Tate: Colour: A Visual History

by Alexandra Loske

Discover the story of colour through the significant scientific discoveries and key artist's works over 400 years. From Isaac Newton's investigations through to Olafur Eliasson's experiential creations, this stunning book documents the fascinating story of colour with an extraordinary collection of original colour material that includes charts, wheels, artists' palettes, swatches and schemes. "In 1704, the scientist Isaac Newton published Opticks , the result of many years of researching light and colour. By splitting white light, Newton identified the visible range of colours, or the rainbow spectrum. In Opticks , he built a colour system around his findings, and he visualised this system in a circular shape, making it one of the first printed colour wheels. The influence of Newton and his followers, combined with the invention of many new pigments as well as watercolours in moist cake form, had made painting with colour an exciting occupation not just for serious artists but also for a much wider audience. The colour revolution had begun." Contents Introduction 1. Unravelling the The Eighteenth-Century Colour Revolution 2. Romantic Ideas & New The Early Nineteenth Century 3. Industrialism to The Later Nineteenth Century 4. Colour for Colour's Colour into the Glossary Bibliography Index

Genres: Art, History, Nonfiction, Design, Science, Art and Photography

240 pages, Hardcover

Published March 7, 2019

Reviews

[EmelineB · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book narrates a history of colours based on a large variety of documents related to colour in artistic, social and scientific practices. The book is further organised chronologically, around five main periods and themes: The 18th century, the colour revolution, and the rainbow; The early 19th century, romanticism and its approach to colours; The later19th century, and the co-evolution of impressionism and industrialisation; The radicalism of the early 20th, and finally, contemporary tools and uses of colours. Within each of this theme, Loske describes the contribution of individuals, movements or family of tools.

The strength of the book first resides in its iconography, but also in Loske's multi-layered approach. It is as interesting to skim through, to trace the many concepts developed in the book or to pick-up on the evolution of objects. Among those, the palette and its representations occupy a place of choice.

[Diane M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Since I am not a color theorist or a painter, but only a frequent museum visitor, only the the first part of this book truly engaged me. By the middle and on to the end, I was just flipping the pages and looking at the illustrations. If a reader has an interest in either Isaac Newton or a particular artist mentioned in the book then they will get out of it what I did.

[Megan Easley-Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated and so interesting to take a historical approach to color through the centuries.