Secret Lives of Colour
On sale
9th October 2025
Price: £24.99
‘A mind-expanding tour of the world without leaving your paintbox. Every colour has a story, and here are some of the most alluring, alarming, and thought-provoking. Very hard painting the hallway magnolia after this inspiring primer’ SIMON GARFIELD
THE MODERN CLASSIC, NOW BOLDER, BRIGHTER AND WITH 25 NEW COLOURS.
The history of colour tells the vivid story of civilisation. From scarlet women to imperial purple, leaf green to the white paint that protected against the atom bomb, Picasso’s blue period to the pink Barbie claimed for feminism, The Secret Lives of Colour offers a bright thread throughout human history.
Kassia St Clair’s lifelong fascination with colours and where they come from (whether Van Goph’s chrome yellow sunflowers or Dorothy’s ruby slippers) takes us on an unforgettable journey through our past, present and future.
THE MODERN CLASSIC, NOW BOLDER, BRIGHTER AND WITH 25 NEW COLOURS.
The history of colour tells the vivid story of civilisation. From scarlet women to imperial purple, leaf green to the white paint that protected against the atom bomb, Picasso’s blue period to the pink Barbie claimed for feminism, The Secret Lives of Colour offers a bright thread throughout human history.
Kassia St Clair’s lifelong fascination with colours and where they come from (whether Van Goph’s chrome yellow sunflowers or Dorothy’s ruby slippers) takes us on an unforgettable journey through our past, present and future.
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Reviews
If you want to fall back in love with colour, read The Secret Lives of Colour
A dazzling and vibrant history of colour, from Van Gogh's wilting yellow sunflowers to Turner's deadly green and Picasso's darkest period
This is a gorgeous book
Even Farrow and Ball don't know as much about the secret lore of colour as Kassia St Clair... Almost every page throws up an unexpected detail and insight... Extraordinarily full and interesting...An ideal crib and a valuable resource not only for the design-conscious but for students.
The weirdly fascinating history of your favourite hues from an unwittingly deadly, arsenic-tinged green to Van Gogh's favoured yellow
An excellent, innovative and idiosyncratic cultural history that will colour your thinking...St Clair writes with style, energy and knowledge, explaining many mysteries succinctly and wittily.. Snappily designed, with high production values...[The Secret Lives of Colour is] attractive and diverting.
Beautiful...See how a single colour can tell different stories across the globe.