print, ceramics, paintings, and textiles.
As a color design novice, my favorite aspect of this book is the creative projects. They encouraged me to play with color in ways that are relevant to me and successfully sparked my curiosity. I still have a few more projects from this book to explore on a free day. This book was a quick read that will serve as an activity book for a while and remain a fun reference for the future.
Thank you Chronicle Books and NetGalley for sharing this book for review. All opinions are my own.
Bianchi shares a brief history of how we refer to and understand color, then spends much of the book delving into particular colors and color usage, like monochromes, chromatic blacks, “pops” of color, and multicolor palettes. Each of these chapters ends with a prompt to apply the color(s) with a creative project, with some variations for less artistic folks like me. She closes with some brief interviews with other designers that I found less engaging but may be more interesting for an applied audience.
“My favorite way to search for color is what I have come to call color harvesting… Basically, I am always on the lookout for interesting colors and color combinations around me… Sometimes I browse my surroundings, scanning for a specific color. Sometimes I cherry-pick with my eyes a variety of tones, tints, and shades that might look good together, or I stumble upon something already made up of combined colors; a flower, a shop window, a well-designed package, a piece of clothing, a magnificent sunset.”
The photographs included throughout the book, primarily of harvested botanicals and flat lays, are crisp and stunning. In each chapter, in addition to her own work, Bianchi also references other artists whose work illustrates the color usage she describes. I’m not familiar with many artists, so I enjoyed looking up each one to see the concepts described in the book illustrated across different artistic forms, including print, ceramics, paintings, and textiles.
As a color design novice, my favorite aspect of this book is the creative projects. They encouraged me to play with color in ways that are relevant to me and successfully sparked my curiosity. I still have a few more projects from this book to explore on a free day. This book was a quick read that will serve as an activity book for a while and remain a fun reference for the future.
Thank you Chronicle Books and NetGalley for sharing this book for review. All opinions are my own.
October 13, 2025
🌈Color Curious: Find Color Inspiration All Around You for Art, Design, and Life by Ana Bianchi is an essential color guide for artists of all kinds! As an avid crocheter and cross-stitcher, I am always on the hunt for the perfect color combinations for my projects. While I have a general instinct for what I like, when looking at my combos, I find myself sticking to safe and familiar palettes. This book is a beautiful and inspirational guide, and one I didn't know I needed to break out of my color rut and approach my craft with some new perspective!
🌈The book itself a visual parade of vibrant hues from stunning photographs of everything from art history to everyday household objects arranged by color. But this guide is far more than just a pretty coffee table book. Bianchi masterfully discusses her approach to color and art, and provides us with a unique and intuitive approach to using color. The vibes are much more chill and relatable than most art books.
🌈For a hands-on crafter like me, this method is perfect. The chapters of different color schemes and vibes, like the monochromes, analogous colors, and how to create the perfect pop of color have directly helped me plan my next projects. I've found myself snapping photos way more often of random objects of a color that inspires me, simply from reading this book. I feel like I've become more observant and appreciative of the world around me, and that's what all great books should do! I would definitely recommend this book for any artist or designer in your life.
🌈I particularly loved the hands-on project ideas and the takeaways from each section. These provide steps to apply the color lessons from the book directly to any creative endeavor. This book doesn't just tell you about color and how to work with it. It shows you how to see it everywhere, use it fearlessly, and express yourself aesthetically.
🌈This is an inspiring resource that I know I will return to again and again, and I look forward to being able to get my hands on a physical copy when I can. I cannot recommend it highly enough to my fellow fiber artists or any creative looking to bring more joyful and intentional color and color combinations into their work.
5 out of 5 stars!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌈The book itself a visual parade of vibrant hues from stunning photographs of everything from art history to everyday household objects arranged by color. But this guide is far more than just a pretty coffee table book. Bianchi masterfully discusses her approach to color and art, and provides us with a unique and intuitive approach to using color. The vibes are much more chill and relatable than most art books.
🌈For a hands-on crafter like me, this method is perfect. The chapters of different color schemes and vibes, like the monochromes, analogous colors, and how to create the perfect pop of color have directly helped me plan my next projects. I've found myself snapping photos way more often of random objects of a color that inspires me, simply from reading this book. I feel like I've become more observant and appreciative of the world around me, and that's what all great books should do! I would definitely recommend this book for any artist or designer in your life.
🌈I particularly loved the hands-on project ideas and the takeaways from each section. These provide steps to apply the color lessons from the book directly to any creative endeavor. This book doesn't just tell you about color and how to work with it. It shows you how to see it everywhere, use it fearlessly, and express yourself aesthetically.
🌈This is an inspiring resource that I know I will return to again and again, and I look forward to being able to get my hands on a physical copy when I can. I cannot recommend it highly enough to my fellow fiber artists or any creative looking to bring more joyful and intentional color and color combinations into their work.
5 out of 5 stars!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
October 18, 2025
In first flipping through pages, lots of beautiful colours pop out from photographs of all sorts of things, from nature to man-made. A quote included in the book, attributed to Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, says "The more one looks, the more one sees, and the more one sees, the better one knows where to look." This sums up much of what this book teaches, how to look at the colours in the world. From there we can find inspiration and use those insights in our lives, putting together our own colour combinations. The steps the author explains are observe, analyze, and create. The chapters go on to engage us in observing and creating various types of colour combinations, with lots of inspiration, colour photographs and exercises we can do. The writing is captivating and easy to follow and understand. I particularly enjoyed the fun history of colour study throughout history. It was certainly not a boring history monologue. This is a great book for either reference or inspiration. Thank you to Netgalley and Chronical Books for allowing me the opportunity to read an e-copy of this book. The review is all my own opinion.
July 2, 2025
Color Curious is an inspiring look at color from a talented artist. The author takes us through an in-depth look at her color harvesting process inspired by the Bauhuas school: Observe, Analyze, and Create. Beautiful images, including photographs and other art pieces are interspersed with exercises designed to inspire exploration of different types of art and color. I especially enjoyed her essays, which combine art history with memoir. I am excited to begin more color harvesting projects of my own! I am thankful to have received an ebook advanced reader copy from Chronicle Books via NetGalley of this book for voluntary review, and I look forward to purchasing a print copy when available. This will be an excellent addition to my collection of inspirational art books!
August 13, 2025
This was more of a textbook than I was looking for. Each chapter had several pages of rather dense color theory information and personal anecdotes followed by several pages of photographs and a breakdown of the colors in them.
I did not find inspiration either in the text or in the photos. Somehow the color breakdown beside each photo didn't seem quite right and the whole thing left me feeling frustrated and like I don't get color at all. I didn't have the patience for the projects. Perhaps if I had approached it at a different time I would get more from it, but ultimately this book isn't for me.
I do think some artists would find it helpful, however. Brains work differently, after all.
*Thanks to Chronicle Books for providing an early copy for review.
I did not find inspiration either in the text or in the photos. Somehow the color breakdown beside each photo didn't seem quite right and the whole thing left me feeling frustrated and like I don't get color at all. I didn't have the patience for the projects. Perhaps if I had approached it at a different time I would get more from it, but ultimately this book isn't for me.
I do think some artists would find it helpful, however. Brains work differently, after all.
*Thanks to Chronicle Books for providing an early copy for review.
July 4, 2025
This is a beautiful book, just not what I was expecting. I thought there would be more instruction on the use of color in painting, but instead, it's a beautiful exposition on the use of color in different settings. I did find the color palettes useful and it would be great as a way to give photographers ideas for different color groupings. I would have preferred to see more photos and less text, but overall it was quite unique, and eye-catching!
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle books for a NetGalley shelf advanced reader's copy.
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle books for a NetGalley shelf advanced reader's copy.
July 15, 2025
Color Curious: Find Color Inspiration All Around You for Art, Design, and Life
Ana Bianchi
I enjoy quilting one of the most difficult challenges is to choose coordinating colors. Artist Arthor, artist Ana Bianchi informs readers about the different qualities of color. There are hands-on-projects that allow readers to put into practice the principles taught by Ana Bianchi. Color allows us to establish who we are through our color perspective. I enjoyed the color pallets.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC
Ana Bianchi
I enjoy quilting one of the most difficult challenges is to choose coordinating colors. Artist Arthor, artist Ana Bianchi informs readers about the different qualities of color. There are hands-on-projects that allow readers to put into practice the principles taught by Ana Bianchi. Color allows us to establish who we are through our color perspective. I enjoyed the color pallets.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC
October 2, 2025
"Color Curious" is a joyful reminder to slow down and notice the beauty around us. The book is packed with ideas for finding inspiration in everyday colors—whether in nature, design, or daily life—and it makes you want to grab a sketchbook or camera and start exploring. A fun, uplifting resource for anyone who loves art, design, or just wants to see the world with fresher eyes.
I love Chronicle Books because they are always so fun and of high quality. This book met that criteria.
Loved it.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital ARC.
I love Chronicle Books because they are always so fun and of high quality. This book met that criteria.
Loved it.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital ARC.
December 11, 2025
In this book, Bianchi encourages readers to harvest color by paying attention to what we see. Seeking inspiration from nature is one of various sources she cites, like going to the font of creativity’s well. This book teaches artists and and non-artists alike that paying attention to the world around us can teach us about a color’s many complexions and how to combine them for the greatest impact. Examples are supported by images that will bring the teaching to life.
Thank you to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for providing this eARC.
Thank you to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for providing this eARC.
September 22, 2025
NetGalley ARC. This is one I want to buy and hold in my hands to really savor the swatches and the thoughtful photographs of flowers and objects. It's not rigid about color theory (though does offer some easy to follow explanations); instead, it takes noticing, exploring, and playing with colors seriously. It's one I'd like to reread to really understand the underlying concepts, do the projects, dig into the recommended artists, and soak up the inspiration.
June 11, 2025
Absolutely fabulous and a must-have for anyone who studies or works with color. The ebook was fine on my iPad, but difficult to read on my phone. I plan to buy the hardcover when it is released. No matter what medium you work in, this book should be helpful. I received a complimentary copy of this book and chose to write a voluntary, unbiased review.
July 20, 2025
I did not want this book to end. And it is a big book of color! As an artist, color is a special part of my life. This collection of photographs, ideas, and instruction surrounding color is sublime. In my first pass through of the book, I immediately had the inspiration light switch turn on. I’m excited to read through again, and take more time in really immersing myself in its ideas.
August 5, 2025
"Color Curious" by Ana Bianchi explores the vibrant world of colors and their impact on emotions and creativity. The book delves into how different hues influence our mood and perception, weaving together personal anecdotes and scientific insights. Through engaging stories and vibrant illustrations, it invites readers to appreciate the beauty and complexity of the colors around them.
September 2, 2025
This beautiful book is lavishly illustrated and packed with color inspiration. Ana Bianchi weaves color theory, history, and intriguing color exercises together with botanical photos that illustrate her themes. I'm enjoying the exercises immensely on my own color journey!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
October 2, 2025
I highly recommend this book for any artist. As a collage artist myself, this book was beneficial in seeing fresh new ways to view what I gather for my work in surrealism. The author invites the reader into her studio of color to experiment and gather, within their imagination, the glorious colors of the cultures of the world and the surrounding places that they reside. Excellent reference for any artist.
September 30, 2025
Thank you Netgalley, Chronicle Books, and Ana Bianchi for sending me this advanced review copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This was an amazing book for anyone that wants to learn more about color theory! I loved how this book was set up, and it wasn't boring like the books I've read in teh past. It's fast paced, and you will find yourself happily zipping through the pages.
I think my favorite thing is all the swatch sets of colors pulled out of the gorgeous photos! That really helped me understand how colors go together better than any other book has been able to teach me.
This is the perfect book for artists, decorators, and anyone that uses color in their daily lives.
This was an amazing book for anyone that wants to learn more about color theory! I loved how this book was set up, and it wasn't boring like the books I've read in teh past. It's fast paced, and you will find yourself happily zipping through the pages.
I think my favorite thing is all the swatch sets of colors pulled out of the gorgeous photos! That really helped me understand how colors go together better than any other book has been able to teach me.
This is the perfect book for artists, decorators, and anyone that uses color in their daily lives.
September 30, 2025
Very interesting concept. I think it will change the way I view everything in life now. Everything I see will be a pallet that can later be pulled up in my memory for an artwork.
Clear writing and beautiful photos helped me understand the concepts taught by the author.
A sincere thank you Chronicle Books and NetGalley for allowing me to view the advance reader copy, with no obligation to write a review. My review is written freely as a hobby, and is totally my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.
Clear writing and beautiful photos helped me understand the concepts taught by the author.
A sincere thank you Chronicle Books and NetGalley for allowing me to view the advance reader copy, with no obligation to write a review. My review is written freely as a hobby, and is totally my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.
December 31, 2025
I loved the explanations and examples of different color theory concepts (tone, hue, value) and different matching techniques. Very useful when contemplating color combinations for my knitting projects. I liked the visuals she included of her object groupings - it helped to show how different variations of colors looked together in "real life."
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews