A Closer Look: Colour

“”A Closer Look”” is the new series title for the updated and refreshed National Gallery Pocket Guide range. The series has been enhanced with a stronger format, attractive design, new photography, and additional information. It is self-evident that colour is fundamental to painting, but it is not always obvious from looking at pictures what kinds of materials may be used by an artist to make colour. This “”Pocket Guide “”explains how coloured pigments are combined with a medium to form a paint layer, and how this affects our perception of the appearance of colour. It not only describes the materials of colour but also explains colour theories and examines writings about colour, including painters treatises. Through a selection of superb pictures from the National Gallery, London, including works by Piero della Francesca, Leonardo, Titian, Caravaggio, Canaletto, Rembrandt, Velazquez, Monet, and Seurat, the authors demonstrate how painters through the centuries have exploited the characteristics of colour in paint.

David Bomford has contributed to A Closer Look: Colour as an author.David Bomford is senior restorer of paintings at the National Gallery, London. Mark Leonard is conservator of paintings at the Getty Museum.Ashok Roy has contributed to A Closer Look: Colour as an author.Ashok Roy is Director of Scientific Research at the National Gallery, London.