Support Independent Arts Journalism As an independent publication, we rely on readers like you to fund our journalism and keep our reporting and criticism free and accessible to all. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider becoming a member today. Color, with all its attendant theories, is one of the most basic components of art-making.
Humankind has been preoccupied with its development and analysis for millennia, refracting it into a veritable spectrum of charts that articulate its practice. Whether you’re looking for the key to Paul Klee’s evocative interplay of line and color, curious about the ancestors of modern paint swatches at Lowe’s, or even searching for a captivating hue to inject into your next work of art, three new books give new meaning to the phrase “full color” by guiding us through its fascinating history. Spanning two volumes and more than 800 pages with 1,000 images, The Book of Colour Concepts (Taschen) by science historian Sarah Lowengard and art historian and curator Alexandra Loske aims to be the definitive tome on “the human history of capturing color in words and images.
” Volume one addresses the legacy of color collecting and standards between 1686 and 1963, while volume two deals with the impact of color on spiritualism, music, dynamics of cultural exchange, and influential artistic movements, including the 20th-century German Bauhaus School . Subscribe to our newsletter Get the latest art news, reviews and.
