2025

Hello Colour Lovers,

This special edition, Colour Studies - An Exploration of Colour, is a collection of writing and perspectives from artists and printmakers who have brought their unique insights, reflective practices, and experimentation to the additive and subtractive qualities of colour. Very many thanks to the contributors to this special edition: Kim Robertson, Jon Malis, Cathie Crawford, Deborah Cornell and Richard Cornell, Joanna Rucklidge, Carol Lee Mei Kuen, Adrienne Momi, Ria Czerniak-LeBov, Natasha Norman, Fiona Hamilton and Sam Nias.

Other activities have included a celebration and exploration of colour featuring an exhibition and a colour seminar. The Colour Exhibition (8 – 12 April 2024) included a fascinating range of artworks, including screen-based works, prints, book works, paintings, textiles, dye pieces, glassworks, installations, and sculptures, each artist exploring what colour means to them.  

In collaboration with The Colour Group GB, the Colour in Art seminar was held at Bower Ashton Campus on Wednesday, 10th April 2024. Colour experts were asked to present their insights and practices. 

More recently,  we hosted a series of online lectures titled From Colour Fundamentals to Colour Applications Across Design and Industry. Understanding the role of colours across industries varies significantly. It requires different skills, languages, and tools to communicate effectively and accurately. The series of lectures comprises nine inspirational women speakers who are experts and practitioners in their respective fields. All participants are working and drawing from their respective disciplines, including printing, fashion design, product design, art, interior design, the built environment (design, materials, urban planning, conservation), and material science and production. They explore and discuss current thinking about the role of colours across these disciplines. More information can be found here about the speakers and the subjects.

In collaboration with The Bristol Materials Network, we hosted a series of mini-exhibitions across the eight ‘Reel Cases’ (redundant firehose voids) at Bower Ashton Campus, featuring books, samples, and artefacts about colour. Subjects include colour naming, colour perception, colour printing, Pantone and paint charts, printing with iridescent and gold pigments, colour forecasting, and commercial printing technologies. 

Please enjoy!

Carinna Parraman,

Professor of Design, Colour and Print at the Centre for Print Research, April 2025