Having enjoyed putting the red palette together I have made a more neutral one using the white end of the Farrow & Ball paint chart and a number of ‘finds’ I have in the studio, reminding me of happy times away from the city. The subtlety of the shades and hues of white are beautiful. The textures of the grasses and feathers work really well with the paint and paper qualities too.
Evocative, technical, predictive, informative, for matching, mixing, ordering, cataloguing, of materials, surfaces, finishes, whims and traditions…
Working across the fields of surface design, textiles, public art and fine art I have come across many ways to represent colour in order to communicate qualities. Whether it be for perfecting a match for production, or generating an evocative palette for a client, each niche within the industry has its way of doing things. Black for the Northern Line, double yellow for no parking, gold for the winner, and red for wrong. From Global Color, to Farrow & Ball, Pantone to Berisfords the language of colour is key. Some give codes, other names, sometimes a swatch, others a smudge, universal, local, a science and an art!
Seductive, formal, in a book, or on a card, each help to create the colours in the world around us, and while the skills of the individuals choosing, producing and matching will no doubt be overlooked by most, may the colours continue to sing, calm, provoke and much more.
I’ve brought some of the various forms of colour I work with together to brighten up this grey, wet Monday in February.
Kate Farley - drawn to design 