Date: Wednesday, 6th August  

 

Tutor: Clare Ford-Wille has been lecturing for many years, for Birkbeck College,  University of London, the V. and A., Morley College, the City Literary Institute,  as well as the National Gallery, NADFAS/The Fine Arts Society, the National  Trust and the Art Fund

 

Description: Colour has a vital part to play in our understanding and enjoyment of painting  and sculpture. The study day will explore how colours were made and used by  artists and sculptors from the 14th to the 19th centuries. Painting and sculpture  from the earliest times was very colourful. We will explore which pigments were  used from the Middle Ages to the end of the 19th century, where they came from  and how artists made them. Colour is vital in the understanding of a composition,  the subject and meaning of a painting or sculpture, whether used in fresco,  tempera, oil, pastel, or watercolour. The placing of distinct colours throughout  the composition can direct the eye and intensify the impact upon the spectator.  Colours, such as red and green or blue and yellow, can be symbolic or can  identify figures such as Mary Magdalene or St. Peter, in order to clarify a religious  narrative for the viewer. By the 18th century, with the advancement in chemistry, botany and mineralogy,  new colours began to be discovered, such as Prussian Blue or Mauve. Artists,  such as Monet and his contemporaries, continued to experiment with different  techniques and their use of colour in what is known as ‘impressionism’. Colour  was used to create shock, drama and excitement, as in the work of Van Gogh  or the Fauves, such as Matisse at the end of the 19th century.

 

Level of course: Details to follow

 

Student requirements: Details to follow

The schedule: Details to follow