Jun 19
2011
Pioneers in the field of architectural color, colorists and artists Donald Kaufman and Taffy Dahl create unique palettes and special pigment formulations based on more than thirty years of research on the equation of color + space + light. Since 1976, Donald Kaufman Color has collaborated with the best and best-known talents in architecture and design to mix site-specific palettes, including for Philip Johnson’s Glass House and New York City apartment. Kaufman’s paintings can be found in the Whitney Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art and the Hirshhorn; Johnson described him as “the rare painter who understands architecture.” The team is devoted to realizing the energy of architecture --“architectural color is nothing less than the medium through which we experience architecture…it can enhance or deplete the harmony and balance of the spaces.”
How does color affect your life?
Donald Kaufman gave the final word
Since we are flooded with color advice for decorating, it might be useful to consider what coloring architecture can hope to accomplish, and, in painting rooms, how one would rate the effectiveness and best sequencing of the following strategies.
Recognizing color to have qualities.
Omitting needless colors.
Employing complements.
Using like intensities.
Ignoring trends.
Accounting for peripheral vision.
Using contrast to create brightness.
Acknowledging local conditions and adjacent structures.
Reinforcing hierarchies.
Determining values before hues.
Engineering narrow levels of luminance.
Tuesday, June 28 at 1:17pm
Color is nothing more, and nothing less, than a sensation. It’s commonly thought color is a property of surfaces: the red of the apple’s skin, the brown of the shopping bag’s paper. But we only see the colors of these surfaces because our visual system interprets the light reflected off them. We understand these interpretations as sensations of vision, not unlike the way our fingers sense cold from a January wind or our olfactory nerves register the aroma of smoke from a fire. To make successful color choices it’s critical to understanding how our visual sensations arise, and what they consist of in architectural situations.
Tuesday, June 21 at 10:40pm
Great quote from Donald Kaufman at the June 16th, 2011 on-site Conversations in Context event:
“[the colors on the Glass House site] came from color theory, which like religion, can be used to justify anything!”
Thursday, June 23 at 2:16pm
As an artist I think about color every day. It is one of the three big questions in the studio, part of the shifting triumvirate of color, form, and content. Certain qualities of color and color relationships carry distinct meanings for me, but these meanings are personal, shaped by my own cultural background and experiences. Color is both fixed and fluid, making it evocative and elusive, and the pursuit of the right color is in this sense a paradox. Color is both a personal and universal language, and while the intended meaning of a color may be lost in translation, that color is no less understood by the viewer who brings a different set of cultural values to the viewing.
Working with color is a constant source of pleasure. I experience a genuine thrill I when I see a certain kind of blue next to a certain kind of orange, or some other new and surprising combination. When I hear people describe the thrill of jumping out of airplanes, and other such unfathomable activities, I wonder if this is all simply a matter of relative adrenalin levels… But it is an intense relationship nonetheless.
Thursday, June 23 at 2:20pm
Color Theory and the application of color to objects is a pursuit unlike most others. It is abstract, emotional, and at the same time highly technical.
As a writer, describing color is always a challenge – you can only compare it to other emotions or experiences! As a designer, one of the hardest parts of my job is giving names to colors, which need to be both unique and descriptive, and to communicate across different cultures. Communicating what a color is to a manufacturer on the other side of the world is another challenge filled with technical details, accommodations for lighting or materials, and more often than not, Pantone Numbers.
Donald Kaufman mentioned the dilemma of giving names to colors at the Conversations in Context event at the Glass House last week, and that the solution he and Taffy Dahl employ for their paint is giving only numbers to each color – so that the color can be interpreted for what it is, without the influence and cultural connotations of language.
Though it may be difficult, or even unnecessary, to give a name to color, it is overwhelmingly important that there continue to be designers, artists, architects, etc. out there who know how to interpret, develop and use color. Color invokes such deep emotions, and changes our mood, especially in a space, that whether we realize it or not, color is an integral part of our lives.
Thursday, June 23 at 2:49pm
Our vision is always moving, and is more cinematic than static. Even when we turn to face something, the area of concentration is only
a small fragment of what our vision perceives. Much of
our impression of colors in a space actually occurs ar the visual
margins, perceptually below the threshold of our consciousness.
Constantly registering the ever-changing
seen and unseen surface effects coming at us from all
sides, peripheral vision is one of the most under-exploired
tools that we have.
Thursday, June 23 at 6:07pm
The amount of a color in a space affects the way I think of it. For example, an attic painted a deep, bright apple green with a white ceiling completely depresses me, whereas a bowl or lamp of the same color lifts my spirits.
My favorite book on color is Color: A Natural History of the Palette by Victoria Finlay. She gives a broad description of what color is, the history of it’s perception by man and then divides color by natural sources such as ochre, lapis lazuli and cochineal and gives a brief geographical and written history on the traditional use of each pigment.
Friday, June 24 at 11:13am
Two thoughts, firstly; I have always worn sombre colours, greens, greys, a lot of black, sometimes brown. But recently on a whim I bought a couple of bright gingham shirts. I think that I did this to make up for a very wet and dull spring. I am surprised how many people have noticed and commented. Whilst I have always been rather insensitive to colour these shirts have made me realise how sensitive most people are.
Secondly; the interior colour scheme of our house was apparently designed byBen Nicholson. Whilst there is no written evidence to prove this, he was certainly a close friend to both the architect, Leslie Martin and the person for whom the house was built, textile designer and artist Alastair Morton. The pallet included a lot of bright yellow with white details, grey or natural joinery, external concrete soffits of pale blue and pale yellow and some small areas of strong colours, like pea green and mustard yellow. Over the years each owner has done their own thing. When we bought the house it was all white, absolutely everywhere excepting the front doors which were dark blue. We have found evidence of flock and highly patterned floral wallpaper from earlier owners. There were even horse brasses along the stairs at one time. So each owner has done very different things that have presumably appealed to their taste and pleased them. The fact that the house has a strong modernist character of its own doesn’t seem to have had much bearing on decisions. We are restoring the colours that we like, introducing a few new colours but keeping it quite muted. We have decided we couldn’t live with the bright yellow.
I am not very good at colours and my own rule of thumb is ‘keep it simple’. Unless I really wanted to impress in which case, I’d get some expert advice.
Saturday, June 25 at 12:57pm
Conversation about color is difficult. Words seem inadequate. For me, colors’ effects are spiritual. Certain colors uplift and inspire. Until recently the effects of color have been subconscious for me. Taking a color class, beginning to paint, chosing paint colors for a house remodel, and particpating in the walk of the Philip Johnson estate with Taffy and Don has changed this. Experiencing color consciously has heightened my awareness; this awareness has increased colors’ effects on me and in turn has further deepened my personal experience with color in my surroundings.
Sunday, June 26 at 10:32am
Why are we afraid about using color in our lifes? As i travel north, this is a factor that is repeted as something characteristic. Has it somethng to do with cultural reaction. As darker is the climate, less knoledge of the use of color i find. Its time to open our minds to colors benefits. Why do we react like this?
Sunday, June 26 at 2:21pm
Donald Kaufman gave the Final Word
Since we are flooded with color advice for decorating, it might be useful to consider what coloring architecture can hope to accomplish, and, in painting rooms, how one would rate the effectiveness and best sequencing of the following strategies.
Recognizing color to have qualities.
Omitting needless colors.
Employing complements.
Using like intensities.
Ignoring trends.
Accounting for peripheral vision.
Using contrast to create brightness.
Acknowledging local conditions and adjacent structures.
Reinforcing hierarchies.
Determining values before hues.
Engineering narrow levels of luminance.
Tuesday, June 28 at 1:17pm
Keywords
Selected list of words appearing in this and other conversations.
Carly Hagins
designer, adjunct professor
0
Wow. This is a humongous question.
Here’s the first answer that comes to mind:
A few years ago, I worked at a small design firm in downtown Boston. The office was on the top floor of an old building, had lots of sky lights, and lots of brightly colored walls. Those walls carried me through some long, dark, rainy days. The bright colors made me happier and kept me cheerier. In fact, it was a great job experience, but the first thing I’ve told more than one person about my time with that company is that they had awesomely colorful walls.
Monday, June 20 at 7:56am