THE ARTISTS PALETTE

The paint loaded palettes of fifty world renowned artists are displayed alongside the paintings the artists created using those hues and the colours and brushstrokes employed are analysed to uncover surprising new stories about each artist and their work Presented broadly chronologically the artists featured in this revelatory book range from those working in the 17th century to the present day including Artemisia Gentileschi Paul Cézanne Berthe Morisot Vincent Van Gogh Wassily Kandinsky Georgia O Keeffe and Bridget Riley Each artist s palette whether photographed or visible in self portraits is paired with one or more works by the artist that reflect the colours of the paint remaining on the palette Colour expert and art historian Alexandra Loske skilfully analyses each artist s colour palette and brushstrokes to reveal not only exactly how they used colour in their work but also to tell the story of their journey with colour and the influence of their approach on the wider culture to which they belonged For example Georges Seurat meticulously arranged the paints on his palette in prismatic order isolating the colours and pairing each with a blot of white paint His pointillist technique was equally apparent on his palette and his canvas Kerry James