A noir, E blanc, I rouge, U vert, O bleu – COLOURS

We associate colour with emotion. Colour facilitates communication, influences our perception and can be used symbolically. But is that all? The role of colour in artistic work is indeed diverse. Yves Klein wanted to remove materiality from his works using International Klein Blue, the colour he created. In the work of the Leipzig painter Hartwig Ebersbach, colour is the source of expressive movement and extreme energy. The catalogue documents the transformative power of colour through a great range of international contemporary art movements: from the structural investigations of Minimal Art and Colour-Field Painting, to the symbolic analyses of Arte Povera and Conceptual Art, and through the rise of colour photography and experimental colour film and their development into artistic media. Using selected works and texts, the publication presents artists who use colour as a conceptual component of their art practice.