Stories in Colour cover art

Stories in Colour

Stories in Colour

By: The National Gallery
Listen for free

These are the stories of how colour has changed the world. 'Stories in Colour’ is a vibrant new podcast from the National Gallery in London. In each episode, we uncover the hidden mysteries woven into colour from antiquity to the present day. Along the way, you'll hear from curators, scientists, historians, artists, and more experts, looking at humanity’s efforts to make colour and make meaning with it. And amongst these stories, you will see - and hear - the National Gallery’s paintings in a whole new spectrum of light. https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/podcastCopyright 2026 The National Gallery Art Science Social Sciences
Episodes
  • The hunt for the blackest black

    The hunt for the blackest black
    Jul 1 2026
    Today we're on a hunt with artists through time, searching for the blackest black. We’re after the deepest blacks, the most accurate blacks and the most atmospheric blacks.Beks is joined by artist Stuart Semple to help answer questions such as: is black really a colour and how do we see the colour black?Step back in time to the Palaeolithic era to discover ancient cave paintings at the Lascaux caves. Then jump forward in time to hear about the scientific breakthrough Vantablack and the debates it has caused.-------Stuart Semple is a multidisciplinary British artist whose work spans painting, performance, internet art, and installation. His work is known for its vibrant use of colour and techniques that challenge societal norms and question the role of the artist.-------You can email us with any questions via podcast@nationalgallery.org.ukFind out more about the podcast on our website: www.nationalgallery.org.uk/podcast-------Paintings mentioned: Frans Hals, ‘The Laughing Cavalier’, 1624 © The Wallace Collection, London https://www.wallacecollection.org/explore/collection/search-the-collection/laughing-cavalier/ John Singer Sargent, ‘Madame X (Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau)’, 1883-84 © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/12127 John Singer Sargent, ‘Lord Ribblesdale’, 1902 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/john-singer-sargent-lord-ribblesdale -------Further reading:Find out more about the history of the Lascaux caves: https://lascaux.fr/en/history-of-lascaux/If you want to find out more about how we see colour, check out our first ever episode of 'Stories in Colour': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYTWp_iLRh4&list=PLvb2y26xK6Y5oKGCTKesXyO-LR3f2XcZF&index=19Isaac Newton, ‘Opticks: A Treatise of the Reflexions, Refractions, Inflections and Colours of Light’, 1704 [Book] https://wellcomecollection.org/works/d445akky/items Find out more about Vantablack: https://www.vantablack.co.uk/Take a look at Asif Khan's Hyundai Pavillion: https://www.asif-khan.com/project/hyundai-pavilion/Find out more about Sir Anish Kapoor’s work with Vantablack: https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2020/03/11/anish-kapoor-to-unveil-worlds-blackest-sculptures-during-2021-venice-biennale https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/anish-kapoor/#venue Find out more about Stuart Semple's work: https://stuartsemple.com/ Find out more about MIT's "blackest black" coating and 'The Redemption of Vanity': https://news.mit.edu/2019/blackest-black-material-cnt-0913Robert Fludd, ‘Utriusque cosmi maioris scilicet et minoris metaphysica, physica atque technica historia ... [Tractatus secundus de naturae simia seu technica macrocosmi historia]’, 1624 [Book] https://wellcomecollection.org/works/tymqmuxa/items?canvas=42 -------Episode credits: Guest: Stuart Semple Host and executive producer: Beks Leary Producer: Harry Rosehill Researcher: Hannah Rogers Technicians: Ian Warren, Tom Gulliver and Timothy Carpenter Video Producers: Jeanne Kenyon and Alessandro Sorenti Editor: Oli Mason Theme music: Theo Elwell
    Show More Show Less
    35 mins
  • Rediscovering history’s women colour theorists

    Rediscovering history’s women colour theorists
    Jun 24 2026
    You might have heard of men like Isaac Newton or Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, but who were the pioneering women writing on colour theory?To answer that question, we’re joined by cultural historian Alexandra Loske and The Colour Club founder Zeynep Sagir. Together, they uncover the lives of figures like Martha Gartside, Emily Noyes Vanderpoel and Carry van Biema.From intricate colour grids to radical visual experiments, we study the work, stories and lasting legacies of these women – revealing how their influence is being recognised today.-------Alexandra is a colour expert, art historian and museum curator. Her exhibition 'Colour: A Chromatic Promenade through the Royal Pavilion' was on display at The Royal Pavilion in Brighton in 2025. She is also author of 'The Artist's Palette' and 'Colour: A Visual History'.Zeynep is an artist, colour consultant, and founder of The Colour Club. Through The Colour Club, Zeynep runs workshops, hosts events, and offers consultancy, as well as publishing articles and interviews.-------Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YK3CVlqDe4You can email us with any questions via podcast@nationalgallery.org.ukFind out more about the podcast on our website: www.nationalgallery.org.uk/podcast-------Additional note: Since this episode was recorded, Alexandra has undertaken some additional research into Mary Gartside and has found that her name was Martha Gartside.Find out more about Martha Gartside and Alexandra’s research here: https://www.sussex.ac.uk/broadcast/read/69706https://www.sussex.ac.uk/research/centres/centre-for-life-history-and-life-writing-research/research/projects/lives-in-colour-------Paintings mentioned:Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘The Fighting Temeraire’, 1839 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/joseph-mallord-william-turner-the-fighting-temeraire Angelica Kauffman RA, 'Colouring', 1778-80. Oil on canvas. 1260 mm x 1485 mm x 25 mm. © Royal Academy of Arts, London; photographer: John Hammond. (RA ref. 03/1130) https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/work-of-art/colour -------Further reading: Alexandra Loske, ‘The Artist's Palette: The Palettes Behind the Paintings of 50 Great Artists’, 2024 [Book] Alexandra Loske, ‘Colour: A Visual History’, 2019 [Book] Find out more about ‘The Colour Club’: https://www.thecolourclub.co.uk/ Isaac Newton, ‘Opticks: A Treatise of the Reflexions, Refractions, Inflections and Colours of Light’, 1704 [Book] https://wellcomecollection.org/works/d445akky/items Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, ‘Zur Farbenlehre', 1810 [Book]George Sharf, ‘Allen's shop in St Martin's Lane [...]’, 1829. Watercolour © The British Museum, London https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1862-0614-119 Roy Osborne, ‘Books on Colour 1495-2015: History and Bibliography’, 2020 [Book] Cennino Cennini, ‘Il Libro dell’arte’, produced around late 14th century [Book] Alexandra Loske, ‘Mary Gartside: A female colour theorist in Georgian England’, St Andrews Journal of Art History and Museum Studies, Vol.14, 2010 [Journal article] https://ojs.st-andrews.ac.uk/index.php/nsr/article/download/234/261 Mary Gartside, ‘Essay on Light and Shade’, 1805 [Book] https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1756677/an-essay-on-light-and-book-gartside-mary/ Mary Gartside, ‘An Essay on a New Theory of Colours and on Composition in General’, 1808 [Book] https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1756676/an-essay-on-a-new-book-mary-gartside/Emily Noyes Vanderpoel, ‘Color Problems: A Practical Manual for the Lay Student of Color’, 1902 [Book] https://archive.org/details/colorproblemspra00vand/page/n1/mode/2up Caroline van Biema, ‘Farben und Formen als lebendige Kräfte’, 1930 [Book] https://www.staatsgalerie.de/de/sammlung-digital/farben-und-formen-lebendige-kraefte Bonnie E. Snow and Hugo B. Froehlich, ‘The theory and practice of color’, 1928 [Book] -------Episode credits: Guests: Dr Alexandra Loske and Zeynep Sagir Host and executive producer: Beks Leary Producer: Harry Rosehill Researcher: Hannah Rogers Technicians: Ian Warren and Tom Gulliver Video Producers: Jeanne Kenyon and Alessandro Sorenti Editor: Oli Mason Theme music: Theo Elwell
    Show More Show Less
    50 mins
  • Decoding paintings through colour

    Decoding paintings through colour
    Jun 17 2026
    How do the colours artists choose – and the ways each of us experience them – help us find a story?Join Beks and author Chloë Ashby as they take a closer look at how to ‘read’ colour in some of the National Gallery’s most iconic paintings. From Van Gogh to Caravaggio, they examine how different artists use colour to guide narrative, shape meaning and even evoke emotion.Whether you’re an art lover or new to art history, uncover hints and tips for how to decode your favourite paintings through colour.-------Chloë is an author and award-winning arts critic. She is the author of Wet Paint (2022) and Second Self (2023). Her third novel, ‘Family Friends’, will be published by Penguin Fig Tree in summer 2026. She is also the author of two non-fiction books on art history: ‘Look At This If You Love Great Art (2021)’ and ‘Colours of Art: The Story of Art in 80 Palettes’ (2022).-------Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iOg5ICy090You can email us with any questions via podcast@nationalgallery.org.ukFind out more about the podcast on our website: www.nationalgallery.org.uk/podcast-------Paintings mentioned: Édouard Manet, ‘A Bar at the Folies-Bergère’, 1882 © Courtauld Gallery, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust) https://gallerycollections.courtauld.ac.uk/object-p-1934-sc-234 Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, ‘The Supper at Emmaus’, 1601 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/michelangelo-merisi-da-caravaggio-the-supper-at-emmaus Diego Velázquez, ‘The Toilet of Venus ('The Rokeby Venus')’, 1647-51 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/diego-velazquez-the-toilet-of-venus-the-rokeby-venus Hilaire-Germain-Edgar Degas, ‘Combing the Hair ('La Coiffure')’, About 1896 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/hilaire-germain-edgar-degas-combing-the-hair-la-coiffure Vincent van Gogh, ‘Sunflowers’, 1888 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/vincent-van-gogh-sunflowers Peter Paul Rubens, ‘The Judgement of Paris’, Probably 1632-5 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/peter-paul-rubens-the-judgement-of-paris-------Further reading: Chloë Ashby, ‘Colours of Art: The Story of Art in 80 Palettes’, 2022 [Book] Chloë Ashby, ‘Look at This if You Love Great Art’, 2021 [Book]Find out more about Hilaire-Germain-Edgar Degas’s fiery painting ‘Combing the Hair ('La Coiffure')' on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOSllLel-UI Explore 'The Story of Van Gogh's Yellow Palette' from the National Gallery's Chemistry of Colour YouTube series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdapnts7kIkFind out more about the restoration of Rubens’s ‘The Judgement of Paris’ here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiL3z0a9-eo -------Episode credits: Guest: Chloë Ashby Host and executive producer: Beks Leary Producer: Harry Rosehill Researcher: Hannah Rogers Technicians: Ian Warren and Tom Gulliver Video Producer: Alessandro Sorenti Editor: Paul Frankl Theme music: Theo Elwell
    Show More Show Less
    46 mins
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
No reviews yet