COLOUR VIA: is an exploration of next-generation material colouring processes. Featuring eight pioneering designers and companies who are responding thoughtfully to the complex questions posed by waste and toxicity, this exhibition looks forward to vibrant and sustainable material futures.

Opening Panel Discussion: Join Laura Perryman, Curator of Colour Via: and Founder of Colour of Saying and designers from the show in a discussion of sustainable colour futures, Monday 17th September, 7pm. 

In an exciting collaboration between Surface Matter, a leading authority on materials innovation and application and Colour of Saying a London-based consultancy specialising in experiential colour and materials design - Colour Via: opens up discussion around new opportunities and directions for sustainable design and will be a space to experience new colour processes as they emerge.

“Everything on display either limits waste or has a sensitive approach to colour production” explains Colour and Materials Designer and Trends Forecaster Laura Perryman, Founder of Colour of Saying and curator of Colour Via:

“Colouring a material can completely change it’s perception, usage and value but as our consumption of materials has grown we’ve seen colour being applied ever more mechanically to surfaces, degrading our experience of colour and marring our environment.”

This exhibition will bring together the fresh and important voices of designers who are challenging mass colour manufacture and crossing industry boundaries in pursuit of more considered practices and cleaner applications.

“The presence of CMD [Colour, Material, Design] as an established design discipline is transforming the way we make colour process choices,” says Perryman,

“Colour Via: is a platform for those visionary designers who are working intelligently with circular methods and conscientious applications.”

THE EXHIBITION WILL FEATURE:

Jessica de Hartdog, Charlotte Kidger, Agne Kucerenkaite, Liga Studio, Living Colour, Llot Llov, Martens & Visser, Mirrl.

Every exhibit has been selected by Perryman for its illustration of a significant shift in how we think about, apply and create colour and will highlight one or more of the exhibition’s sub-themes:

Reductionism

will explore elegant and efficient approaches to colour-led waste limitation. Michiel Martens & Jetske Visser will be showing textiles that, in a conscious recasting of the very fuel of the industrial revolution, use steam to simultaneously create and fix colour onto silk. “The created patterns and shapes” Visser explains, “are the imprint of the steam on the fabric, records of an ephemeral moment.” This method of application results in tonal gradients that will be echoed in this section by the work of Liga Studio whose work neatly combines digital precision and play.

Responsible Acts

will put colour to the fore of disruptive design, harnessing desire and sensorial colour experiences to incite change. “Dialogue is no longer enough,” says emerging designer Agne Kucerenkaite, who introduces colour to her ceramic glazes with metals extracted from industrially polluted soil and water. Jessica de Hartdog is also interested in the reconciliation of moral and aesthetic principles and will be showing joyful palettes that embrace the inherent colour histories of post-consumer waste. Charlotte Kidger will complete this section with beguiling 3D forms that combine the pre-existing colours of polyurethane foam, a by-product of CNC fabrication, with applied resin pigments.

Control & Coincidence

will offer insights into dynamic colour exploration. Llot Llov will be displaying finished furniture coloured via osmosis as well as hygroscopic colouration in process. “The colour range and variety of pattern,” they say of their innovative technique, “is as endless as its applicability.” Joining Llot Llov are inventive Glasgow-based Mirrl whose solid surfaces use marbled layers of their own recycled resin inspired by Japanese craft techniques.

Embracing the Future

the final sub-theme will present the case for a holistic approach to colouration that integrates biology and technology. In a compelling model for sustainable materiality, Living Colour use live bacteria and cymatic (sound) frequencies to create colour without chemicals and with very little water. Visitors to Colour Via will be able to see samples of silk coloured by the interaction of Janthina- bacterium Lividum – a purple, soil-dwelling bacterium and sound.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

About Surface Matter

“Proud Materialists”

Surface Matter is a leading authority on material innovation and application. Its purpose is to discover the latest materials and introduce them to the people who can make the best use of them.

LDF18 will see the introduction of Surface Matter Selects, a week-long programme of workshops, events and talks, all focused on Colour, Material and Design. Colour Via: will be open throughout the festival and promises to be
a highlight, inviting industry specialists and curious members of the public to meet the people and processes pushing the boundaries of design and materiality.

“Materialism is the difference between choosing a material that will ‘do the job’ and the material that will ‘make the job’.”

www.surfacematter.co.uk @surfacematter

About Colour of Saying

“We are materialistic but only for the right reasons.”
Colour of Saying create forward-thinking colour and material design insights and experiences for brands.

Their expertise in trend forecasting, materials, product design and art direction enables Colour of Saying to guide businesses in making successful and considered aesthetic choices. They have worked with brands as diverse as Nokia, Toyota, Speedo and Sainsbury’s.

“A subtle difference in surface texture or a shift in colour has a huge impact on the senses. The ability to identify and harness colour, material and finish is imperative to experience.”

www.colourofsaying.com @colour_of_saying @ColourofSaying

Location_

Surface Matter, 29 Westgate Street, London E8 3RL Dates 15th - 22nd September 2018
Late night opening 17th & 19th 6pm - 9pm
15th, 16th & 22nd 10am - 4pm

17th- 21st 9.30am - 5.30pm

Explore_

For more information about Colour Via and the participating designers, please contact hello@colourofsaying.com

#ldf18 #colourvia #colourofsaying #SurfaceMatterSelects

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DISCUSS_

Opening Discussion: Monday 17th, Join Laura Perryman, Curator of Colour Via: and Founder of Colour of Saying,
for a panel discussion exploring the future of conscious colour. Featuring designers from the exhibition and
hosted at Surface Matter. Book tickets (https://tinyurl.com/ yc9bdxjb)