Touring around Washington during FotoWeekDC. and looking at NightGallery, the after-dark program of large scale projections appearing on the city’s major architectural landmarks, including The Corcoran Gallery of Art and the Park at Dupont Circle, I discovered the work of NY-based photographer Tria Giovan. The depth of the color in her Hamptons beaches images made the photographs transcend the archetypical beach image—the images even transcend their subject matter. That she could take something so recognizable and take it beyond itself is amazing.
When I love art and bring into my life it can inspire the palette of the entire room. The saturated color here makes me think about ochres, or pairing with a deep beige neutral like Sepia Tan 1116,* or Barley 199, a yellow- based cream highlighted with gray. Pumpkin Patch 055 would make a great accent color for pillows.
Winter sky and autumn fog, the grays of the sky, the warm putty color of the wet sand-- these images reveal how a mix of neutrals interact to convey a strength and depth of color that’s impossible when they stand alone.
In this dining room I used Venitian plaster and layered four 4 colors: Bradstreet beige HC 48, Elmira white HC 84, a hand mixed color combination, and an ostrich plaster application in a thinned out version of White Dove OC - 17. The result is an overall color that transcends itself to coordinate with so many different colors it becomes ethereal. It’s a color you just love to be around.
*all paint colors by Benjamin Moore
