Top Five Sources for Color Inspiration

In spring a design maven’s fancy turns to color. It seems that the long winter hibernation brings out the desire to paint the cave come warm weather, and we start getting a lot more questions about the colors of rooms that run in Met Home or about color in general. And so, with a nod to the season, here are my five top favorite sources for color inspiration.

The first is one of my favorite painters, John Singer Sargent (1856–1925). He was known primarily as a portraitist of the social elite, but he is a brilliant colorist, too. Also, he painted people indoors a lot, so you get the bonus of seeing his color sense applied to rooms (JSSGallery.org has virtually all his work). Pictured above is Lady Agnew of Lochnaw (1892-3).

American art pottery is another great source of color inspiration. This art nouveau Weller umbrella stand is an outstanding piece of springtime color inspiration. What may be the definitive book on Weller is called, oddly enough, Weller Pottery (Schiffer Books). Or Google “Weller” or “American Art Pottery.”

Three on the list is: Japanese kimonos, which are stunning in their capacity for shaking up an expected color scheme with a shot of something new. An excellent website for folk, tribal, and Asian textiles is MarlaMallett.com.

Four: The classic bird prints of John James Audubon (1785­-1851). Pictured is the Louisiana Heron. Start your online browsing with the Audubon Society (Audubon.org).

And last, but not least, consider the wallpapers of William Morris (1834–1896), the British artist and designer of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, and master of the Arts & Crafts style. Morris’s earthy tones in the wallpapers that are now collected by museums are both understated and remarkable.

And if that’s not enough inspiration, check back. I’ve got more to come.

Michael Lassell,
Features Director, Metropolitan Home