Art and Colour - Day 2 of 5 (in-venue in Winchester) Renaissance Colour: Innovation, Theory and Practice

Please select this event if you would like to book Day 2 of the 2026 Jean Bolton Memorial Study course presented by The Arts Society Hampshire and Isle of Wight Area in-venue in Winchester.

Friday 6th November 2026

Dr Paula Nuttall - Renaissance Colour: Innovation, Theory and Practice

What distinguishes Renaissance colour from that of the Middle Ages? Although pigments were mostly the same as in the earlier period, the expectations of painting, and its colouristic potential, changed significantly between 1400 and 1600. Responding to the new emphasis on the ‘imitation of nature’ i.e. the lifelike representation of light, form and space, artists such as Van Eyck and Piero della Francesca explored new ways of employing and applying colour, aided by technical developments, notably oil painting. Concomitantly, the evolution of art theory prompted new approaches to colour, beginning with Alberti in 1430s Florence, through to Leonardo’s almost colourless tonal unity (sfumato) and its polar opposite, the ‘unnatural’ colour of Mannerist painters such as Pontormo; and the highly consequential sixteenth-century Italian debate on the merits of ‘colour’ versus ‘drawing’, exemplified by the paintings of Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael and Titian.

We shall also consider Renaissance colour in a wider context, including the relationship between pigments and trade, and Venice’s special status as a hub. How did people experience colour in the everyday, for instance in churches, in a period that saw a shift from lavish late Gothic polychromy to colouristic restraint? How was colour used to make social distinctions through dress? How did painters use colour in composition? How do pigments react and change over time, affecting how we see Renaissance paintings today?

Fees

Tickets are £35 per day and include 3 superb lectures plus morning coffee/tea and a light lunch with wine/soft drinks. 

This year we are offering a reduced total fee of £165 (a saving of £10 overall) when you select all 5 days as a bundle. If you are interested in this option please return to the Ticket Tailor box office and select the first option.

The day will run from 10.30am - 3.30pm.

The course is open to anyone - you do not have to be a member of The Arts Society to attend. Feel free to pass the details of any of our events on to others you think may be interested.

All proceeds from this event go to support art in the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Area,

For more details of our events please go to https://theartssocietyhantsiowarea.org.uk/Special/Special.aspx

Once you have purchased your ticket you will receive confirmation by return. The organiser will send a reminder with further relevant information on the Monday before each event.