The Historical past of Artwork in 39 Pigments”

In a brand new podcast episode from Yale College Press, creator Kelly Grovier talks about his new e-book, The Art of Colour: The History of Art in 39 Pigments. “Pigments are the syllables artwork speaks in,” Grovier writes within the e-book. “To know what they’re saying, it could be useful to hint their discovery and observe the gradual accrual of connotations over time. The place etymology entails establishing a phrase’s genesis and evolution, maybe we would name the method pursued right here, of mapping the emergence of a given pigment in an effort to recognize extra profoundly its significance in a given work, one thing analogous: artymology.”

In the podcast, Grovier talks in regards to the historical past of bone black, ultramarine, mummy brown, Indian yellow, and extra. He makes a compelling case that reconstructing the forgotten myths and little-known scientific discoveries behind the creation of particular pigments may help us perceive in a brand new manner how the colours in a given paintings have an effect on us, and in the end enrich our expertise of artwork. It’s a recent method to the historical past of colour, and Grovier presents an thrilling seek for intriguing and weird tales; in his telling, a colour’s connotations are by no means mounted however are endlessly evolving.

Hearken to “Understanding Art Through the History of Pigments” and study extra at yalebooks.yale.edu.