The Laws of Contrast of Colour and Their Application to the Arts: of painting, decoration of buildings, mosaic work, tapestry and carpet weaving, calico printing, dress, paper staining

by M. E. Chevreul

Overview

"The Laws of Contrast of Colour: And Their Application to the the Arts" by M. E. Chevreul is a classic treatise in which Chevreul explores how the perception of a colour is influenced by those adjacent to it. He formulates the "law of simultaneous contrast," arguing that two juxtaposed colours will appear more dissimilar than they actually are. The work examines how these perceptual effects operate in painting, decoration, textiles, mosaics, stained glass, calico printing, and other visual arts, offering artists principles to exploit colour interactions for harmony, vibrancy, and optical effect.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940184428741
Publisher:	Anthony Bly
Publication date:	10/04/2025
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Michel Eugène Chevreul (1786–1889) was a pioneering French chemist and colour theorist. Born in Angers, France, he moved to Paris at age 17 to study under the chemist Vauquelin and later became his assistant.
ational contributions to the chemistry of animal fats, isolating stearic, oleic, and margaric acids, and greatly influencing soap and candle industries.

In 1824 he was appointed director of dye works at the Gobelins tapestry manufactory in Paris, where he confronted practical issues of colour in textiles and developed his theories of contrast and colour perception.
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His 1839 work De la loi du contraste simultané des couleurs (translated and reissued in English) laid a scientific foundation for modern colour theory and deeply influenced artists, especially in the Impressionist and Neo-Impressionist movements.
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He was a long-lived scholar, active into advanced age, earning honors such as the Copley Medal, and is memorialized among the names inscribed on the Eiffel Tower.