Color: A Natural History of the Palette

You'll be taken on an intense journey through time and around the globe by Victoria Finaly as she reveals little known information about the origins and sources of color pigments.

This personal account navigates though seldom discussed topics written in a manner that demonstrates an enthusiasm and curiosity—countering any opportunity for this to be a dry account of facts about chemicals. Do not expect to sit and read this book for any length of time. The information (while fascinating) can be overwhelming. This is one of those reads to chip away at chapter-by-chapter; nor is it meant to be used (alone) as a text in a color course.

Finaly takes us through her search to reveal exotic tidbits about how pigments are (and were) made. From beetle bug blood (used to create the color carmine red) to ingested mango leaves (via a cow) for the color Indian Yellow watercolor, Finaly documents her travels to find, see, and touch while noting important cultural and historical facts along the way. The only disappointing section in the book is of the few photos. With Finaly’s ability to transport you to different environments one would hope that she would have included more visual examples of her experiences taken from her wanderings. Overall a wonderful book that allows the curious to finally discover the secrets of how color is acquired.

Color: A Natural History of the Palette

by Victoria Finlay

Making a Color Exclusive

Logos, slogans, and colors, become synonymous with a product, company, cause or sports team over time. Studies to support consumer driven responses to color are constantly being monitored by the marketplace to maximize data on current and future color trends. Because color can stand independently of words, it is capable of being recognized on its own —devoid of any reinforced logo or text. With this in mind, should an organization strive to protect their color assets through trademark? Not unlike a logo or company slogan, colors can also be protected under the umbrella of trademark. But can these measures extend to the name of a color as well? Syracuse University filed a federal trademark for the exclusive rights to the word “orange”. From the university’s perspective it was a logical move toward protecting their sports team name (which in 2004 had been edited down from “Orangemen” to simply “ Orange ”). Even though the official filing was done in 2006, several colleges have ...

Frappuccinos Minus Bugs

The vegan community can rejoice today. Starbucks will no longer use cochineal ( koch-i-neel ) extract in their Strawberries & Crème Frappuccino® and Strawberry Banana Smoothie. Other products such Raspberry Swirl Cake, Birthday Cake Pop, Mini Doughnut with pink icing, and Red Velvet Whoopie Pie will continue to be produced with the ingredient until June of this year. The tip-off that lead to an online post (hosted by the website thisdishisvegetarian.com ) was given last month by a barista working at a midwest Starbucks. A petition was posted on change.org and PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) also joined the fray to show their support. All aforementioned parties later applauded the policy change today on their respective blogs. Fleeting as some stories are, time will be the final judge on whether this story has any lasting impression on consumers. Approved by the FDA , cochineal has a long and illustrious history . With a positive nod toward social respons...

Munsell’s Crusade to Instruct the Masses

We often take for granted the past work done by pioneers such as Albert H. Munsell. Painter, teacher, and inventor, Munsell created the most influential color-modeling system for its time. His efforts devised a “rational way to describe color” through the of use clear decimal notation; using hue, value, and chroma into uniform yet independent dimensions within a three-dimensional space. This idea broke with the traditional approach of identifying colors through a naming scheme, which Munsell thought was “foolish” and “misleading”. Munsell Color System, Atlas of Color Charts. The color system Munsell built back in the 1900 ’ s continues to serve educators, visual artists, and the industries who depend on color matching technologies to produce their products and services. The Munsell Color Company website has a historical overview of Munsell’s legacy as well as examples of company projects that continue to advance the process of achieving accurate color. To peer inside the...

All Color Matters

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