Hella Jongerius, an influential Dutch designer and an art director for the interior brand Vitra, is challenging this prejudice in an exhibition at the Design Museum in London. Her aim in “Breathing Colour”, spelled out in large, Helvetica-inflected letters at the entrance, is to “pit the power of colour against the power of form”.
The exhibit is in the basement of the museum’s new home in Kensington. This seems a curious decision for an exhibition that places so much emphasis on the power of light to influence perceptions. Instead of making use of daylight, however, the space has been divided into three zones lit to replicate conditions from morning, noon and evening. Throughout, a variety of installations illustrate how differently colour behaves depending on texture, density, movement and—naturally—light.
Breathing Colour blurs the boundaries between art and design. Combining intriguing shapes with extensive research; this exhibition questions our preconceptions of colour and embraces its imperfection and experimentation.
The exhibition is divided into separate spaces that simulate daylight conditions at specific times of the day – morning, noon and evening. These three phases explore the impact of changing daylight on our perception of colour. Each installation includes a series of three-dimensional objects as well as textiles, some of which are hand-woven while others are produced on industrial looms. (from the exhibition website)